Catholic Parish Church "St. Johannes der Täufer"

The parish church “Sankt Johannes der Täufer” (St John the Baptist) was built in 1840-42 and replaced a church from 1680. The first documentation of a church in Minheim traces back to 1064.

The reconstruction of the place of worship at Minheim 160 years ago was a financial challenge for the then village community. Therefore, the men decided to do the excavation works of the fundaments on their own. In the course of this, remains of dry masonry were discovered. It was decided to shift the building in its long axis. Thereby the layout of the church became considerably larger than originally intended. The interior of the church is dominated by the tripartite altar. The choir with its baroque columns came from St Gangolf Church in Trier and was created in 1760. The Minheim parish council was able to acquire this artful rarity for their church in 1848. The tabernacle altar was moved to the convent and parish church Sankt Thomas an der Kyll in 1848. In 1987, it could be reunited with the large back panel in Minheim. In 1964, renovation of the altar area with painting of the pillars was accomplished. In this context, the Federal State of Rhineland-Palatinate gave a baroque figure from Marienstatt to the parish of Minheim as a present. The figure depicts the second patron saint of the church and is now sitting on the left side of the altar. Back then, the centre of the altar was marked by a rococo cross - a gift of the diocese of Trier. Today, this cross decorates the tower hall and is flanked by two pictures of which the right one stems from St Gangolf Church in Trier. When the whole altar equipment of St Gangolf had been relocated to Minheim in 1987, the second renovation phase began, which ended with the purchase of the Nicholas bell in 2001. Precious marble steps lead up to the freestanding altar and the ambo, which have iron works of the former communion rail as ornamental grille. The tabernacle is entirely preserved. Two figures represent Faith and Hope. The Eucharist in the middle represents Love. The figure on the right side of the choir depicts John the Baptist, the patron saint of the church. It was created by Rudolf Müller from Lutzerath in 1994. The large angels near the altar are original in this place. The figure of the resurrected Jesus Christ is part of the basic interior. The Mother of God on the left side of the church is a stone-cast of the Madonna in Aachen. Its colour was adjusted to the other figures around the altar. The only figure which was not adapted is the figure of St Josef (right) that was created by South-Tyrol artist Hermann Josef Runggaldier in 2002. Josef and the Infant Jesus are connected by the grape, which shapes the lives of many people alongside the Moselle. The way through the church leads along a Way of the Cross of Nazarene art, which had been stored on an attic for a long time. The Way of the Cross is intermitted by a picture of the dolorous Mother of God from the late 16th century. In the opposite window recess next to the winding stairs to the gallery are two cap stones, presumably from the first church in Minheim (mid-11th century). They lay in front of a row of houses on the left side of the church entry. In the middle, you will see the Gothic rectory. The organ is a work of the Voltmann brothers from Klausen from the year 1893. In 2001, a fourth bell, dedicated to St Nikolaus of the barrage, was added to the Minheim bells. Its deep bourdon (rumbling bass) adds perfectly well to the other bells and gives their sound a solemn touch. In the beginning, when the bell attracted an asylum of cuckoos, it became very obvious that it was the perfect bell for Minheim (the cuckoo is the mocking bird of Minheim´s residents).