The tube that was found in the head of the church rooster of the church of Paal was opened live this afternoon during the afternoon broadcast of Radio 2 Limburg with Bjorn Verhoeven. The tube in Hasselt was opened together with three members of the Paalse church factory. “It’s rattling,” Jos Ver Boven could already conclude. And in the tube were the coins that were in circulation in 1994. So Belgian francs. Also a charter that was partly broken by the ravages of time. “The date of August 30, 1994 is still very clear.”
Common in such certificates that were hidden during renovation works were the names of the leaders at that time. It starts with the 16th year of the pontificate of Pope John Paul II, the second year of King Albert II and the mayoralty of Marcel Mondelaers. “The tube was then made following the exterior restoration of the Sint-Jan De Doper van Paal church on behalf of the Sint-Jan church factory.
With the financial support of the Flemish community, architect Vanjes from Koersel and …Algemene Ondernemingen… from Antwerp-Wilrijk,” we read.
The church factory is now searching the archives to see if there is still a copy of the charter. And then it is time to think about what message will be conveyed to the next generation in September, when the tower’s restoration is complete. One thing is certain: paper will certainly be plasticized.
