Church of Resurrection, Lutheran church in Großhansdorf, Germany

The Church of Resurrection is a Lutheran church in Großhansdorf, built from 1957 to 1960 to designs by Bernhard Hopp and Rudolf Jäger. Its functional, minimalist style centres on the altar and cross, with white plastered brick walls and six tall windows on the south side. A 44-metre bell tower, completed in 1963, stands beside it.

Until 1950 Großhansdorf and Schmalenbeck belonged to the parish of Siek for about 700 years. After 1950 services were held in the cemetery chapel, and in 1952 a temporary bell tower with two borrowed bells was built in the forest near the Rauhen Berge. In 1953 the congregation bought the 13,822 m² site of the former Hotel Hamburger Hof at Alte Landstraße 20 for 5 DM per square metre, financed with help from the Probstei Stormarn. A 1953 competition among five architectural firms was won by Hopp & Jäger, who received the building contract; construction began in 1957 after 75,000 DM in donations and a 200,000 DM loan, the foundation stone was laid on 24 August 1958, and the church was consecrated on 28 August 1960 by Schleswig's bishop Wester.

The parish became independent on 1 April 1950, after Großhansdorf and Schmalenbeck had belonged to the Siek parish for about 700 years. Services were first held in the municipal cemetery chapel, and in 1952 two borrowed bells from the Hamburg bell cemetery hung in a temporary wooden bell tower near the Rauhen Berge. The relief of Noah's Ark by Siegfried Assmann above the north double door is a detail to look for.

The church stands at Alte Landstraße 20, on the site of the former Hotel Hamburger Hof bought in 1953 for 5 DM per square metre. The 44 m bell tower, added in 1963, is a useful landmark when approaching on foot. The parish complex also includes the 1964 pastorate and the 1974 community centre.

The north wall has no windows at all, so the six tall windows of the south side and the white plaster over brick carry the light. Siegfried Assmann's interwoven cross-and-circle windows stand out against that blank wall, and his Noah's Ark relief sits above the north double door.