When Franz Kamphaus, then bishop of Limburg, visited the parishes of Frankfurt in 2004, he met people who were open to spiritual experiences but not within the traditional churches. He founded the centre in 2007. On 15 January he signed the charter of foundation for the theme church Holy Cross – Centre for Christian Meditation and Spirituality in Frankfurt-Bornheim. The charter of foundation came into effect on 1 July 2007. The Holy Cross Church accommodates one of five profile churches of the Diocese of Limburg. The others are the Centre for Mourning Counselling in St. Michael in Frankfurt-Nordend and the three youth churches: Crossover in St. Hildegard in Limburg an der Lahn, Jona in St. Bonifatius in Frankfurt-Sachsenhausen, and Kana in Maria-Hilf in Wiesbaden-Nordost. Like the church St. Michael, the Holy Cross Church is a branch church of the parish St. Josef Frankfurt. The centre is a pastoral institution of the diocese and is subordinated to the head of department of the Episcopalian chair. The centre was directed from 2007 until July 2018 by the Franciscan Helmut SchlegelOFM, where he worked until June 2019 as a retreat and meditation leader and priestly co-worker. Since November 2018 the centre is directed by the theologist Samuel Stricker guide. In August 2019 Olaf Lindenberg took over the role as priestly co-worker. They work with a team of contributors, for example from the order of Medical Missionary Sisters. In March 2020, the Center's program had to be suspended because all worship services in Germany and thus all other events had to be cancelled due to the COVID 19 pandemic in Germany. However, at certain times the church is open for meditation for a limited number of people. In May services were resumed on Saturdays under special conditions.
Program
Although the offerings of the centre reflect the tenets of Christianity, the target audience includes people of all religious denominations, worldviews, and cultures. The team publishes a new program annually. The center offers different kinds of church services, such as expressionist dance, meditation courses, contemplative prayer, Zen-meditation courses, days of reflection, spiritual exercises, retreats, special events like lectures by guest speakers such as Anselm Grün, meditations with the Sōtō-Zen-priest and veteran of the Vietnam WarClaude AnShin Thomas, external events like retreats on the North Sea island Wangerooge or sailing retreats and many other kinds of events. Event series include or have included days of exercises of Christian mysticism, meditative singing, meditative archery, a male conversation group, spiritual guided city tours in which topics by Frankfurt tourist guides are joined with spiritual topics or pilgrim hikes with a picnic and devotions. One-time events are also part of the program, for example, the Tram of Silencetram rides on an historic railcar of the Frankfurt tramway system, including elements such as silence with short, thought-provoking impulses to the senses of seeing, hearing, feeling, and smelling. The dialogue between the cultures and major religious groups concerning meditation and spirituality is another important aspect of the work of the centre. These include panel discussions with representatives of Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, and Christianity about meditation, with personal field reports from the different religions. Other examples are or were courses in Qi Gong, Yoga and Yoga nidra, or dance performances of an Indian Jesuit padre who figures elements of traditional meditative dances such as Bharatanatyam from Hinduism as a kind of prayer to God. For the last few years, a Cretan-style labyrinth consisting of 2,500 tealights has been formed on the third Saturday of Advent before the Gaudete Sunday. This labyrinth is part of the service and can be walked through by visitors. During the Frankfurt festival of light in 2014 the team members of the centre offered a meditation consisting of light, words, music, and sound in cooperation with the Jona youth church in the Frankfurt Cathedral. Concert performances at the center have included A German Requiem by Johannes Brahms and meditative music from the Middle Ages by Hildegard of Bingen, Peter Abelard, and Rabanus Maurus.
Interior
The interior of the church was modified for the new purpose, completed in 2010. The fixed pews were removed and replaced by folding chairs which enabled a more flexible use. While the former main altar is normally not used, a smaller wooden altar has been added, typically surrounded by circles of folding chairs. Stairlifts and ramps for wheelchairs were installed. The former crypt and the rooms of the former clergy house were transformed to be used for meditation. In the crypt, the floor was changed to wood, and the meditation area was enclosed by textile panels made from linen.
Church building and parish
The Centre of Christian Meditation and Spirituality is located in the parish area of the Catholic parish St. Josef Frankfurt am Main, which was founded as a "parish of a new type" on 1 January 2015. In the new greater parish area there are four churches located as "church places" and two churches as "theme churches". One of the two theme churches is the Holy Cross Church, which headquarters the meditation centre and is used for church services and centre events. The buildings are administrated by the Catholic Church of the city of Frankfurt am Main. There is an active collaboration with the parish of St. Josef Frankfurt am Main. Since the beginning of the restoration of the interior of St. Leonhard in Frankfurt-Altstadt, the services of the localSt. Leonhard's International English-Speaking Catholic Parish have been held in the Holy Cross Church since 7 May 2011. This remains the home of the Holy Cross Church even after the end of the work.
Transport connections
The Holy Cross Church is one-minute walking distance from the Ernst-May-Platz tram stop of the tramline 14 of the Frankfurt tramway, and the Stadtbahn station Eissporthalle/Festplatz of the line U7 of the Frankfurt light rail system. Also not far away is the motorway exit Frankfurt-Ost of the Federal Motorway 661.
