Churches and Cemeteries

My adventure is starting to wind down.  Want to share with you pictures of some of the churches and cemeteries that I visited while in Austria and Hungary.

First up - the church in Tadten, Austria.  I've taken so many pictures of this church in the past, both inside and out, so I only snapped a picture of the altar.  Yes, the altar cloth is Hövej embroidery!  My mother's cousin used to take care of washing and ironing the church linens.  About ten years ago, she and some of the other women of the parish arranged to purchase three tablecloths, one for the main altar and one for each of the side altars.  Usually they are only used on feast days, but they were being used during my visit.

While in Hungary, I visited the Catholic Church in the town of Agyagosszergény - very beautiful church.  Please take note of all of the linens used.  They were stitched by Mrs. Szigethy.  Every time something good happens to her, she stitches something for the church as a thank you to God.

And then I also had the opportunity to visit St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church in Kapuvar.  No Hövej embroidery here, but the murals on the walls and ceilings were quite stunning!  This church was built after WWI.  The gentleman that painted the murals was 20 years old when he first painted them.  On the 70th anniversary of the church he came back, now 80 years old, and painted additional murals on the walls on either side of the altar.  

Since we're visiting churches, let's take a look at a couple of cemeteries too.  In this part of Europe, people take care of their cemetery plots.  The older women visit the cemetery several times per week, if not every day.  There are always flowers by the graves and oftentimes there are also candles which burn for several days.   

Here's the cemetery in Hövej:

And a couple pictures from the cemetery in Tadten, Austria; I try to visit at least once each time I am in Tadten:

One of the most interesting cemeteries I visited though was in Frauenkirchen, Austria.  Over the years, I have passed by this area numerous times and never realized a cemetery was there.  One day we were in Frauenkirchen and I asked my cousin if we could stop.  This is the Jewish cemetery of Frauenkirchen:

You cannot go into this cemetery without permission; we just simply viewed it from outside the gate.  This cemetery memorializes the Jewish community that flourished in Frauenkirchen prior to WWII.  Beginning in 1938, the Jews living in this community were forced to leave; many of them were sent to concentration camps.

I have a few more pictures to share of Hövej embroidery which I will save for tomorrow.  Thanks for all of your kind comments.  I'm glad you have enjoyed my stories and all of the photos!