Michaelkerk

Built as Dutch Reformed Church in the Rotterdam district of Blijdorp, north of (= behind) the Central Station. Beautiful church. Architecturally exceptionally important interbellum church, with a series of outbuildings surrounding the inner garden, including a chapel, and an extremely original tower. Both the church and the adjacent parsonage are municipal monuments. Large hall church, built in 1933 by JC Meischke and P. Schmidt. Rectangular narrow tower with tent roof. Internal lobed wooden barrel vault. Furniture, organ and pulpit come from the former Reformed Oosterkerk in Rotterdam, which was demolished in 1933. After the demolition of the nearby Reformed Statensingelkerk, it was also used by the Reformed Church. Later a church of the PKN. The large church space has also been used by the IZB Gemeente Noorderlicht since 02-07-2012, which holds services on Sundays at 11:00. (Meaning of abbreviation IZB to be verified). The PKN church services (largely) take place in the Chapel of the complex, on Sundays at 10:00. To be verified since when this has been the case. In the large, monumental church hall, celebrations take place of the Noorderlicht congregation, a special congregation of the PKN. This congregation also holds Sunday celebrations in 2 other churches: the Oranjekerk in Hillegersberg and the Oude Kerk in Charlois in Rotterdam Zuid.

The very first Jewish community in Rotterdam was founded by Portuguese Jews from Antwerp. In 1610, the Vroedschap allowed the "Portuguese Jews" to settle in Rotterdam "to promote traffic and negotiations within this city" and to establish a synagogue there. In the first half of the 17th century, we already find a synagogue of the Portuguese Jewish community. Among them was the highly respected De Pinto family, of which Abraham Gillez Lopez de Pinto in particular left nothing to make the Jewish community a worthy community. He was a wealthy man who lived in the double upper house on the south side of Wijnhaven No. 62, corner of Bierstraat. After renovation, this became a meeting place and school for Jews who felt the need to increase their knowledge of the Talmud and the Bible. The Jews from the east - called "High German Jews" - came later. Their first synagogue was the one at Glashaven (1674). For a while, the Portuguese and High German Jews each had their own synagogue, but when the number of Portuguese Jews decreased significantly, both communities decided in 1682 to unite and use the synagogue at Glashaven WZ. This synagogue soon became too small and an adjacent building was purchased to enlarge the existing church. When in 1723 Parnassijns requested permission to enlarge the synagogue, the mayors believed that "those of the Jewish nation would do better to look elsewhere at the public church (meaning the Zuiderkerk) in a more elegant way".

Interesting, sober, non-oriented, church without pillars, with concrete construction, with to the right of the front facade a defining tower with copper-green spire. Built in the northwest corner of the then new prosperous Blijdorp district, as an annex/auxiliary church of the parish of Our Lady of the Rosary on the Provenierssingel. In the media, this church was referred to as a "annex church" when it was put into use. In 1973, when the neo-Gothic Roman Catholic Church of Our Lady of the Rosary was decommissioned (demolished in 1975), the associated parish was added to the parish of St. Albertus de Grote. Various objects were then replaced in the present church, including the statue of Mary on the front facade and the Stations of the Cross.