Drawn from the pages of faith, the name Taborkirche echoes the Mount Tabor in Israel. It is where the Transfiguration of Jesus is said to have occurred. This Taborkirche stands as a testament to centuries of faith and transformation in Berlin.
The Taborkirche is the church of the Evangelical Berlin-Hohenschönhausen Congregation. Since 2004 it is a member of the Protestant umbrella organisation Evangelical Church of Berlin-Brandenburg-Silesian Upper Lusatia. You’ll find this church in the Lichtenberg borough, specifically in Alt-Hohenschönhausen.
Let’s step back in time. The Taborkirche is by far the oldest existing building in this locality. Construction began in the late 13th century, possibly around 1230. Imagine this structure standing here almost 100 years before the village was even mentioned in records.
The oldest part of the church is its 13th-century choir. It was built from granite in the late Romanesque style, complete with a rib vault. Picture Heinrich Billerbeck, the parson of Hohenschönhausen in 1352. He exposed a fraud claiming to be the deceased Waldemar ‘the Great’.
Around 1450, the two-nave prayer hall was added. Simple boulders formed its walls. A vaulted roof was erected. It was supported by a central square pier. Then around 1470, a half-timbered tower was added to the church’s southern side. The von Röbel family became patrons of the church in 1480.
The church transitioned in 1539, along with Prince Elector Joachim II Hector. They converted to Lutheranism. The Taborkirche became Lutheran, mirroring the shift of most of the electorate. The tower saw its first major reconstruction in 1615. Repairs and renovations occurred almost every century thereafter.
The Thirty Years’ War in 1626 brought devastation. Swedish troops and the Imperial Army ravaged Hohenschönhausen. They plundered the Taborkirche. The parish suffered immensely, with only a few families surviving the war’s aftermath.
In 1714, the peaked spire was replaced with a domed top and a weathervane. Christian Friedrich von Röbel sold the manor estate in 1736. Adam Ebersbach, a Berlin merchant, became the new patron. He financed a renovation in 1738.
During Frederick ‘the Great’s reign, mulberry trees were planted in the cemetery. Schoolchildren collected the leaves for silk production. After Prussia’s defeat in 1759, Austrian and Russian soldiers looted the church. They took anything of value.
Under King Frederick William III, the congregation joined the Evangelical Church in Prussia in 1817. It was renamed Taborkirche in 1905. However, it was also still known as ‘village church’.
The Taborkirche remarkably survived the Second World War unscathed. In 1945, Hohenschönhausen fell into the Soviet-controlled Eastern Sector of Berlin. In 1952, the dilapidated domed top of the tower was removed due to material shortages. The south tower has remained a stump ever since.
Inside, the original altar, depicting Mary of Nazareth, now resides in the Märkisches Museum. In its place, a wooden altar from Berlin-Wartenberg was installed in 1924. The pulpit dates back to the early 17th century. The christening bowl of 1671 displays the arms of the von Röbel family.
As you stand here, consider the Taborkirche’s long history. It has withstood wars, religious shifts, and political upheaval. The Taborkirche remains a symbol of faith and resilience in the heart of Berlin.