Herren-Sulzbach - Religion

Religion

From the Early Middle Ages onwards, Sulzbach was the hub of a parish. The current church itself dates, at least in its oldest parts, from the Romanesque period. It was taken over in 1290 by the Order of Saint John. The Order soon owned roughly 500 Morgen (about 160 ha) of land. Sometime in the time that followed, a preceptory arose in Sulzbach. In 1556, the Reformation was introduced. Although the Order remained in existence, even in the Protestant church, they could no longer hold their ground in Sulzbach. In the Waldgravial-Rhinegravial House of Grumbach, the Protestant parish of Herren-Sulzbach was founded that same year. Belonging to it from the beginning were all villages in the Amt of Grumbach but for those that lay on the river Glan. Only in 1808, when Grumbach was raised to a parish in its own right, did the arrangement change. Hausweiler and Merzweiler were then assigned to the newly founded parish of Grumbach. Until the Thirty Years' War, all the villagers were Protestant, but thereafter, other denominations were also tolerated. None, however, ever earned any particular significance. Even today, the overwhelming majority of Herren-Sulzbach inhabitants are Evangelical. Of the original Romanesque church, only the tower is preserved. The churchtower is both a watchtower and a defensive tower. On each side it has arrowslits and on the south side are two jutting stones that served as a support for the drawbridge. In 1714 and 1715, the aisleless, quireless, wooden-roofed nave that still stands today was built. Noteworthy inside is the gallery upon eight-sided wooden pillars whose balustrade bears paintings of Bible stories. These pictures of simple composition are ascribed to the painter Johann Georg Engisch. They were renovated from the ground up in 1971 and 1972. The Stumm organ comes from 1822. Beginning in 1606, the church’s crypt served as the burying place for the Grumbach feudal lords. Among Herren-Sulzbach’s pastors have been a few descendants of the well known Pietist Philipp Jakob Spener (1635-1705), such as Johann Karl Spener, Friedrich Wilhelm Spener, Friedrich Philipp Spener and August Ludwig Jakob Euler. Even the regional historical researcher, Otto Karsch, was the pastor in Sulzbach.