Annette Kurschus inaugurates Observant Church

Restoration completed / Guests enjoy acoustics

After a year and a half of restoration and renovation, the house of worship is once again open for church music concerts, academic gatherings and church services: with ceremonial speeches and a sermon by the President of the Evangelical Church of Westphalia, Annette Kurschus, the Protestant University Church in Münster - known to many as the Observantenkirche - was rededicated this weekend.

In ceremonial speeches, representatives of the Westphalian Wilhelms University of Münster (WWU), including Prorector Dr. Marianne Ravenstein, university preacher Prof. Dr. Traugott Roser and the Dean of the Faculty of Protestant Theology, Prof. Dr. Hans-Peter Großhans, recalled the eventful history of the Baroque building, which was first consecrated as a monastery church in the 17th century.

In her speech, Marianne Ravenstein emphasized the coexistence of science and religion. "As a university committed to the freedom of the sciences, EMU preserves space for religion and religious observances and thereby respects and promotes religious practice in the lives of students and employees," she said.

After its destruction in World War II, reconstruction and several renovations ensured that the church enjoys a special place in the concert life of the city of Münster, not least because of its acoustics. The most recent construction measures, costing a total of around 2.3 million euros, had become necessary, among other things, due to subsidence of the foundation. The "tour de force" of all those involved has paid off, said the prorector.

Sermon by Annette Kurschus, President of the Evangelical Church of Westphalia

Liturgy for the re-commissioning of the Protestant University Church of Münster

Greeting by the Prorector for Studies and Teaching, Dr. Marianne Ravenstein