St. Bernhard (Longerich)

The parish of St. Bernhard was founded on 1 January 1959, with the foundation stone laid on 2 October 1960. Auxiliary Bishop Wilhelm Cleven consecrated the church on the first Sunday of Advent, 3 December 1961. It was dedicated to St. Bernard of Clairvaux, founder of the Cistercian order, and at its completion was the largest post-war church building in the Archdiocese of Cologne.

Together with its parish centre, St. Bernhard formed the heart of the so-called Katholikentag settlement, whose first sod was turned in 1956 during the 77th German Katholikentag in Cologne. At the time it was considered one of the most child-rich settlements in Europe. Johannes Sporer was the first pastor, followed by Georg Biesenbach in 1971. In 2002 a new parish was formed with the neighbouring Christ König community, in which St. Bernhard became a branch church; since 2010 the site has belonged to a joint parish under the patronage of the older Longerich community of St. Dionysius.

The font and tabernacle are the work of goldsmith and silversmith Hein Wimmer; the font's copper lid is crowned by a dove as a symbol of the Holy Spirit. The eastern wall behind the altar is dominated by a large round bronze cross by Blasius Spreng of Munich. The 36 stained-glass windows from 1961 were made by Hein Derich of Kevelaer to designs by Wilhelm Schmitz-Steinkrüger; they depict motifs of creation such as flowers, trees, animals, mountains, sun, moon and stars, as well as of technology, including a jet aircraft, power lines and the Brussels Atomium. The organ, built in 1967 by the Bonn firm Johannes Klais, has 36 stops, three manuals and pipes made of copper, with an asymmetrical case. The four-bell peal by Petit & Edelbrock of Gescher is tuned to harmonise with the neighbouring churches of St. Dionysius and Christ König.