You notice right away what a steep roof this church has. It has a pitch of 62 degrees, making it the steepest roof in Leipzig and the largest church roof in all of Saxony.

The Thomaskirche (St. Thomas Church) was built between 1221 and 1222 as the collegiate church of the Augustinian canons. The church's present appearance goes back to the 1400s and in this respect, this church is quite authentic to the Reformation era. The long east choir area and the sacristy were built in 1477. The entire church was remodeled extensively between 1482 and 1496.

The opening worship service of the famous Leipzig Debate between Luther and Eck was held here, lasting a very long time due to a devout parish musician who wrote a special cantata for the occasion that lasted nearly two and a half hours! Interestingly, Leipzig became Lutheran only very late in the Reformation. Luther introduced the Reformation to Leipzig in 1539 by preaching in this church on Pentecost. A plaque inside commemorates the event.

There was a huge increase in church attendance as a result of the Reformation and additional church space was added by building the galleries in 1570. The tower was also adapted to Renaissance tastes at that time.

In 1950, on the 200th anniversary of Johann Sebastian Bach's death, his bones were moved into the long choir area of the church. His grave was located originally at the Johanniskirche (St. John Church), which was destroyed in World War II. Bach reached the height of his music career as a church cantor at this church, teaching and working immediately next door at the school, which no longer exists.

We were allowed entry into the choir area to admire the huge, life-size paintings of the head pastors of this Leipzig church dating back to the Reformation. As a result, we were also able to spend a few quiet moments at the site of Bach's grave. A moving experience for me indeed.