St. Maria Angelica, Parish church in Kirchrode-Bemerode-Wülferode, Germany.
St. Maria Angelica is an aisleless Old Catholic parish church in Hanover-Kirchrode, built 2009–2011 to designs by Amberge und Schwartze Architekten. Its steep tent-form roof is clad in vertical grey metal panels, with five tall narrow windows between grey fins along the left side and three small windows high on the roof face. A grey block topped by a cross stands at the upper right, beside a lower white-walled section with a red tiled roof and metal canopy. Inside, dark beams meet at a high ridge above a simple wooden altar table, a wooden ambo and a tall crucifix.
The Old Catholic parish bought the plot from the neighbouring Lutheran St. James congregation in 2003, having previously been a guest in other churches and the Annastift chapel. The cornerstone was laid on 30 August 2009, the first service was the Easter Vigil in 2010, and Bishop Matthias Ring consecrated the church on 3 September 2011. Built by Amberge und Schwartze Architekten, it cost about €1 million instead of the estimated €500,000.
The name honours Angélique Arnauld, the 17th-century abbess of Port-Royal, chosen by parish vote on 23 May 2011; the Latin form St. Maria Angelica was fixed by the vestry on 30 January 2013. The ceiling's gold-leaf Greek crosses recall God's promise to Abraham of descendants as numerous as the stars.
The church is oriented to the east, but because that side faces the street, entry is through the adjoining parish hall. The nave seats around 100 people, with room for 20 more on the choir gallery. The full-immersion baptismal pool stands at the west end of the nave.
The ceiling is painted as an abstract starry sky, with Greek cross-shaped stars covered in gold leaf. The parish relates this to God's promise to Abraham that his descendants would be as numerous as the stars. The church holds about 100 visitors, with room for 20 more on the choir gallery.
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