Alte Bethlehemkirche

Journey back to 1700. Imagine the small village of Ginnheim, now a district of Frankfurt. Picture the newly built Alte Bethlehemkirche. Its simple exterior, a single-nave hall church, stood as a testament to the resilience of the Lutheran community. For nearly two centuries, Ginnheim was a place of religious divide. The ruling counts of Hanau-Münzenberg had enforced the Reformed faith. Yet, many Ginnheimers remained steadfastly Lutheran. They had to travel to Bonames, a village belonging to Frankfurt, for their worship. Alte Bethlehemkirche arose from this struggle. Its construction began in 1699, a symbol of newfound religious freedom under Count Philipp Reinhard. Interestingly, the count himself didn’t contribute financially to the church’s construction. The cost of 2,194 Gulden was borne entirely by the community. The church boasts a simple elegance. A modest roof rider sits atop the saddle roof, housing two bells. One bell dates back to 1815, crafted by the Barrthels brothers. The other, an iron cast bell from 1922 by Schilling & Lattermann, replaced a bell lost to the First World War. Inside, a two-sided gallery wraps around the nave. Originally, men occupied the gallery during services, while women sat below. A flat, stuccoed ceiling with a neo-baroque painting from 1902 adorns the space. The romantic 1903 organ, originally by Daniel Raßmann, presides over the altar in the choir. Some of its metal pipes were also sacrificed during the war. It was later rebuilt in 1964 by Wilhelm Ratzmann. The Alte Bethlehemkirche witnessed the end of Ginnheim’s religious divide in 1818 with the Hanau Union. This union merged the Reformed and Lutheran churches, a consequence of the Napoleonic wars and the ensuing economic hardship. Sadly, the union led to the demolition of Ginnheim’s medieval Maria-Magdalena-Kapelle in 1830. Today, Alte Bethlehemkirche stands as a cultural monument. It shares Ginnheim with its modern counterpart, the Neue Bethlehemkirche, built between 1968 and 1971. The church square now hosts the Ginnheimer Kirchplatzgärtlein, a community garden project started in 2017. This vibrant garden adds new life to the historic grounds of Alte Bethlehemkirche, a testament to the enduring spirit of Ginnheim.