St.-Anna church in Dorheim closes its doors-a piece of history is lost!

St.-Anna church in Dorheim closes its doors-a piece of history is lost!

The St. Anna Church in Dorheim is closed because it is no longer required in the new Pastoral region of Wetterau-Mitte. Pastor Kai Hüsemann announced the closure in an open letter. The decision comes after a long sinking of the number of visitors in the church, which once had a permanent place in the heart of the community. The 70th birthday of the church was only celebrated a year ago, which was inaugurated on April 26, 1954 and once offered space for 270 people. 

according to fnp.de has sunk massively in recent years. Easter 2025 only 31 people visited the service. The closure meets many, especially the older Dorheimers, as the active parishioners emphasize Hans Steinwachs and Doris Valentin-Kruse. They say regret about the loss of an important social anchor in the community.

The history of the St. Anna Church

The St. Anna community in Dorheim is part of the Friedberg parish and was built in 1953/54. The inauguration took place by mission bishop Gratian Grimm and the Bishop of Mainz, Dr. Albert Stohr. The church forms a connection to its lost home in mining for many Catholic displaced people from Dorheim.

The community has been very committed in the past, especially since there was no permanent Catholic pastor on site. The several renovations show the dealings with the premises: from 1978 to 2004 there were extensive renovation work both inside and outside. Growth in the activities was also observed because the community planned a discussion group for adults and regular youth lessons. A pipe organ was also installed that was previously used in other churches.

Financial bottlenecks and lack of priests

The closure is part of a major problem that affects the Catholic Church in Germany. With constantly falling membership figures and the challenges of the priestly lack, many communities are under pressure. An analysis shows that an average of 28 churches are closed nationwide between 2019 and 2023. The number of sacred church buildings has dropped from 24,500 to 24,000, and it is predicted that in the diocese of Essen of once 270 churches, only 84 by 2030 are preserved.

In the Pastoral region of Wetterau-Mitte, these developments meet the St. Anna Church as hard. The fates of the other churches in the region are also connected with the closure of the St. Anna Church: St. Bernhard in Assenheim and Mariä birth in Okarben are also closed. The remaining churches in Friedberg are the Heilig-Geist Church and the Marienkirche, while the Albert Stohr House is to be abandoned.