Welcome to the Monastery of Nothgottes!

Like Marienthal, Nothgottes also originated in the 14th century. In 1390, a chapel was built here by Knight Johann Brömser. A farmer is said to have found the figure of the bleeding Christ while plowing a field and heard the cry "Noth Gottes." This figure found its place in the chapel. In the 15th century, a pilgrimage church was built, which was expanded between 1620 and 1622 into a monastery complex and given to the Capuchins. They served here until the secularization. Many pilgrims who traveled to Marienthal often continued on to Nothgottes and kneeled before the miraculous image, a rather small figure, whose original (since the secularization in the parish church of St. James in Rüdesheim) truly dates back to the early 14th century. A copy of the miraculous image is located in the front of the left nave. Notable are the elongated pleading hands of Jesus.

The monastery was quite sparsely furnished. However, it was remarkable for a library containing 4,000 volumes. After the dissolution of the monastery in 1813, the building fell into disrepair.

In 1903, Emma Frohn from Elberfeld purchased the estate and revitalized it. The church was converted into a museum and a concert hall. In 1932, the Diocese of Limburg finally bought the monastery for the St. Vincenzstift in Aulhausen. Between 1932 and 1938, Dernbach Sisters cared for disabled children here. After the turmoil of the war, the building served, among other things, as a retirement home, for the care of girls, and as a mother's recovery home. From 1979 to 2006, the former monastery was an education center for the Diocese of Limburg. Subsequently, efforts were made to establish monastic life again, so that Nothgottes continues to be a place of prayer. Pilgrimages to Nothgottes still take place, including the week-long foot pilgrimage from Kruft to Nothgottes on the first Sunday in September, which is also immortalized on the plaques at the miraculous image.

At the beginning of the 18th century, two side chapels were built onto the church: The Hildegardis Chapel and the Rabanus Chapel.

The Monastery

The beginnings of Nothgottes lie in the accidental discovery of a figure. A small figure that then brings forth great things: a whole church, a monastery, and pilgrimages. The small becomes great. Perhaps it is a gift that develops over time. There might also be things in life where small things have developed into something significant. Where I only realize later: Here was another person walking with me and accompanying my life journey.