Katholische Kirche Baden-St. Josef

The parish church of St. Josef in Baden-Leesdorf (Katholische Kirche Baden-St. Josef) is a Roman Catholic Church that belongs to the Deanery of Baden within the Archdiocese of Vienna. It is located on Leesdorfer Hauptstraße in the municipality of Baden near Vienna, in the state of Lower Austria. The parish church and the pastoral care center are protected as monuments by the Austrian Federal Monuments Office.

History

The parish church of St. Josef has a long and eventful history that spans almost a century. It began as an emergency church in 1932, when Cardinal Friedrich Gustav Piffl consecrated a wooden chapel on Waltersdorfer Strasse for the growing Catholic population of Baden-Leesdorf. However, this place of worship was confiscated by the Nazis in 1939 and used as a storage facility.

After the end of World War II, the faithful of Baden-Leesdorf had to find a new place to pray. Thanks to the generosity of the Gehrer couple, who offered their barn as a temporary church, the Catholics of the area could celebrate Mass again. Cardinal Theodor Innitzer officially inaugurated the Leesdorf emergency church on December 9, 1945.

The emergency church served the community for almost three decades, until a new building site was acquired in 1973. The land, which was near the former farm of Melk Abbey on Leesdofer Hauptstrasse, was sold by Abbot Burkhard Ellegast to the parish of Baden-St. Stephen, which was responsible for the pastoral care of Baden-Leesdorf. Auxiliary Bishop Florian Kuntner initiated the groundbreaking ceremony for the new church on May 15, 1980.

The construction of the new church took seven years, following the architectural plans designed by Stefan Bukovac. The laying of the foundation stone was delayed until May 16, 1985, when Pastor Josef Musger (1909–2006), who was the pastor of Baden-St. Stephen, conducted the ceremony. On March 19, 1987, the church was consecrated to Joseph, the bridegroom of the Blessed Mother, by Cardinal Franz König, on the feast day of St. Joseph. On January 20, 1990, during the inauguration of the parish center, Auxiliary Bishop Kurt Krenn elevated the church to the status of a parish church.

The original plan was to dedicate the church to Anton Maria Schwartz, a native of Baden and the founder of the Kalasantine order, which was supposed to assume responsibility for the parish. However, this plan was not realized due to various difficulties. Anton Maria Schwartz was beatified by Pope John Paul II in Vienna on June 21, 1998. On March 21, 2000, his relic was placed in the people’s altar by Father Peter Lier COp, the Superior General of the Kalasantines.

Architecture and Art

The parish church of St. Josef is a modern and minimalist building that has a low structure with a quadrant floor plan. It also includes a two-story pastoral center with a weekday chapel. The roof of the building is uniform and has a segmental arch barrel design. In the northeastern part, there is a square bell tower that stands independently and was built in 1992.

The church features compact, enclosed wall areas that contrast with the detached, quasi-free-floating roof construction. The roof consists of two flat, intersecting segmental arched barrels that create a dynamic and expressive shape. The roof is situated above a light band that surrounds the entire building and allows natural light to enter the interior.

The hall is a spacious and well-lit room that has an open roof design supported by laminated trusses. These trusses are either placed on columns or pairs of wooden columns, creating a gallery-like structure in the arched area. The hall is oriented towards the people’s altar, which is made of concrete and has a bronze cross. The ambo and the tabernacle are also made of concrete and date back to the construction period.

The church contains various artworks that enrich its spiritual atmosphere. The Stations of the Cross pictures were created in 1987 by Ute Brunner, a local artist who used acrylic paint on wood. During the construction period, Anton Wollinek, another local artist, created an icon of the Holy Family that is displayed in the church. There is also a 19th-century copy of the miraculous image of Maria Pötsch, a Marian devotion that originated in Hungary and is venerated in Austria.

In the weekday chapel, there are three paintings of the Crucifixion by Jerzy Duda-Gracz, a Polish painter who was known for his social realism and expressionism. The paintings depict the suffering of Christ in a contemporary and provocative way, showing the contrast between the divine and the human, the sacred and the profane.

The organ, a 27/II/P, was created in 2020 by Drago Lukman, a Slovenian organ builder who specializes in modern and innovative instruments. The organ has a mechanical action and a tracker console. It is located in the gallery above the entrance of the church and has a simple and elegant design that matches the architecture of the building.

Baden bei Wien, Austria