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All Germany Munich Ost-West-Friedenskirche (East-West Peace Church)
Ost-West-Friedenskirche (East-West Peace Church) is permanently closed.

This entry remains in the Atlas as a record of its history, but it is no longer accessible to visitors.

AO Edited

Ost-West-Friedenskirche (East-West Peace Church)

An Orthodox church inside a small "Garden of Eden" built by a man who had a vision.

Munich, Germany

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Ost-West-Friedenskirche (East-west Friendship Church)   CoolCrab / Atlas Obscura User
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Ost-West-Friedenskirche (East-west Friendship Church)   CoolCrab / Atlas Obscura User
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Ost-West-Friedenskirche (East-west Friendship Church)   CoolCrab / Atlas Obscura User
Ost-West-Friedenskirche (East-west Friendship Church)   CoolCrab / Atlas Obscura User
Ost-West-Friedenskirche (East-west Friendship Church)   CoolCrab / Atlas Obscura User
  Collector of Experiences / Atlas Obscura User
Ost-West-Friedenskirche (East-west Friendship Church)   CoolCrab / Atlas Obscura User
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About

What seems to be a small forest close to the Munich Olympic park is actually a small oasis of tranquility made possible almost entirely by a single person. 

Timofei Wassiljewitsch Prochorow once transported coal on the railways when he was forced by German soldiers to use his wagon to smuggle them out, only to be released afterward.

It was at that point that Prochorow said he had his first vision of Mary. She told him to go to the west and build a church. He left his old life and family behind for this vision, traveling the lands to find the perfect place. He eventually settled down in Munich with his future wife Natascha.

It was there that Prochorow started building his church and apartment from nearby rubble. Once completed in 1952, the church was offered to both the Catholic and Orthodox churches as a place of worship.

However, both rejected the idea because they saw too many elements of the other church in its design. This eventually led him to start preaching himself. He and his wife also built a large garden around the church and apartment with varied flora. This garden was called the "Garden of Eden" by some.

The existence of the church was in danger when the city wanted to remove everything from the location to make room for the upcoming 1972 Olympics. However, it was eventually decided to leave the church alone after major backlash and protests from the local community. 

The church was taken over by an association after Prochorow died at age 110 in 2004. His apartment was converted into a museum about his life and the church.

It was described as "Munich's most charming black [sic. Illegal] building" by Munich's Lord Mayor Christian Ude. 

Update: Sadly this place is gone. It burned down completely in a fire in June 2023.

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Religion History Architecture Churches

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linkogecko, Collector of Experiences

  • linkogecko
  • Collector of Experiences

Published

November 25, 2021

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Ost-West-Friedenskirche (East-West Peace Church)
100 Spiridon-Louis-Ring
Munich, 80809
Germany
48.167011, 11.548279
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