Jubilee church

Divine home in the heart of the provincial capital

The Capuchin Church stands at the end of Bahnhofsstraße in Klagenfurt.(Bild: Dieter Arbeiter)

Inconspicuous, simple and in the middle of Klagenfurt's city center for many centuries: the Capuchin Church. The church is not only one of 20 jubilee churches in Carinthia, but is also home to three Capuchin monks.

At the end of Klagenfurt's Bahnhofstrasse, the tower of the Capuchin church, built in the 17th century, rises up, albeit very inconspicuously. The monastery complex of the Capuchin order was also built in the same century. While the premises of the monastery were renovated in the 1970s, the appearance of the church remained largely unchanged.

Simplicity remains intact
The simplicity of the exterior continues inside the Capuchin church. The simple main altar, whose picture shows the Mother of God with St. Francis, is flanked by two side altars. All of them are only sparsely gilded, a simplicity that is also practiced by the Capuchin monks in the monastery.

Invitation brought monks to the state capital
The Capuchins, who are not only characterized by their simple life and their closeness to the common people and the poor, were invited by the citizens of Klagenfurt and the magistrate to settle in the provincial capital in 1644.

"Today there are still three of us living in the monastery," Father Markus tells the Krone. Father Anton Wanner, who is well known in many parts of Carinthia, also lives in the monastery.

And like all religious orders, the Capuchins in Klagenfurt are also plagued by recruitment problems. "We currently have a young man living with us for a year to see if life in the monastery would be something for him," says the friar.

After all, it's not just the church that is relatively inconspicuous, but also the lives of the friars who hold their masses in the Jubilee Church.

Over the course of the Holy Year, the "Krone" will be presenting all 20 jubilee churches in Carinthia.