A Visit to Marburg –Cathedrals and a Castle

On Saturdays we get to take trips.  We can drive anywhere within a 500 km radius of Frankfurt, which includes most of central Europe.  Most of the missionaries scatter to go see and do things on the weekends, returning for church on Sundays.  It’s a lot of fun to be in a place like this!

Today John and I and our intern traveled about an hour north to the town of Marburg to visit an old castle there and a wonderful old town.  The weather here is perfect right now, in the low 80s, sunny and warm.  We are so happy to be here.

Here’s what this castle looks like.  The first tower was built in about 900.  Additions were made throughout the centuries.  In the 1200s, the county of Hesse broke away from Thuringia, and Marburg became a really important seat of government for the landgraves.

Last week in Wartburg, we learned about Elisabeth of Thuringia who devoted her life to the poor and was later given Sainthood.  She lived in the castle there from 1211-1228.  Then she came to Marburg and died here at age 24.  The Elizabethkirche in the town below the castle was built from 1235-83.  It’s Germany’s second Gothic church and Elizabeth’s tomb is here.

This is what the castle complex looks like:

Here is the walk up to the castle:

And the view from above down to the town:

There were several wedding parties here at the castle today.  This is the inner courtyard:

Marburg also is the home of one of the oldest universities in Germany.  This part of the old castle is now student housing:

 

We walked through the areas that are now like a museum, showcasing artifacts from the history of Marburg.

How a half-timber home is built.

Then we walked down some stairways to the town below to the Lutheran church, the old town square, and the fun the shopping streets where we found the most delicious lunch.

I love the old tile roofs.

The Lutheran church:

Baptismal fonts, old and older:

Here are the places we wandered.  You can see the university buildings are mixed into the town.

This is Barfuss Strasse (barefoot street), full of good smells and lots of outdoor cafes.

This is the town square.

The old city hall building is at the top of this model of the town square.

After walking past all the cafes, we picked the one that looked the most delicious.  I think we picked well!  I’ve never had such good food here.  Marburg is famous for these deep dish baked meal called Auslauf.  There are as many to choose from as there are pizzas in a pizza shop.

John had Käse Spätzle (German noodles and cheese)and I had #87 Auflauf with potatoes, vegetables cheese and the most delicious cream sauce.  They were piping hot and oh, so so delicious!

Look who we bumped into in the Marktplatz!!  This is a group of OCG friends (Office of General Counsel, or lawyers).  They chose the same outing today.  It was great to see them.

Have you ever seen chocolate NOODLES???

The homes in the square are historic half-timbered houses dating back to the 1300-1700s.  The stone home below is the oldest of them all, built in 1318!  This town was spared destruction during the war, thank goodness!

The church below the castle goes by several names. It is the Lutheran’s Parrish Church of St. Marien’s Church, St. Mary’s Church and The Church Between The Castle and the Market.

Then we walked to the Elisabethkirche built to honor Saint Elizabeth who is buried here.

Construction  on the Elisabethkirche started in 1235, the year Saint Elizabeth was canonized. The church was consecrated in 1283. The towers weren’t finished until 1340. The church was the property of the Order of the Teutonic Knights.

These beautiful churches are magnificent and most are empty.  I think about the people who sacrificed to create these masterpiece structures built to honor God.  Where are the worshippers today??  Are we just visiting tourists?  I feel God’s presence here, in these beautiful old churches.  I hope others come here to feel that too.