SYTTENDE MAI

17 of MAYTH

Family Celebrationat the Pavilion

Parade and Fun ActivitiesGood Samaritan Society – Loveland Village

Sunday, May 19 , 12:30 p.m.th

Casual Dress

Hamburgers, Hot Dogs, Salad, VegetablesChips, Drinks, Dessert

Adults, $8 – Children 6-11, $5 – Under 6, Free

Reservations and Payment Due by Wednesday, May 15th

Contact Gary Zook: 970.493.9344 or1100 Parkwood Drive, Fort Collins CO 80525

KULTURHJØRNET (CULTURE CORNER)Nancy L. Dunn, Cultural Director

Did you ever wonder how your ancestors came to theU.S.? Why and how they left their homeland? And whathappened when they came to these shores? A few SteinFjell members will portray their families from that period.

If you find this interesting, we have a special assign-ment for you. At our September lodge meeting we wouldlike to have another presentation like this. You may havean ancestor that was part of a special place, time, or anevent. There must be some fascinating stories to tell us.Please delve into your past and bring your history to life.At the May lodge meeting, we will have reference hand-outs for all of you to go online or search independently.This is why we belong to Sons of Norway – to show thefootprint of our past and to step toward our future.

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On the masthead is a medieval image ofOlav Haraldsson (Olav II, Saint Olaf)

Photo: gjenvick.com/images/Books/1904/BlandtUdvandredeNordmaend/Photo-03-TypiskeUdvandrere

UdenforEmigrantstationen-EllisIsland-NY-500.jpg

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MAI KALENDER*Official Norwegian Flag-Flying Day Norwegian Public Holiday

+

1: * Arbeidernesdag eller Første Mai (Labor Day or 1 of+ st

May, a.k.a. Intl. Workers’ Day, May Day)Mai Gås Dag (May Goose Day) (Like April Fool’s – theone who gets fooled is called a May goose), Norway

2: Lodge Meeting, 7 p.m., Scholarship Recipients,Syttende Mai Celebration Sign Up/Pay

4: Norway Day, Join Hands Day

5: Rosemaling at Fjellheim, 12 - 4 p.m. (p. 3)

7: Receipt Deadline, Camp Trollfjell Deposit, Applic.

8: *Frigjøringsdag (Liberation Day), 1945, Norway

12: Mother’s Day, U.S.A.RSVP Trollheim Scandinavian Brunch (p. 5)

15: Reservations, Payment Due, Stein Fjell 17. Mai (p. 1)Reservations Due, Fjellheim Syttende Mai Fest (p. 5)

16: Board Meeting, 7 p.m., Midge Parkos’

17: * Syttende Mai eller Grunnlovsdagen, 17 of May or+ th

The Constitution Day (1814) Hurra! Hurra!Registration Deadline, Camp Norge Memorial DayWeekend (April 2013 Posten)

18: Rosemaling at Fjellheim, 9 a.m. - 1 p.m. (p. 3)

18-19: Colorado Lodges’ Syttende Mai Celebrations (p. 5)

19: Stein Fjell Syttende Mai Celebration, 12:30 p.m. (p. 1)

20: Posten Submission Deadline

25-27: Memorial Day Weekend at Camp Norge Info.:campnorge.com, sofn6.com, April 2013 Posten

27: Memorial Day Observed, U.S.A. [Traditional: May 30]

SAVE THE DATE

Juni 6: Lodge Meeting, 7 p.m., Salad SupperCANCELLED Juni 22-23: Scandinavian Midsummer Festival Juni 22: Scandinavian Midsummer Dance Festival (p. 3)Juli 7-20: Camp Trollfjell (Feb. <13 Posten)Oktober 19: Stein Fjell Lutefisk Dinner, Loveland

MEETING REMINDERS FROM RASRas Erdal, Stein Fjell Host Coordinator

Our May 2 Refreshment Hosts are Kristi Quinlannd

(chair), Betty and Joe Clithero, Becky and Jon-Eirik Holm-Johansen, Ruth and Clayton Nelson, Jane Yestness, andNissa Yestness.

Vær så god . . .Looking forward to the next month . . . the Refresh-

ment Hosts for the June 6 lodge meeting are Kris Bakichth

(chair), Inger Froyland, Joni Heiden, Maria Reichel, TerryThompson, and Enid Van de Walker.

Tusen takk for din hjelp.

INTERIM COUNSELOR

Counselor Marian Erdal is taking a temporary leave ofabsence, so she can focus on her health in the way herdoctor would like. We wish her well and look forward towhen she can resume her office.

Kathy Browne, immediate past counselor, has offeredto assume the counselor's duties in the interim. Weappreciate her willingness to do so. Kathy can be reachedat 970.744.0922 or browneks@gmail.com.

GRATULERER MED DAGEN!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

5 Rod Skaflen 14 Simon Reichel 5 Reece Spudich 16 Kristi Quinlan 6 Claire Grinager 17 Ian Moe 7 Linda George 17 Stefan Moe 8 Wilma Gullickson 17 Mary Ann Rakke 8 Barrett Ingvaldsen 22 Jerad Sutton 9 Marianne Workman-Nesse 26 Vicki Johnson 12 Clayton Kvasager 27 Judy Sutherland

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STEIN FJELL CONTACTS

President: Roxanne Storlie – 970.412.5713President@SteinFjell.com

Vice President: Rod Skaflen – 970.484.5459VicePresident@SteinFjell.com

Secretary: JoAnn Kison – 970.581.2348Secretary@SteinFjell.com

Treasurer: Gary Zook – 970.493.9344Treasurer@SteinFjell.com

Editors: Marianne and Bill Nesse – 970.330.7183 Editor@SteinFjell.com

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DITT OG DATT (THIS ‘N’ THAT)

i Fjellheim’s May rosemaling classes (all experiencelevels) will be on Sunday, the 5 , from 12 to 4 p.m.,th

and Saturday, the 18 , from 9 to 1 p.m. atth

Viking Hall, 1045 Ford St., Colorado Springs.Cost is $20/class. Please call Sissel Disbrow at719.540.2737, Bj Mapstone at 719.264.0955,or Cindy Bauer, instructor, at 719.633.8260.

i Trollheim’s spring rosemaling classes have ended.Instructor Louise Bath welcomes all who would like tocontact her for the new fall schedule, as well asinterested people who would like a short session inthe summer: lbath25@comcast.net / 303.799.3527.

i Kon-Tiki, Norway’s highest-grossing film of 2012, had its US debute in April. It received Golden Globe and Oscar nominations, and criti- cal acclaim at Toronto, New York, and Portland film fes- tivals. Check local listings.

i Malmø, Sweden, hosts the 2013 Eurovision song contest, May 14-18,and a favorite to win is Norway’sMargaret Berger, with her song I Feed You My Love. Her semi-final isthe 16 . The finals are on the 18 . To th th

watch performances or learn more, visit eurovision.tv.

REGARDING CULTURAL SKILLSRas Erdal, Cultural Skills Director

Please remember that there are 14 different CulturalSkills . . . and they can be worked on independently. Tolearn of the requirements for any Cultural Skill, go tosofn.com/members and log in. Click on Resources andthen, on the drop down menu, click on Cultural Skills andscroll to the Cultural Skill of interest.

Our current Hardanger embroidery group meetsapproximately every two weeks, and it is an excellentsupport group when you discover a miscount on workdone a few days earlier. We will always welcome newmembers at any skill level, but please call me at970.225.9035 for information and/or dates. It’s a fungroup that ends with a Kake/Kaffe (or tea or hotchocolate) session.

? J ? J ? J ? J ? J ? J ?

Please respect fellow members’ privacy.Names, Phone Numbers, and Addresses must not be

redistributed, or used for commercial purposes.

SOLSKINN (SUNSHINE)Marian Erdal

Condolences to Kirsten Gjelde-Bennetton the loss of her grandmother, who was101 years old and lived in Portland, Oregon.

We wish good recovery to Wilma Gullicksonand Kathy Browne, both of whom had surgery recently.

Good News: Our two scholarship winners this year areSteven Gulliksen and Kaja Gjelde-Bennett. Come andmeet them at the May lodge meeting.

SCANDINAVIAN FESTIVAL CANCELLED

Dear Stein Fjell Members,

On April 4, 2013 an email was sent to me from theorganizers of the Scandinavian Festival in Estes Parkcancelling this year’s and all future events.

“It is with deepest regret that the board of directors ofSons of Norway Vesterheim Lodge 6-118 announces thecancellation of the 2013 Scandinavian MidsummerFestival. Due in part to unforeseen circumstances theboard of directors decided to cancel this year’s festivaland in accordance with the wishes of the general lodgemembership has no plans to re-introduce the event infuture years. If any organization is interested in sponsoringand managing future Scandinavian Midsummer Festivalsthey should contact Vesterheim Lodge by email atvesterheimlodge@gmail.com for more information.”

Thank you to all who have participated in past festi-vals, making them one of our best and most profitableevents. If you know of any other events that may be suita-able as a fundraiser, please contact the lodge president.

Sincerely, Becky Holm-Johansen

SCANDINAVIAN MIDSUMMER DANCE FESTIVALSaturday, June 22, 10 a.m. - 4 p.m., Estes Park

The Swedish Folk Dance Club of Denver invites you tothe Scandinavian Midsummer Dance Festival on June 22nd

from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Performance Park Amphi-theater, 417 West Elk-horn Avenue in EstesPark. There will be a May-pole, music, dancing (per-formance and teaching),and the Fjellborg Vikings(reenactors). Come andcelebrate Midsummer!

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VELKOMMEN NYTT MEDLEM – JOHN BALDO

Stein Fjell Lodge extends a hearty velkommen to JohnBaldo. John grew up and attended school in Oakland, Cali-fornia. During that time, John spent a year as an exchangestudent in Levanger, Norway. While studying for his B.A. inbiochemistry at UC Berkeley, he states "I took advantageof the excellent Scandinavian language department . . . "John did graduate studies in physical chemistry at HarvardUniversity. While doing post-doctoral studies at theUniversity of Bristol, England, he met his wife, Carol.

John and Carol have lived in Fort Collins for the pasttwenty years. Prior to that they have lived in San Jose,California, and Edmonton, Alberta.

After his studies at the University of Bristol, John wasa professorial assistant at the University of Alberta inEdmonton. Designing scientific instruments has been thefocus of John's work. Some of his work was on opticalequipment, but the majority has been directed towardsNMR and MRI system development with GE, Elscint,Hitachi, Varian, and most recently, Agilent. He is currentlylooking for another instrument development opportunity.

John's maternal family has deep Massachusetts roots.His paternal grandfather emigrated from Italy to home-stead near Visalia, California.

After his initial year inLevanger, John typically visitedhis host family almost everyother year. His visits havetaken him to many towns inTrøndelag, and to Oslo, Bergen,Bodø, Tromsø, Lillehammer,and Kristiansand. He hasattended the University of Oslo summerschool in Blindern, and worked there as a librarian duringone summer. Last summerJohn and Carol visited John'shost brother in Asker. Theyhave many mementos andexperiences from these visits.

John lists hiking, cross-country skiing, cycling, andsailing as interests andhobbies. While indoors, he enjoys cooking and baking.

Norwegian Cultural Skills of interest to John areTraditional Norwegian Cooking, Reading Norwegian andNorwegian-American Authors, and Norwegian Languageand Culture.

John and Carol have two children. Their daughter,Hilary, is a speech therapist with the Kent Public Schoolsoutside Seattle, Washington. Their son, Matthew, who iseducated in computer science, is seeking work in webpage

development and design. Additionally, they have hostedtwo AFS exchange students. They were Jacob of Oster-sund, Sweden, and Miriama, a Maori from Whanganui,New Zealand. “We continue to be active in the AFS student exchangeprogram, serving as liaisons for host families and students.We would be very interested in talking to families inter-ested in hosting, or families with students that might beinterested in participating in this valuable program."

VELKOMMEN NYTT MEDLEM – CAROL BALDO

Stein Fjell Lodge is pleased to give a warm velkommento Carol Baldo. Beckenham, Kent, England is Carol'shometown. In addition, she lists Reigate, Surrey, Englandas the community where she grew up. Carol is a graduateof the University of Bristol, England, earning a B.Sc. JointHonors in math and physics. It was there she met herhusband, John.

They have lived for the past twenty years in FortCollins. Previously, they resided in San Jose, California andEdmonton, Alberta.

Prior to teaching, Carol worked out of her home as aprogrammer for a company based in Sydney, Australia.Currently, Carol is a second-career teacher and is substi-tute teaching for the Poudre School District.

Although Carol is not of Scandinavian descent, she hasalways been interested in Scandinavia. She has visitedNorway several times, with John, to Levanger and Oslo.They have many books and mementos from Norway.

In the category of Interests and Hobbies, Carol listswalking, hiking, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, andboating. For indoor activities, she likes cooking, baking,and board games. Her Norwegian Cultural Skills of interestare Traditional Norwegian Cooking, and Reading Norwe-gian and Norwegian-American Authors.

Carol and John have two children. Their son, Matthew,lives in Fort Collins where he is a programmer and webdeveloper. Their daughter, Hilary, is a speech therapist,living and working in Seattle, Washington.

"My mother did a brief post-war exchange to Swedenand has several friends there. I went to Sweden as a child.There were many books, toys, and other Swedish me-mentos in my childhood home. I also enjoyed readingNorse mythology.

“John and I are very involved in the AFS student ex-change program. John went to Norway, as you know.Hilary, our daughter, spent a year in Switzerland and ayear in Paraguay. We have hosted twice – Jacob fromSweden, and Miriama, a Maori from New Zealand. Wewould love to talk to anyone interested in hosting ateenager, or sending their teenager overseas."

Nord-Trøndelag

Fylke

LevangerKommune

AkershusFylke

AskerKommune

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ADDITIONAL SYTTENDE MAI CELEBRATIONS*Storfjell members: You are always welcome – join us!*

May 18Vesterheim: 4 p.m., 5 p.m. potluck. Viking reenactors,

folk dancing, hot dogs (bring side dish or dessert for 8-10),and ice cream. Relatives, friends – all are welcome! Atone-ment Lutheran Church, Baseline & Inca Parkway, Boulder.

May 19Fjelldalen: Parade/Picnic, 12 - 5 p.m. Food will be

served, including ICE CREAM! DeKoevend Park, Shelter A,6631 S. University Blvd. (northwest corner of Universityand Arapahoe), Centennial.

Fjellheim: Syttende Mai FEST, 1 - 3:30 p.m. Gamesand prizes for the kids. Hot dogs, sloppy joes, potato sal-ad, beans, sides. $5/person, $10/immediate family. Cele-brate Norway’s Festive Day! RSVP by May 15 – Cleo All-th

good, 719.598.1982. Viking Hall, 1045 Ford St., C. SpringsTrollheim: Scandinavian Brunch, 1 p.m., Members –

$22, Non-members – $23, Under 12 – $9. RSVP by May12 . Send (1) check payable to Sons of Norway, (2) Name,th

Phone, Address, Number Attending and Type, and TotalEnclosed, and (3) a SASE to Barb Hessel at 953 S. HollandStreet, Lakewood CO 80226 or call 303.989.4496. NorskeButikken will be open. 6610 W 14 Ave., Lakewood. th

Vestafjell: Celebration, Lodge Meeting, 2 p.m.,Potluck Koldtbord: small and open-faced sandwiches,sides, and desserts. Brandy and Elmer Ferganchick'sNorwegian Fjord Horses will be the center of attraction.All Saints Lutheran Church, Cory, Colorado (approx. onehour from Grand Junction).

LIMON HERITAGE FESTIVALSaturday, August 3, 10 a.m., Limon

Fjelldalen Lodge will again be taking part in the LimonHeritage Festival on Saturday, August 3, 2013. Participa-tion in this festival honors the heritage and culture ofLincoln County, Colorado settlers and their descendants.The Norwegian folk-art display by Fjelldalen Lodge is inhonor of the many Norwegian immigrants that settled inthe area in the 1800s. In past years, several members ofother Colorado lodges have joined with Fjelldalen,displaying their handiwork, etc. We are aware that manyof you have nowbeen taking partin the Sons ofNorway CulturalSkills programand have earnedyour CulturalSkills pins andmedals. Wewould love tohave you join usto display andtell about whatyou have accom-plished. Bringyour bunad andbe part of thebunad show.

Please call me! Barbara Robb – 303.443.9158 –Member of Limon Heritage Society and Fjelldalen Lodge.

Stein Fjell Welcomes New Members (L-R) Nils Klovdahl, John Martin,Carol Baldo, John Baldo, and Clayton Kvasager

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ZONE 8 NEWSLinda Ault, Director

Spring has sprung and all is good in our Zone. We hadtwo successful barneløpets this winter, one in GrandJunction held by Vestafjell Lodge and another held byStorfjell Lodge in Winter Park. Both were well attended.Sons of Norway members gave lots of good ideas for nextyear’s barneløpets.

Fjellheim Lodge in Colorado Springs held a Christmastea for the community which was well attended. TrollheimLodge held their annual tea in April. Many lodge officerinstallations took place in January throughout the state. ALeadership Workshop was held at Trollheim on February2 , attended by members of all Colorado lodges. And

spokesperson from each lodge told what has been hap-pening at their lodge.

Throughout April and May, several lodges are seeingthe play, Church Basement Ladies, at Boulder DinnerTheatre.

I'd like to thank all the lodges for getting their LodgeAchievement Forms in to me. I'm very proud of all theColorado lodges as they are thriving and continuallyserving their communities.

Gratulerer! (Congratulations!)

MOSTER PAGEANTS AND EXHIBITIONS

Next to Moster Old Church, in an old quarry, is theMoster Amfi, an unusual, open-air amphitheater for 1300.

The historical pageant, Mostraspelet (The Christian Kingsat Moster), is presented annually in May/June. Besideslectures, concerts, and guided tours of the Moster OldChurch, two exhibitions are "From Heathendom to Chris-tianity” (a thought-provoking look at Norse mythology,society in the Viking era, and the transition to the Chris-tian faith and philosophy) and “The Stone Land of Bømlo,”(Bømlo’s mining history, in tunnels under Amfi). MW-N

BENEFIT OF MEMBERSHIP

COMPLIMENTARY FINANCIAL REVIEWLaRue Hanson, Financial Benefits Counselor

This review provides valuable information relevant toyour current financial situation and also helps you planeffectively for the future no matter what your age.

Many of our members may feel they have everythingset just the way they want it or be uncomfortable aboutchanging things. With the financial review service weoffer, you may find another opinion to be beneficial. Wemay reveal that you are indeed on track with things, or wemay find that Sons of Norway can offer more safety andbetter rates of return for you. Maybe you have thoughtabout doing something for the grandkids or your favoritecharity but don't know where to start.

For those of you that enjoy the social and fraternalaspect of Sons of Norway, doing busi-ness with us makes good sense. Yougain from our sound financial productsand from the money that is returned toyour lodge from business that you andother members have done.

For more information or to sched-ule your financial review call me today!

Lhanson1@q.com - 719.599.8546(office) - 719.237.7314(c)2523 Shalimar Drive, Colorado Springs CO 80915-1030

NORWAY’S OLDEST CHURCH – MOSTER

When he landed at Moster, southwest of Bergen, OlavTryggvason (Olav I)celebrated Mass in atent. He built the firstchurch (see p. 9; prob-ably a stave church) atthe site – a central,ancient meeting place.The 12 centuryth

Moster Old Church, atright, was built on thesame site. MW-N

baptize – døpe conversion (to) – omvendelse tilbaptism – dåp missionary – misjonærbishop – biskop official religion – offisiell religionchieftain – høvding pagan – hedenskChristian – kristen paganism – hedenskapchurch – kirke spiritual – åndeligconvert – konvertitt state church – statskirke

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NORWAY MOURNS HJALMAR ANDERSENfrom Views and News from Norway/ Nina Berglund

Hjalmar “Hjallis” Andersen, 90, died on March 27th

from a dramatic fall at his home in Tønsberg. One of Nor-way’s most popular and respected athletes ever, Hjallisreceived a state funeral – one of the highest honors anyNorwegian can receive – on April 4 at Tønsberg Cathe-th

dral, with King Harald and Prime Minister Jens Stoltenbergin attendance. Norwegian Broadcasting (NRK) aired theentire funeral ceremony live on national television.

A source of great pride in a nation recovering from theravages and occupation of World War II, Hjallis came fromhumble beginnings – the son of a boatswain from Ham-merfest in Northern Norway – and grew up in Trondheim.He debuted as a speed skater at the age of 23, the winterafter the war ended.

Hjallis quickly started winning, was part of the reserveteam in the Winter Olympics of 1948, and made his break-through at the 1949 European Championships, when heset a world record in the 10,000-meter race and won anoverall silver medal. He thenwon the Norwegian, Europe-an, and World Championshipsin both 1951 and 1952, andwon three gold medals at the1952 Oslo Winter Olympics,where he also was flag-bearer. Hjallis later coachedthe Norwegian speed skatingteam at the 1960 SquawValley, California WinterOlympics.

“With the death ofHjalmar Andersen, we close aproud chapter inNorwegian post-war history,”Prime MiniisterStoltenbergwrote in a pressrelease. “Hjalliswas a legend onthe ice, and aninspiration for awhole genera-tion of Norwe-gians. Hismemory willalways live inthe hearts of thepeople.” MW-N

THE CHRISTIAN CONVERSION OF SCANDINAVIABill Nesse

The Scandinavian lands all underwent a conversion toChristianity roughly a thousand years ago. While theconversions are conventionally identified with a kingestablishing Christianity as the official religion (often atsword point), in practice, conversions were more complex.

The archeological record shows that Christian prac-tices and symbols began to appear in Scandinavia inRoman times, the result of trade and of Scandinaviansserving in Roman armies. The first missionaries to be sentto Scandinavia reported that some people were alreadyChristian. These could have been slaves, or Vikings whoaccepted Christianity while plundering the rest of Europe.

More than a few Viking leaders received baptism andconversion to Christianity as part of the tribute that theycollected during their raiding. Because pagan practicesinvolved multiple gods, adding one more god – whosepower was evident in the wealth of the raided lands –must have seemed like a good idea. Being baptized alsoinvolved acquiring a godfather, often the king from whomthey were extracting tribute. The Viking acquired the giftof a family connection to a wealthy and powerful Europe-an leader and the European leader received protectionfrom further attacks by the Viking, to whom he had nowestablished a family tie. When the Viking leader returnedhome, he could then offer the gift of baptism to thosearound him, standing as godfather, and in this way, extendthe web of family connections on which Viking leadershippositions depended.

The first report of a missionary in the north is thedoubtful story of St. Willibrord meeting King Ongendus ofDenmark just before 800. Ongendus was reportedly“more savage than a wild beast and harder than anystone.” Documented missionary activity by the Catholicchurch started in the 9 century and was mostly centeredth

in a few locations in Denmarkand Sweden. The first mission-ary, Archbishop Ebo of Rheims,went to Denmark in 823, butmet with little success. A sub-sequent missionary effort inboth Sweden and Denmark bythe monk Ansgar, beginning in829, was somewhat moresuccessful, and Ansgar wascanonized for his efforts. TheCatholic church archives con-tain very little informationabout the fate of the churchesthat Ansgar established but

Photo: Oslo Museum/Wikipedia Commons

Hjalmar “Hjallis” Andersen also wasknown as “Kong Glad” (King Happy). He

is remembered as much for being a“phenomenally nice guy” as for being a

champion skater. Photo: Ulf Larsen/Wikipedia Commons

St. Ansgar, from TrinitatisChurch, Hamburg (holding

the church in his hands)

8

enough must have survived to warrant establishing threeDanish bishoprics in 948. Regardless, the missionary effortwas not particularly successful and did not extend toNorway or Finland. A visitor to Hedeby, Denmark in 965-66 recorded the presence of a Christian church but saidthat most of the inhabitants were pagan.

King Harald Bluetooth is generally credited withconverting Denmark to Christianity somewhere between

960 and 970. Harald began hisrein in 958 or 959 as a pagan,gave his father an ostentatiouspagan burial in a large mound,and had a separate mound pre-pared for his own use nearby.Harald subsequently was bap-tized, built a church nearby, andhad his father’s remains movedto the churchyard. Harald alsoerected a runestone declaringhimself Christian and claiming

to have converted all of Denmark. Why Harald converted is uncertain, but a cogent argu-

ment can be made that it was for practical, rather thanspiritual, purposes. Harald had seen how nearby Christianrulers used the strength of the Church to consolidate theirrule. Christianity also offered him the benefit of beingassociated with the most powerful, wealthy, and prestig-ious rulers in Europe.

The story of Sweden’s conversion is muddled withconflicting and unreliable accounts. One account reportsthat King Erik the Victorious, who died about 995, wasbaptized in Denmark but lapsed back to paganism. Hisson, Olof Eriksson, started his rein as a pagan, convertedto Christianity in 1006, but introduced Christianity to onlya limited area. Olof’s son, Emund, reportedly imported abishop, Osmund, from Poland in the early 11 century.th

Regardless, the eleventh century was a period of turmoilwith constant battles among different factions for controlof the country. These battles have been described as con-tests between paganism and Christianity, but it is muchmore likely that they were simply fights among differentchieftains seeking to gain control. In the end, Christianchieftains prevailed, but it was not until 1164 that theviolence subsided enough so that Cardinal NicholausBreakspear (he became Pope Adrian IV) could establishthe first Swedish archdiocese in Uppsala.

The Norwegian conversion involved Vikings who werebaptized abroad and brought the Church home with them.The first to attempt conversion was Håkon Haraldsson,son of Harald Fairhair, Norway’s first king. Håkon had beensent to England for his protection and was raised as aChristian by King Adelstein of England. When Håkon

gained the Norwegian throne in 934, he attempted to in-troduce Christianity, but faced stiff opposition and revert-ed to paganism. He was killed in 960 in a battle with hisnephew, Harald Gråfell, who was baptized in Northumber-land, where his father was King of York. Harald’s conver-sion attempt similarly failed and he was killed in Denmark.

Olav Tryggvason (Olav I) was more successful, mostlybecause he and Danish King Svein Forkbeard (who wasHarald Bluetooth’s son and aChristian) extracted a danegeld(tribute) of 16,000 pounds ofsilver from English King Ethelredin 994. As part of the peacesettlement, Olav I was baptizedand King Ethelred became hisgodfather. Olav I used his part ofthe danegeld to finance a take-over of Norway. Olav I landed atMoster, on the island of Bømlosouth of Bergen, in 995 and built

the first Christian church in Norway (see p. 6). He madesome progress in converting the population and sent amissionary to Iceland. Olav I was opposed by Earl ErikHåkonsson – who allied himself with Svein Forkbeard andSwedish King Olof Eriksson (pagan at the time) anddefeated Olav I at the battle of Svöldr in 1000. While thishas been interpreted as a battle between Christian andpagan, it was really, as elsewhere, just a battle betweenrivals for control of Norway. Had it been about religion,we would expect Svein Forkbeard, who was Christian, tohave allied himself with Olav I. Erik, a pagan, took overNorway under Svein’s overlordship.

Olav Haraldsson (Olav II) was more successful. Olav IIserved as a mercenary for Ethelred, who was deposed asKing of England by Svein Forkbeard (yes, him again). OlavII was baptized in the winter of 1013-1014, probably as

Harald Bluetooth

A romantic interpretation of the arrival ofOlav I at Moster (Peter Arbo, 1860)

Svein Forkbeard

9

part of the peace settle-ment. Olav II subsequentlyconquered Norway in 1015,replacing Earl Erik, and ruleduntil being thrown out ofthe country in 1028. Onestory has it that Olav II is-sued a Christian law codefor Norway at a Thing(assembly) at Moster in1022 (or 1024). Whethertrue or not, it appears thatthis approximate timemarks the formal establish-ment of Christianity in Nor-way. Olav II returned withan army in 1030 in an attempt to regain the throne fromSvein Knutsson, Svein Forkbeard’s grandson, but waskilled in the Battle of Stiklestad (near Trondheim). Olav II’sson, Magnus, became king in 1035 at age 11. Magnus wasthe first Norwegian king to receive his baptism in Norway.

Olav II is usually credited with bringing Christianity toNorway. Later Norwegian kings and churchmen promotedOlav II as a martyred saint who died in the fight to intro-duce Christianity. We know him as Saint Olaf, patron saintof Norway. However, the Norwegian church also points to995 as the time where Christianity was introduced, andcelebrated the event’s millennium in 1995. Every May orJune, a pageant about the arrival of Christianity is present-ed at Moster (see p. 6). It is no surprise that Bømlo andenvirons are known as Norway’s Bible Belt.

The history in Finland is not well documented. Arche-ological evidence indicates that Christianity began to gaina foothold in the 11 century. A Bishop of Finland is firstth

mentioned in 1209, but the formal establishment of Chris-tianity probably occurred when Sweden gained control ofFinland in 1249, in the Second Swedish Crusade.

In Iceland, with no king, the decision to convert toChristianity was precipitated by Norwegian King OlavTryggvason (Olav I), who sent the priest Thangbrandr toconvert the population. The priest had some success, butalso met with considerable resistance, owing in part to thefact that he killed two or three men who composed libel-ous poetry about him. Thangbrandr returned to Norwayafter one or two years, with bitter complaints about theIcelanders. Olav I was furious and threatened to kill Ice-landers living in Norway. The situation was defused whentwo chieftains who had converted to Christianity met withOlav I and agreed to aid in converting Iceland. This stirredcontinued conflict, because the move to convert was seenas an attempt by Olav I to gain control of Iceland. Theconflict came to a head in the summer of 999 or 1000 and

the issue was brought to the Althing (annual assembly) tobe resolved. Lawspeakers for the two factions met andagreed that Thorgeirr, the pagan Lawspeaker, would find acompromise agreeable to everyone. After a day of con-templation, Thorgeirr issued his binding decision, sayingthat everyone must live under the same laws and . . .”proclaimed in the laws that all people should be Chris-tian, and that those in this country who had not yet beenbaptized should receive baptism . . .” This outcome alsofinessed the problem posed by Olav I, because in adoptingChristianity in this manner, Icelanders got their ownChurch that was independent of Norway.

When a Christian king or chieftain gained some levelof control, introduction of the Church gave him a distinctadvantage over his pagan rivals – he sponsored andcontrolled the church, hired the priests and/or werepriests themselves, and collected the tithes for the church.

Once the formal conversion was proclaimed, cam-paigns against overt pagan practices were sometimesfierce. As a practical matter, however, it is clear that thespiritual conversion from paganism to Christianity was agradual process. Though populations were baptized, oftenforcibly, it was not easy to change cultural practices. TheChurch assimilated some pagan practices (Yule traditions,for example), and others were tolerated as long as theydid not challenge the king or the Church, or were doneprivately.

It can be argued that the conversion to Christianitywas necessary for a king to effectively exercise controlover a country as large as Norway, Sweden, or Denmark.The Church, controlled by the king, brought with it thehierarchy and organization that were critical if the kingwas to administer his lands. They also brought writingwith the Latin alphabet [replacing runes (Januar 2010Posten)], which made administration practical. Further,the priests, whether imported from afar or locally trained,were educated, literate people, and their skills made themgood administrators.

Thanks to the Reformation, the original Scandinavianchurches are now all Lutheran. In Norway, Denmark, andIceland, they are official State Churches and remaincontrolled by the government. The kings of Denmark andNorway are the supreme authorities for their churches. Itwas the same in Sweden until 2000, when the Churchformally separated from the State. In Finland, with ties toboth Sweden and Russia, both Lutheran and EasternOrthodox churches were State Churches, but separationof church and state was accomplished in 1869.

Sources: Winroth, A., 2012, The Conversion of Scandinavia,Yale University Press. Brown, N.M., 2012, Song of theVikings, Palgrave Macmillan, New York. Wikipedia

A medieval depiction of OlavHaraldsson (Olav II)

MAI 2013