The Neuenwalde Convent ( N. Low Saxon: ''Klooster Niewohl'', german: link=no, Kloster Neuenwalde; la, Conventus Sanct CrucisRobert Wöbber
„Geschichtliches über die Ortschaft Neuenwalde“
, on
''Internetpräsenz der Ortschaft Neuenwalde''
retrieved on 2 December 2014.) is a

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched th ...

damsels' convent in

Neuenwalde Neuenwalde is a village in the municipality of Geestland in Lower Saxony. The village is located northeast of Langen and between Bremerhaven and Cuxhaven Cuxhaven (; ) is an independent town and seat of the Cuxhaven district, in Lower Saxony, ...

, a locality of

Geestland Geestland is a town in the district of Cuxhaven, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It was formed on 1 January 2015 by the merger of the former municipalities of Langen bei Bremerhaven, Bad Bederkesa, Drangstedt, Elmlohe, Flögeln, Köhlen, Kührsted ...

, Lower Saxony, Germany. Since 1683 the

convent A convent is a community of monks, nuns, religious brothers or, sisters or priests. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The word is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Anglican ...

is owned by the corporation of the ''Bremian Knighthood'' and used for Lutheran conventuals and continues to function as such today.June Mecham
"Neuenwalde"
(section: Miscellaneous Information), on
''Monastic Matrix: A scholarly resource for the study of women's religious communities from 400 to 1600 CE''
retrieved on 15 January 2015. It is the only convent preserved in the Elbe-Weser triangle out of a former sample of 14 monasteries.„Kloster Neuenwalde“
on
''Kloster Neuenwalde: Aktuelles''
retrieved on 2 December 2014. The convent was established as a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

nunnery in 1219, and was recorded in 1282 for pursuing the

Benedictine , image = Medalla San Benito.PNG , caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal , abbreviation = OSB , formation = , motto = (English: 'Pray and Work') , foun ...

observance. The convent relocated twice in 1282 and 1334.

Tasks and work

According to the ''Klosterordnung'' (monastic statute) of 1684, at times altered and amended, at last in 2004, the convent is owned by the . The Bremian Knighthood, established by 1300,„Ritterschaft des Herzogtums Bremen“
on
''Kloster Neuenwalde: Aktuelles''
retrieved on 2 December 2014. was formerly the estate of the noble families within the Bremian prince-archbishopric and later the

Duchy of Bremen ), which is a public-law corporation established in 1865 succeeding the estates of the Prince-Archbishopric of Bremen (established in 1397), now providing the local fire insurance in the shown area and supporting with its surplusses cultural effor ...

. Its 20 members today are the proprietors of the landed estates registered in 1577 as knightly allods.Christa Kraemer, „Die Ritterschaft übernahm das Kloster: Vor 325 Jahren gaben die Schweden den Neuenwalder Besitz ab“, in: ''Niederdeutsches Heimatblatt'' (No. 728, August 2010), pp. 1seq., here p. 2. The Knighthood committed itself, within the limits of its financial resources, to provide for the funds necessary to fulfill the tasks of the convent. The convent is directed by the president of the Knighthood. The president is the legal representative of the convent, unless he entrusts competences to the prioress. The convent preserves venerable, historical traditions, therefore it serves exclusively and immediately charitable, ecclesiastical and cultural purposes, such as :(a) combining celibate Protestant women within the convent to form a community on a Christian basis, in order to let them serve cultural, ecclesiastical and charitable purposes for the general good :(b) stewarding and maintaining the listed protected convent buildings, the convent church as well as the

cloister A cloister (from Latin ''claustrum'', "enclosure") is a covered walk, open gallery, or open arcade running along the walls of buildings and forming a quadrangle or garth. The attachment of a cloister to a cathedral or church, commonly against a ...

garden, to keep the compound accessible for the general public, in as far as this is compatible with the other tasks of the convent :(c) acting as a spiritual and cultural centre for the region. Women applying for the conventual community should be physically and mentally healthy and able to make their living and to keep their household independently, as well as capable of contributing to the convent life.§ 2 (2) Klosterordnung, cf
„Klosterordnung“
on
''Kloster Neuenwalde: Aktuelles''
retrieved on 19 December 2014. Each conventual, as the inhabitants are termed, has an apartment of her own.Ida-Christine Riggert-Mindermann, „Neuenwalde – Das Damenstift der Bremischen Ritterschaft“, in: ''Evangelisches Klosterleben: Studien zur Geschichte der evangelischen Klöster und Stifte in Niedersachsen'', Hans Otte (ed.), Göttingen: V & R Unipress, 2013, (=Studien zur Kirchengeschichte Niedersachsens; vol. 46), pp. 273–279, here p. 279. . Applicants should not be older than 70 years. Before being permanently admitted as a conventual applicant and president will stipulate a three-months

novitiate The novitiate, also called the noviciate, is the period of training and preparation that a Christian ''novice'' (or ''prospective'') monastic, apostolic, or member of a religious order undergoes prior to taking vows in order to discern whether ...

. Since 2004 admittance is not restricted to women of noble descent any more. Unlike stipulated in the earlier version of the statute, today nobody is entitled to be admitted into the convent. Thus the former privilege of the 20 families, forming the membership of the Knighthood, to nominate female relatives for vacancies in the convent does not apply any more. Since May 2005 there are again several conventuals forming the community. In 2014 they were four. Neuenwalde 2012 by-RaBoe 11

The president of the Knighthood appoints a prioress for a five-year term, which may be extended several times until the prioress reaches the age of 75. Currently Veronika

von der Decken von der Decken is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * von der Decken family, a German noble family * Georg von der Decken (1836–1898), German politician (DHP), grandson of Johann Friedrich von der Decken * Johann Friedrich von d ...

functions as the prioress. In order to broaden its cultural and spiritual activities the convent started in 2012 a coöperation with the ''Evangelisches Bildungszentrum Bad Bederkesa'' (Protestant Centre for Education at

Bad Bederkesa Bad Bederkesa (Northern Low Saxon: ''Beers'') is a village and a former municipality in the district of Cuxhaven, in Lower Saxony, Germany. Since 1 January 2015 it is part of the town of Geestland. It is situated approximately 20 km northe ...

). According to its president, , the Knighthood modernised and adjusted convent premises for about €1 million.„Bildungszentrum statt Damenstift — Historischer Umbruch im Kloster Neuenwalde“
Evangelischer Pressedienst — Landesdienst Niedersachsen-Bremen (ed.), on
''Evangelisch-lutherische Landeskirche Hannovers''
retrieved on 2 December 2014. Seminar rooms and 13 little apartments were installed, also offering guests a retreat. In the ''Zehntscheune'' (i.e.

tithe barn A tithe barn was a type of barn used in much of northern Europe in the Middle Ages for storing rents and tithes. Farmers were required to give one-tenth of their produce to the established church. Tithe barns were usually associated with the vi ...

) a modern canteen kitchen and a

refectory A refectory (also frater, frater house, fratery) is a dining room, especially in monasteries, boarding schools and academic institutions. One of the places the term is most often used today is in graduate seminaries. The name derives from the La ...

were added.

History

In Midlum from 1219 to 1282

The oldest known deed on the convent records for 1219 that six members of the family of the

Lords of Diepholz Lords may refer to: * The plural of Lord Places *Lords Creek, a stream in New Hanover County, North Carolina * Lord's, English Cricket Ground and home of Marylebone Cricket Club and Middlesex County Cricket Club People *Traci Lords (born 1 ...

,Elke Freifrau von Boeselager, „Das Land Hadeln bis zum Beginn der frühen Neuzeit“, in: ''Geschichte des Landes zwischen Elbe und Weser'': 3 vols., Hans-Eckhard Dannenberg and Heinz-Joachim Schulze (eds.), Stade: Landschaftsverband der ehem. Herzogtümer Bremen und Verden, 1995 and 2008, vol. I 'Vor- und Frühgeschichte' (1995), vol. II 'Mittelalter (einschl. Kunstgeschichte)' (1995), vol. III 'Neuzeit (2008)', (=Schriftenreihe des Landschaftsverbandes der ehem. Herzogtümer Bremen und Verden; vols. 7–9), ISBN (vol. I) , (vol. II) , (vol. III) , vol. II: pp. 321–388, here p. 373. owning estates in and near Midlum, founded the

nunnery A convent is a community of monks, nuns, religious brothers or, sisters or priests. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The word is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Anglican C ...

and endowed them to it.Nicola Borger-Keweloh, „Das Kloster Neuenwalde – wie es zur Gründung kam“, in: ''Niederdeutsches Heimatblatt'' (No. 718, October 2009), p. 2. The Diepholz Lords then owned the Hollburg Castle between and Midlum on the brink of the

Wesermünde Geest The Wesermünde Geest (german: Wesermünder Geest; Northern Low Saxon: ''Wersermünner Geest'') is the collective name for several geest ridges in the west of Cuxhaven district and Bremen's in northern Germany. The ridges are separated from one ...

ridge,Otto Edert, ''Neuenwalde: Reformen im ländlichen Raum'', Norderstedt: Books on Demand, 2010, p. 27. . allowing a good view over the lower Land of Wursten, then a corporation of free Frisian peasants under only loose overlordship of the

Prince-Archbishopric of Bremen The Prince-Archbishopric of Bremen (german: Fürsterzbistum Bremen) — not to be confused with the modern Archdiocese of Hamburg, founded in 1994 — was an ecclesiastical principality (787–1566/1648) of the Holy Roman Empire and the Catholic ...

. Rather than establishing the nunnery as their

proprietary monastery {{Short pages monitor * , „Das Kloster Neuenwalde als Grundherrschaft“, in: ''Jahresbericht der Männer vom Morgenstern'', vol. 11 (1908/1909), pp. 85–109 * Heinrich Rüther, ''Geschichte des Klosters Neuenwalde'', Otterndorf: Hottendorff, 1950 * Heinrich Rüther, „Kloster Neuenwalde, das adelige Fräuleinstift Neuenwalde 1934: 600jähriges Bestehen“, in: ''Niederdeutsches Heimatblatt'', No. 4 (1933). * Heinrich Rüther, „Kloster Neuenwalde im 30jährigen Kriege“, in: ''Niederdeutsches Heimatblatt'', No. 2 (1933). * Heinrich Rüther, ''Urkundenbuch des Klosters Neuenwalde'', ed. on behalf of the Stader Verein für Geschichte und Altertümer with support by the Bremian Knighthood, Hanover: Hahn'sche Buchhandlung, 1905. * Heinz-Joachim Schulze, „Neuenwalde“ (article), in: ''Germania Benedictina'': 12 vols. so far, Bayerische Benediktiner-Akademie München / Abt-Herwegen-Institut Maria Laach (ed.), St. Ottilien: EOS Verlag Erzabtei St. Ottilien, 1970seqq., vol. XI: 'Norddeutschland: Die Frauenklöster in Niedersachsen, Schleswig-Holstein und Hamburg' (1984), Ulrich Faust (compil.), pp. 429–446. * Ignaz Zeppenfeldt, „Historische Nachrichten von dem Kloster Neuenwalde im Herzogthum Bremen“, in: ''Neues vaterländisches Archiv oder Beiträge zur allseitigen Kenntniß des Königreichs Hannover und des Herzogthums Braunschweig'', Lunenburg: Herold & Wahlstab, 1822–1832, vol. 8 (1825)
pp. 233–245

Tasks and work

History

In Midlum from 1219 to 1282

External links