The Filial Church of Feistritz near Knittelfeld stands on the northern edge of the village of Feistritz near Knittelfeld in the municipality of Sankt Marein-Feistritz in the district of Murtal in Styria. The Roman Catholic branch church of the parish church of St. Marein near Knittelfeld, which is under the patronage of St. John the Baptist and St. John the Evangelist, belongs to the deanery of Knittelfeld in the diocese of Graz-Seckau.
The two-nave church, surrounded by a walled cemetery, was built in 1445 and, after being redesigned, was reconsecrated in 1515 by the Bishop of Trieste. During the Gothic and Baroque eras, further alterations were made. In 1972 wall paintings from the 15th and 16th centuries were uncovered. The first church, dating from 1070, was built by the nobleman Hartnid von Traisen. In 1445 Andreas Enstaler had the two-aisled church built by the Admont master builder Niklas Velpacher. After being redesigned, this magnificent church was consecrated in 1515 by the Bishop of Trieste. The striking double patronage - John the Baptist and John the Apostle and Evangelist - suggests that this church is of special significance. In the Johanneskirche in Feistritz, probably only the original baptistery of the Knittelfeld basin can be seen.
Today's nave represents a rectangular flat-roofed room with stucco fields around 1700. To the north there is an extended annex, which also includes today's sacristy. The semicircular apse in the east has an early Gothic window and a late Gothic ribbed vault. The mural paintings from the end of the 16th century, which were uncovered there in 1972, show Christ with Solomon and her sons John and James, the stigmatisation of St. Francis of Assisi and St. Hieronism in the area from north to south. The altarpiece of the high altar, which is a rococo work of the late 18th century, refers to the two patron saints of the church with their symbols. On the south wall of the nave is the statue of St. Nepomuk in front of a canopy curtain, a work by Balthasar Prandstätter at the end of the 18th century. Above the sacristy portal, which has a wooden door covered with iron plates, is a crucified Christ from the 16th century. On the ground floor of the west tower, which is crowned with a pointed helmet, is the vestibule with a late Gothic church portal open on three sides. The door is fitted with metal fittings with bird motifs and diamond patterns. The organ dates back to 1886. Of the 3 bells, the oldest was cast in Graz in 1751, the other steel bells are from 1918 and 1919. Through the extensive renovation, beginning in 2003 to 2006, our church has gained even more attraction.
A surprise was the discovery of existing wall paintings on the south and north wall of the church, which had been hidden for centuries. Figures of Apostles from the second half of the 14th century and a Annunciation with Mary and the Angel from the beginning of the 18th century came to light. The scene of the triumphant Christ with numerous angels and saints, most of which has been preserved and made visible again, which can be admired on the northern side, dates from 1704, as can be seen from the inscription on the upper edge.