Orthodoxy in Norway
Encyclopedia
Orthodoxy
in Norway
is a small minority religion in Norway
with 8,492 official members in 2010, up from 2,315 in 2000.
era Scandinavians and specifically Norwegians came into contact with both the Byzantine Empire
and their neighbors, the Russians. Several of the Viking
chiefs and kings not only resided in Novgorod but also helped to make Kiev
an important medival center. At some point during the late ninth or early tenth century Kiev fell under the rule of Varangians
and became the nucleus of the Rus
' polity. In a number of contemporary sources it is in fact the Scandinavavians whom were known as "Rus", another term was used for the numerous Slavic tribes.
In the 16th century a Russian missionary, St. Tryphon of Pechenga, evangalized some of the Sami
population of Norway and built an Orthodox chapel along the Neiden
River. Following the socialist revolution in 1917, a number of Orthodox refugees from Russia
fled to Scandinavia, first to Sweden and eventually to Norway. The Orthodox Church in Russia
organized pastoral work among them through the church in Stockholm
, founded in 1617. In 1931, St. Nikolai church was established in Oslo
. This congregation of Russia
n tradition sorts under the Patriarchate of Constantinople and was the first modern Orthodox congregation established in Norway. The 1960s and 1970s saw in influx of Orthodox from Greece
in addition to the first known conversions of Norwegians in modern times. Through immigration from both Russia, the former Yugoslavia and other Eastern European countries the number of Orthodox Chritians in Norway has increased significantly since 1990. The past decade has also seen the more permanent establishment of Orthodox communities of Serbian, Bulgarian and Romanian tradition, the priests of these communities sorting under their corresponding juridstrictions.
. While this adhers to the Russian or Slavic tradition, the Norwegian language is always used along with Slavonic
and at times used exclusively. This reflects the missionary tradtion of the Orthodox Church, as in for example the work of Sts. Cyril and Methodius, renowned for helping to create a local alphabet (Cyrillic) in order to translate both the Holy Bible as well as the various liturgical books of the Orthodox Church.
The Patriarchal Exarchate for Orthodox Parishes of Russian Tradition in Western Europe
has a total of three priests and one hierodeacon in Norway, two of the priests residing in the Oslo
area and one at Greipstad
in Songdalen
near Kristiansand
. The priest in Songdalen
is in charge of St. Herman of Alaska
Orthodox Community. There are several affiliate or mission communities in Bergen and Stavanger as well as a chapel in Bygstad and St. George's chapel at Neiden
. In addition there is a small skete
dedicated to St. Tryphon of Pechenga, home to two monks.
The Greek Community
The primarily Greek congregation of the Annunciation of the Theotokos was founded in 1965 with main purpose of serving the Greek-speaking Orthodox community in Norway
. This church sorts under Metropolitan Pavlos Menevissoglou of "Sweden
and all of Scandinavia
", and is based in Stockholm
. The congregation celebrates the Divine Liturgy approximately once a month through the services of Archimandrite Evmenios Likakis or other Greek clergy who travel to Oslo for the occasion.
, Bergen
, Trondheim
and Kirkenes
. In addition, the Moscow Patriarchate sponsors work in Tromsø
and in the Russia
n settlement of Barentsburg
on Svalbard
. Russian communities in North Norway have often been attended to by Russian clergymen of the Moscow Patriarchate.
ns and Eritrea
ns. The number of Eritrea
ns in Norway grew from 813 in 2000 to 7,728 in 2010, while the number of Ethiopia
ns grew from 2,803 to 5,805.
Orthodoxy
The word orthodox, from Greek orthos + doxa , is generally used to mean the adherence to accepted norms, more specifically to creeds, especially in religion...
in Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
is a small minority religion in Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
with 8,492 official members in 2010, up from 2,315 in 2000.
| Year | Orthodox | Percent |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | ? | ? |
| 1990 | 1,222 | 0.02% |
| 2000 | 2,315 | 0.05% |
| 2005 | 5,028 | 0.10% |
| 2010 | 8,492 | 0.17% |
History of the Orthodox Church in Norway
Since the VikingViking
The term Viking is customarily used to refer to the Norse explorers, warriors, merchants, and pirates who raided, traded, explored and settled in wide areas of Europe, Asia and the North Atlantic islands from the late 8th to the mid-11th century.These Norsemen used their famed longships to...
era Scandinavians and specifically Norwegians came into contact with both the Byzantine Empire
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
and their neighbors, the Russians. Several of the Viking
Viking
The term Viking is customarily used to refer to the Norse explorers, warriors, merchants, and pirates who raided, traded, explored and settled in wide areas of Europe, Asia and the North Atlantic islands from the late 8th to the mid-11th century.These Norsemen used their famed longships to...
chiefs and kings not only resided in Novgorod but also helped to make Kiev
Kiev
Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
an important medival center. At some point during the late ninth or early tenth century Kiev fell under the rule of Varangians
Varangians
The Varangians or Varyags , sometimes referred to as Variagians, were people from the Baltic region, most often associated with Vikings, who from the 9th to 11th centuries ventured eastwards and southwards along the rivers of Eastern Europe, through what is now Russia, Belarus and Ukraine.According...
and became the nucleus of the Rus
Rus' Khaganate
Rus' khaganate is a historiographical term for the formative phase of the Rus state in the 9th century AD....
' polity. In a number of contemporary sources it is in fact the Scandinavavians whom were known as "Rus", another term was used for the numerous Slavic tribes.
In the 16th century a Russian missionary, St. Tryphon of Pechenga, evangalized some of the Sami
Sami people
The Sami people, also spelled Sámi, or Saami, are the arctic indigenous people inhabiting Sápmi, which today encompasses parts of far northern Sweden, Norway, Finland, the Kola Peninsula of Russia, and the border area between south and middle Sweden and Norway. The Sámi are Europe’s northernmost...
population of Norway and built an Orthodox chapel along the Neiden
Neiden
Neiden is a settlement in Lapland with approx. 250 inhabitants. Neiden, situated at the Neiden River, actually consists of two villages separated by the border between Norway and Finland, one side in the municipality of Sør-Varanger of Finnmark county in Norway and the other side in the...
River. Following the socialist revolution in 1917, a number of Orthodox refugees from Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
fled to Scandinavia, first to Sweden and eventually to Norway. The Orthodox Church in Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
organized pastoral work among them through the church in Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
, founded in 1617. In 1931, St. Nikolai church was established in Oslo
Oslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
. This congregation of Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n tradition sorts under the Patriarchate of Constantinople and was the first modern Orthodox congregation established in Norway. The 1960s and 1970s saw in influx of Orthodox from Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
in addition to the first known conversions of Norwegians in modern times. Through immigration from both Russia, the former Yugoslavia and other Eastern European countries the number of Orthodox Chritians in Norway has increased significantly since 1990. The past decade has also seen the more permanent establishment of Orthodox communities of Serbian, Bulgarian and Romanian tradition, the priests of these communities sorting under their corresponding juridstrictions.
The Ecumencial Patriarchate
The first modern Orthodox congregation, St. Nikolai Orthodox Church, is under the juridstriction of the Patriarchal Exarchate for Orthodox Parishes of Russian Tradition in Western EuropePatriarchal Exarchate for Orthodox Parishes of Russian Tradition in Western Europe
The Patriarchal Exarchate for Orthodox Parishes of Russian Tradition in Western Europe is an exarchate of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Russian Orthodox tradition, based in Paris, and having parishes throughout Europe, mainly in France. The Exarchate is sometimes known as Rue Daru from the street...
. While this adhers to the Russian or Slavic tradition, the Norwegian language is always used along with Slavonic
Slavic languages
The Slavic languages , a group of closely related languages of the Slavic peoples and a subgroup of Indo-European languages, have speakers in most of Eastern Europe, in much of the Balkans, in parts of Central Europe, and in the northern part of Asia.-Branches:Scholars traditionally divide Slavic...
and at times used exclusively. This reflects the missionary tradtion of the Orthodox Church, as in for example the work of Sts. Cyril and Methodius, renowned for helping to create a local alphabet (Cyrillic) in order to translate both the Holy Bible as well as the various liturgical books of the Orthodox Church.
The Patriarchal Exarchate for Orthodox Parishes of Russian Tradition in Western Europe
Patriarchal Exarchate for Orthodox Parishes of Russian Tradition in Western Europe
The Patriarchal Exarchate for Orthodox Parishes of Russian Tradition in Western Europe is an exarchate of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Russian Orthodox tradition, based in Paris, and having parishes throughout Europe, mainly in France. The Exarchate is sometimes known as Rue Daru from the street...
has a total of three priests and one hierodeacon in Norway, two of the priests residing in the Oslo
Oslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
area and one at Greipstad
Greipstad
Greipstad is a former municipality in Vest-Agder county in Norway. It is located in the southeastern part of the present-day municipality of Songdalen.-Name:...
in Songdalen
Songdalen
Songdalen is a municipality in Vest-Agder county, Norway. Songdalen was created as a new municipality on 1 January 1964 through the merger of the former municipalities of Finsland, Greipstad and a small part of Øvrebø. The administrative center is the village of Nodeland. The central market area...
near Kristiansand
Kristiansand
-History:As indicated by archeological findings in the city, the Kristiansand area has been settled at least since 400 AD. A royal farm is known to have been situated on Oddernes as early as 800, and the first church was built around 1040...
. The priest in Songdalen
Songdalen
Songdalen is a municipality in Vest-Agder county, Norway. Songdalen was created as a new municipality on 1 January 1964 through the merger of the former municipalities of Finsland, Greipstad and a small part of Øvrebø. The administrative center is the village of Nodeland. The central market area...
is in charge of St. Herman of Alaska
Herman of Alaska
Saint Herman of Alaska was one of the first Eastern Orthodox missionaries to the New World, and is considered by Orthodox Christians to be the patron saint of the Americas.-Biography:Saint Herman was born in the town of Serpukhov in the Moscow Diocese around 1756...
Orthodox Community. There are several affiliate or mission communities in Bergen and Stavanger as well as a chapel in Bygstad and St. George's chapel at Neiden
Neiden
Neiden is a settlement in Lapland with approx. 250 inhabitants. Neiden, situated at the Neiden River, actually consists of two villages separated by the border between Norway and Finland, one side in the municipality of Sør-Varanger of Finnmark county in Norway and the other side in the...
. In addition there is a small skete
Skete
A Skete is a monastic style community that allows relative isolation for monks, but alsoallows for communal services and the safety of shared resources and protection...
dedicated to St. Tryphon of Pechenga, home to two monks.
The Greek Community
The primarily Greek congregation of the Annunciation of the Theotokos was founded in 1965 with main purpose of serving the Greek-speaking Orthodox community in Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
. This church sorts under Metropolitan Pavlos Menevissoglou of "Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
and all of Scandinavia
Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in northern Europe that includes the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, characterized by their common ethno-cultural heritage and language. Modern Norway and Sweden proper are situated on the Scandinavian Peninsula,...
", and is based in Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
. The congregation celebrates the Divine Liturgy approximately once a month through the services of Archimandrite Evmenios Likakis or other Greek clergy who travel to Oslo for the occasion.
The Moscow Patriarchate
The main parish of the Moscow Patriarchate, St. Olga's, was founded in Oslo in 1996. Today, there are also independent churches under the Moscow Patriarchate in StavangerStavanger
Stavanger is a city and municipality in the county of Rogaland, Norway.Stavanger municipality has a population of 126,469. There are 197,852 people living in the Stavanger conurbation, making Stavanger the fourth largest city, but the third largest urban area, in Norway...
, Bergen
Bergen
Bergen is the second largest city in Norway with a population of as of , . Bergen is the administrative centre of Hordaland county. Greater Bergen or Bergen Metropolitan Area as defined by Statistics Norway, has a population of as of , ....
, Trondheim
Trondheim
Trondheim , historically, Nidaros and Trondhjem, is a city and municipality in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. With a population of 173,486, it is the third most populous municipality and city in the country, although the fourth largest metropolitan area. It is the administrative centre of...
and Kirkenes
Kirkenes
is a town in the municipality of Sør-Varanger in the county of Finnmark in the far northeast of Norway...
. In addition, the Moscow Patriarchate sponsors work in Tromsø
Tromsø
Tromsø is a city and municipality in Troms county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Tromsø.Tromsø city is the ninth largest urban area in Norway by population, and the seventh largest city in Norway by population...
and in the Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n settlement of Barentsburg
Barentsburg
Barentsburg is the second largest settlement on Svalbard, with about 500 inhabitants , almost entirely Russians and Ukrainians. The Russian-owned Arktikugol has been mining coal here since 1932.-Status:...
on Svalbard
Svalbard
Svalbard is an archipelago in the Arctic, constituting the northernmost part of Norway. It is located north of mainland Europe, midway between mainland Norway and the North Pole. The group of islands range from 74° to 81° north latitude , and from 10° to 35° east longitude. Spitsbergen is the...
. Russian communities in North Norway have often been attended to by Russian clergymen of the Moscow Patriarchate.
Oriental Orthodox Churches
There is a fast-growing Oriental Church in Bergen, named Saint Michael' Orthodox Church, with 147 members in 2010 (up from 98 in 2009). It is almost totally made up of EthiopiaEthiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
ns and Eritrea
Eritrea
Eritrea , officially the State of Eritrea, is a country in the Horn of Africa. Eritrea derives it's name from the Greek word Erethria, meaning 'red land'. The capital is Asmara. It is bordered by Sudan in the west, Ethiopia in the south, and Djibouti in the southeast...
ns. The number of Eritrea
Eritrea
Eritrea , officially the State of Eritrea, is a country in the Horn of Africa. Eritrea derives it's name from the Greek word Erethria, meaning 'red land'. The capital is Asmara. It is bordered by Sudan in the west, Ethiopia in the south, and Djibouti in the southeast...
ns in Norway grew from 813 in 2000 to 7,728 in 2010, while the number of Ethiopia
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
ns grew from 2,803 to 5,805.