20.10.1999
Saints Ulrich and Afra in Augsburg
Good ecumenical neighborlinessGENEVA, 20 October 1999 (lwi) – Side by side stand the two churches, at right angles each to the other, St. Ulrich’s Evangelical Lutheran Church and the Catholic Basilica of St. Ulrich and St. Afra. The peaceful existence of these two churches as good ecumenical next-door neighbors is characteristic of Augsburg. For centuries after the Peace of Westphalia in 1648, the Protestant and Catholic populations shared power in the city according to fixed rules.
Following the model of “Augsburg parity”, until 4 March 1806 each office in the city was held jointly by one Catholic and one Protestant. In the Council, and also among the merchants’ representatives, the power relationships between Protestant and Catholic representatives were established by contract. The principle of parity was also applied in the hospitals and foundations in the city. In this way the former minority gained its rights. Until 1720 this benefited the Catholics, after that the Protestants.
St. Ulrich’s is the former preaching hall of the ancient Benedictine monastery in Augsburg, which was later used as a church by the Protestants. The cornerstone of the Church of St. Ulrich and St. Afra was laid in 1500 by Emperor Maximilian I. The names of both churches go back to two saints of the city of Augsburg, and have thus kept their memory alive to this day.
St Ulrich was considered an exemplary bishop and prince of the realm. He played a decisive role in the victory of the German army against the Hungarians, under Emperor Otto the Great in 955, on the Lechfeld which is not far away. This battle stopped the Hungarians’ advance to the west.
The name of St. Afra is linked with the first Christian community in Augsburg in Roman times. What is certain is that Afra died as a martyr on an island in the River Lech in 304 during Diocletian’s persecution of Christians. According to later legends, she was the daughter of a king and her family came from Cyprus. However, her name points to a different origin, as “Afra” means “African”.
According to ancient tradition, Afra gave asylum in her house in Augsburg to Bishop Narzissus, who was fleeing from Spain during the persecution of Christians. Narzissus instructed her in the Christian faith and baptized her. She was burned at the stake for confessing Christ and refusing to take part in the official rites of the empire. The ancient tradition about her death can be traced back to the fifth century. There are testimonies that her grave was greatly revered during the sixth century. Today her remains lie in the Basilica of St. Ulrich and St. Afra.
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