© DICK VAN NIEKERK 1 "DAYS OF JUSTINIAN I" Skopje, November 14, 2020 Special Thematic Strand: RELIGION Session 1: Religion – Heresies - Reformation Talk: Dick van Niekerk Bearing God and Hearing God The Bogomil and Cathar teaching of the Birth of Jesus through the ear of the Virgin Mary Dear Attendees, Last summer I had a wonderful experience. In September I was on a short holiday to the German city Würzburg. I visited the beautifully restored Marienkapelle 1 in the middle of the city, among other sites. My attention suddenly went to the exterior northern portal, a bit in the shadow of the impressive building, to the tympanum on which, at first glance, an enigmatic interpretation of “the Annunciation to the Blessed Virgin Mary” is portrayed. On a relief image, we can see the angel Gabriel to the left, and Mary to the right; in the middle is a vase with three lilies 1 The name Kapelle (Chapel) for this impressive gothic church building seems to be an odd choice, but there is a canonical legal reason for this: it is not allowed to call this a church, because there is no permanent community of faithful attached to this building.