a pilgrimage to van gogh

On 24 April 2007, I went on a pilgrimage to the presence of the great Dutch painter, Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890) in his ethereal and magical paintings.



These paintings are in the Van Gogh museum which is near the majestic Rijksmuseum
shown in this
photo.






The Van Gogh Museum has the largest collection of works by Vincent, it houses more than 200 paintings including the ones in this collection of photos.



People are not allowed to take photos of the original paintings so I ended up taking photos of reproductions sold in the museum shops outside the museum, like the Starry, starry night; the Sunflowers and the Irises.



















This visit is indeed a pilgrimage in itself as one is confronted with one's soul-searching need to discover the essence of truth and beauty as expressed in deep feelings. Van Gogh himself says that his art does not follow the accepted schools during his lifetime, rather he was out to manifest "deep genuine feelings".
In art, as in religion, one is face to face with ultimate questions demanding answers which, if found, bring some measure of serenity to one's life.

IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF ST. CLEMENT IN VIENNA - PART I

As part of my 2006-2007 sabbatical, I had planned to go to Vienna, Austria in order to go on a pilgrimage to this city where St. Clement Hofbauer CSsR spent a significant part of his life and where he died and was buried. I left Germany and took a train towards Vienna on Wednesday, March 21, 2007. I was going to be in Vienna for a week.

From the central station, I took a taxi and the taxi driver found the address: Redemptorist Maria am Gestade at A-1010 Wien, Salvatorgasse 12.

This is the entrance of the community house in Vienna along Salvatorgasse.

Ten Redemptorists constituted the Vienna community, but during my visit there were only 7 around including Fr. Provincial (Lorenz Voith), Fr. Rector (Hans Bruno), Primetshofer Bruno (canon lawyer), Wimmer Lambert, Papik Mariano (who works among migrants in Vienna), Heribert Koger and Bro. Mullner Josef. They received me very warmly and I was very privileged to enjoy their hospitality and kindness.

Bro. Josef takes care of the house and is a good chef. He is the only brother in the community.

Fr. Heribert Koger was mainly responsible for arranging my stay with the community. He is one of the few who speaks fluent English as he does a lot of translation work. He was mainly responsible for preparing the English text of the booklet - IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF ST CLEMENT MARIA HOFBAUER IN VIENNA, a very important document for the pilgrim who comes to Vienna to learn more about St. Clement.

This is the copy of the document.

Inside the pages of this booklet is the map as to where are the places to visit in Vienna as one follows the footsteps of St. Clement.

FIRST STOP:

THE KIRCHE (CHURCH) OF MARIA AM GESTADE (St. Mary On the Banks)

This is the facade of the church which go back to the before 900. Legend indicates that this church was founded by Madalvin, the Bishop of Passau (now Bavaria) and was then situated on the banks of a branch of the Danube river (thus its name). It was destroyed by the Hungarians in the year 907 and rebuilt but enlarged. It was in 1330 to 1367 when the High gothic choir was constructed, in 1394-1414 when the Late Gothic nave was done and in 1417 when the tower was completed. It has a very rich history. It was on 29 October 1819 that St. Clement asked Emperor Franz I to allow the Redemptorists to use the church and the adjoining building as monastery. This request was granted only on 30 April 1820, after St. Clement's death. Since 4 November 1862, the relics of St. Clement hav been inside this church. (Photos inside the church can be seen in the later section of this blog).

Outside, on the wall of the church is a historical marker put up

by the City Government. This sign indicates the historical

significance of this building.

A photo (horizontal rather than vertical) of the church from the front side.

Across the church is a Thai restaurant.

And beside the Thai restaurant is an Irish Pub. (For confreres in the Davao community, this is an interesting coincidence).

SECOND STOP:

SALVATORKIRCHE

Near to Maria am Gestade is the Salvatorkirche, or church of Salvator, a much smaller church than Maria am. This is the church where St. Clement came on Sundays and holidays and serve all the Masses. He was then a journeyman at Master Weyring's bakery. This church was founded by Otto Haymo sometime in 1301 and was and one time turned into an old town hall.

This photo shows the main altar of the church which shows its Renaissance influence.


The light from the side windows lighten up the interior of the church.

This is the entrance of the church along Salvatorgasse and note

again the triple red-and-white flag that indicates its historical

significance to the city of Vienna.






A side entrance of the church indicating is name and where there is a bulletin board announcing the schedule of services.

This is the back entrance to the church, with the Renaissance portal very visible and another historical marker. Today, the shops occupy the first floor of this building.

The same side of the building adjacent to the church. Note the notices on the windows which have to do with activities of the church.

THIRD STOP:

ST. STEPHEN'S CATHERAL

At Stephensplatz

This is the front view of St. Stephen's Cathedral, one of the major tourist/pilgrimage attractions located right at the very center of Vienna. Its Gothic architecture is quite awesome. Here St. Clement went to Mass on weekdays and served at the Masses. Here is where he met the aristocratic ladies who would later help him with his studies. His mortal remains were carried into the church on 16 March 1820 for the funeral ceremonies.

The consecration of this church took place in 1147 by the Bishop of Passau. In 1220 the oldest parts of the cathedral (the late Romanesque Riesentor and the Gothic Towers) were built. During the reign of the Habsburgs the Late Romanesque church was included along with the High Gothic choir (1304-1340). The Renaissance spire was added in 1556-1576. The church went through fires and destruction during WWII and reconstructed in the 1950s, especially the massive roof.


Inside the church is a lifesize statue of St. Clement which is placed at the prominent right side of the church very near the main altar. It is a way to honor St. Clement as one of the patron saints of Vienna.

At the entrance of the church, to the right, is an icon of the Mother-and-Child where quite a number of people visit and offer prayers.

It is an icon that has very similar symbols as those of the icon of the Mother of Perpetual Help.

FOURTH STOP:

CAFE DIGLAS

Along Wollzeile/Strobelgasse 2

This photo shows the road that connects St. Stephen's Cathedral to the Cafe Diglas to show how near this cafe is to the church.


It was in this cafe - at the back room of the pub - that the Strobelkopf-Gesellschaft (or the Strobelkopf Society) meet every Wednesday. This society had members like Klemens Brentano, Dr. Emmanuel Veith and the brothers Johann and Anton Passy who were friends of St. Clement. They referred to themselves as the Hofbauer Circle and they became outstanding champions of the revival of Catholicism in Vienna. However, St. Clement only rarely went to join them in this pub which was a hang-out of artists and intellectuals, many of whom were adherents of the Romantic School.

Very interesting that the Cafe Diglas remains a cafe until today. And bookstores surround the cafe like this Antiquariat.

This old bookstore cater to the literature sought by present-day intellectuals of the city. Browsing through the books on display one reads the authors of these books inlcuding the likes of Russell, Gadamer, Cassirer, Wittgenstein, Nietzsche, Kierkegaards, Jung, Frankl, Fichte, Hegel, Marx, Arendt, Heidegger, Eckhart, Freud and Leibniz.

As it was during St. Clement's time, this part of Vienna today continues to be where the intellectuals search for knowledge.

FIFTH STOP:

OLD UNIVERSITY

At Dr. Ignaz Seipel-Platz

This is the facade of what used to be the Old University (Alte Universitat) where St. Clement did his theological studies. Today it houses the Austrian Academy of Sciences. The university buildings were built from 1385 on with its Assembly Hall built from 1753 to 1755. The university abandoned this site in 1884.

At the side of the main building is a church administed by the Jesuits.

The exact date can no longer be determined when St. Clement came to study at this university. Around 1781

St. Clement arrived in Vienna from Tivoli, Italy where he had spent a year as a hermit. While studying here, St. Clement stayed with the Mayer family in their place in SingerstraBe. In those days Pope Pius VI came to visit Emperor Joseph II in Vienna.

The atmosphere in the university was very much against religious orders and certain religious practices. But St. Clement argued for his faith as well as challenged his professors.

Another historical marker at the front of the

building of what used to be the University.

The main lobby inside the building.

The main session hall of the building on the second floor. Note the artworks on the walls.

Looking up to the ceiling of the main session hall,

one can see frescoes painted there.




Still a photo of the main hall.

In front of the church and to the left of the University building one can see the sign indicating that this is a Jesuit Residence. In fact it is where the Provincial of the Jesuits live.

Nearby there are flowershops. As this was the early spring season, the early spring flowers like the daffodils and tulips were already being sold.

SIXTH STOP:

FRANCISCAN FRIARY

At Franziskanerplatz

This is the Franciscan Friary, founded by Emperor Friedrich III, but it occupied this present place only in 1589. This was where the first Redemptorists were able to find accomondation during their first months in Vienna.

During this time, there were only a few Franciscans in the friary

which made it possible for the first Redemptorists to stay with

them.

On the second floor of this Friary, on 19 May 1820, the first six novices received the Redemptorist habit under the protection of

Archbishop Hohenwart. On 30 May 1820, Fr. Passerat became Vicar General and successor of St. Clement. On 20 October 1820, he entered the choir of the Franciscan church and took charge of the Novitiate.

Today, the Friary remains quiet despite the hustle and bustle outside the main monastery.

(For more, go to the next section - IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF ST. CLEMENT IN VIENNA - PART II.)