There are already a few publications about the bells of Bochum's Christ Church. Is another one necessary? Yes. The bells - one might say the best bells in the city of Bochum - are worth every effort. The history and construction of the Christ Church as well. Thirdly, here is a recording for which the bells were rung very well on and off; the switching that is normally heard is due to "artistic freedom". It is still amazing today how beautifully the user "consolatrix73" made the bells come and go for this recording - without knowing the ringing behavior of the bells. The Christ Church was built as a gallery basilica with a polygonal transept in early Gothic forms as the first Protestant church after the union of the Lutheran and Protestant congregations and the beginning of industrialization in 1877-79. The design was provided after a competition by the architects Hartel & Quester from Krefeld, and the jury included the Cologne Cathedral master builder. Built in a representative manner on one of the highest points in the city centre, the church faded into the background in terms of urban development after the new town hall was built. In May 1943 or 44, the church was destroyed in a bombing raid and burned down, only the tower remained. For the reconstruction, the community wanted a new building to be built while retaining the tower. Another architectural competition was held, which Dieter Oesterlen from Hanover won. The new church was built in 1957-59. Even more modest in the urban space, the crystalline-looking building impresses with its strict timing, incorporating details of a Gothic hall church. People boasted of the "imageless church" - but its focus on Christ in word and sacrament at the altar is absolutely clear in all architectural details and the lighting. Even the pulpit is modestly set to the side. A very simple but extremely sacred space was created. When the author moved to Bochum in 1997, the church was already effectively out of use; the inner-city congregation had shrunk too much to be able to finance regular use of the church. Plans to use it as a synodal church for the church district were soon abandoned. Since 2005, the church has been used as a "Church of Cultures" with a high-quality cultural program. From 2001 to 2003, the tower was renovated in several stages with major financial support from the local population; its now monolithic position and the elegant design of the bell chamber with echoes of Bamberg Cathedral and Laon Cathedral (F) make it one of the best neo-Gothic tower solutions ever. The church received its first bells in 1878 from the Bochum Association; they were written in d flat f g and were probably lost in World War II. In 1959, the current, representative bells were also supplied by the Bochum Association. The 5 bells in different ribs represent a high point in the production of steel bells and their simple design reflects the Christ-related nature of the new church. The ringing caused the tower to rock too much and was shut down in 1992. In 2003 it was renovated to a high standard in accordance with the preservation requirements of the building, but since 2003 it has only been heard in full on September 11th between 2:46 p.m. and 3:03 p.m. in remembrance of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York. Ringing data: 1. a° -1, ~1980 mm, 2834 kg (V7 rib) I ++ AM ++ THE ++ LIGHT ++ OF THE ++ WORLD 2. d' =0, ~1620 mm, 1813 kg (heavy major rib) I + AM + THE + RESURRECTION + AND + THE + LIFE 3. e' =0, ~1350 mm, 988 kg (V7 rib) I + AM + THE + VINE ++ YOU + ARE + THE + VINES 4. fis' +1, ~1180 mm, 679 kg (V7 rib) I ++ AM ++ THE ++ GOOD ++ SHEPHERD 5. a' +1, ~1050 mm, 530 kg (minor sex rib) ++ BEHOLD + I + AM + COMING + SOON All The bells are marked with the year 1958. They were planned from 1957, approved by an expert in March 1959, and delivered in August 1959. Photo taken: September 11, 2007. Recording technology: Device: Sharp MD-MT80, microphone: Sony ECM-MS957. All photos, unless otherwise stated, are of our own provenance. Sources/literature used: S. Schritt: Bochumer Verein für Gussstahlfabrikation Bochum (BVG) 1851-1970, Glocken und Geläute, Vorläufiges Gesamtverzeichnis für den Bereich der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, Eigendruck, Trier, 2000, with ongoing additions. Accompanying text of the bell presentation by the user “Glockentim”: • Bochum, Protestant Christ Church - Church of... Christel Darmstadt (ed.): Sacred architecture in Bochum, Schürmann + Klagges publishing house, Bochum, 2003, pp. 18-19, 26-27 and 229. Gustav K. Ommer: New organs in the Ruhr area: from 1945 to the present. Mercator-Verlag Duisburg 1984. pp. 48-49. Axel Schäfer/N. Konegen/HH Hanke (ed.): Discovering Bochum - 20 city tours through history and the present, Klartext Verlag, Essen 2009, pp. 18-19. Website of the Christ Church: https://www.christuskirche-bochum.de Website for the Square of the European Promise: http