A fuss about tradition

Opening of indoor swimming pool without holy water causes uproar

There is plenty of water in the renovated pools - but there was no room for holy water at the opening ceremony.(Bild: Krone KREATIV/zVg Tschepp M.)

St. Martin's Day celebrations are being reinterpreted as star festivals, wooden crosses in the patient rooms of provincial hospitals are being replaced by glass versions and are therefore almost "invisible" - Christian traditions are being fought over in many places in Lower Austria. Waidhofen an der Thaya has now joined this series. 

After the fuss about "moon bears" instead of St. Martin and crosses being taken down in hospitals, as well as Governor Johanna Mikl-Leitner's commitment to Christian traditions on the Leopoldi holiday, the alarm bells of faith are now ringing once again in the Waldviertel.

Priest present, but no blessing
The new indoor swimming pool of the Waidhofen an der Thaya school community was opened in front of a few guests of honor. For the local FPÖ city councillor and Second President of the Provincial Parliament, Gottfried Waldhäusl, it was also a successful renovation. Nevertheless, he is annoyed: "Our town priest Josef Rennhofer was present, but he was neither welcomed nor was there a blessing of the renovated pool," Waldhäusl refers to a conversation with the man of God after the opening, where Rennhofer said that a blessing had not been requested by those responsible, although he had offered one.

"If I become mayor, I will never deviate from these Christian values."

Gottfried Waldhäusl, FPÖ

Cross also missing from the baths building
 "I condemn this approach in the strongest possible terms. We are talking about a 3.6 million euro swimming pool where 750 schoolchildren regularly come to swim." The FPÖ politician also criticized the fact that a cross was also missing from the indoor pool.

Celebrating the reopening of the pool without a blessing: Mayor Ramharter, Chairwoman Böhm-Lauter, Provincial Councillor Schleritzko, Deputy Mayor Strohmer (from left).(Bild: Stadtgemeinde Waidhofen/Thaya)

Speeches and photos had priority
When asked by the "Krone", Pastor Rennhofer did not want to say anything about the indoor swimming pool issue, as he did not want to get tempers running high. School community leader Marlene Böhm-Lauter emphasized that the event, which was only for 75 invitees, had to take place very quickly: "We only had 40 minutes for speeches and photos."

Blessing will be made up for
"There will be an open day in the spring, when the indoor pool will of course be blessed," says Böhm-Lauter, who is also an ÖVP town councillor in Waidhofen. Father Rennhofer was also welcomed as a member of the school community committee. She is a Catholic and has a very good relationship with the church. And on the question of Christian symbols: "There was no cross in the bathroom before the renovation. But we will be happy to get one and put it up," she emphasizes.