Toleranzkirche

The Evangelical church in Unterscharten stands in the rural municipality of Scharten in Upper Austria. Built in 1819, it is a simple rectangular building with a tall tower added in 1900. The church is protected as a historic monument and is also known as a Tolerance church, a name that recalls its origins. The Tolerance church was the first evangelical parish founded in Upper Austria after Emperor Joseph II issued the Tolerance Patent in 1781. Over three hundred families had already gathered in secret during the years of prohibition. Delegates travelled to Vienna and secured the emperor’s personal approval for the new community. The first wooden chapel opened in November 1782, and the present stone church replaced it in 1819. The pulpit, organ loft and baptismal font all date from this period, while a small meditation chapel was installed inside the tower in 2003. Inside, the church has a three-sided gallery supported by stone columns from the former Pupping monastery. The pulpit sits beside the altar under a sounding board, and the altarpiece is a work by a Gmunden artist from 1877. The tower contains three bells cast in Lübeck, first rung on Reformation Day 1900. Outside, the surrounding countryside is quiet farmland, and the building’s modest style reflects its history as a place of quiet worship.