Amid crimson theater drapes at a well-known Oslo location for LGBTQ+ gatherings, the Norwegian Lutheran Church issued a formal apology for discrimination and harm perpetrated over the years.
“The church in Norway has caused the LGBTQ+ community pain, shame and significant harm,” bishop Olav Fykse Tveit, the church leader, stated this Thursday. “It was wrong for this to take place and that is why I apologise today.”
“Harassment, discrimination and unfair treatment” had caused a loss of faith for some, the bishop admitted. A religious service at Oslo's main cathedral was scheduled to come after the apology.
The apology was delivered at the London Pub establishment, a bar that was one of two targeted in the 2022 shooting that resulted in two deaths and left nine seriously injured during Oslo’s Pride celebrations. An individual of Iranian descent living in Norway, who swore loyalty to Islamic State, was sentenced to no less than 30 years in prison for the murders.
Similar to numerous global faiths, the Norwegian Lutheran Church – a Protestant Lutheran denomination that is the biggest religious group in Norway – had long marginalised the LGBTQ+ community, denying them the opportunity from serving as pastors or to have church weddings. During the 1950s, bishops of the church characterized LGBTQ+ persons as a “social danger of global proportions”.
Yet, with Norwegian society turning more progressive, emerging as the world's second to permit registered partnerships for same-sex couples back in 1993 and during 2009 the initial Nordic nation to approve gay marriage, the church gradually changed.
During 2007, Norway's church began ordaining homosexual ministers, and same-sex couples were permitted to get married in religious ceremonies starting in 2017. Last year, the bishop took part in the Pride march in Oslo in what was described as an unprecedented step for the church.
The Thursday statement of regret was met with a mixed reaction. The leader of an organization representing Norwegian Christian lesbians, Hanne Marie Pedersen-Eriksen, who is also a gay pastor, described it as “an important reparation” and a moment that “finally marked the end of a painful era within the church's past”.
According to Stephen Adom, the director of Norway’s Association for Gender and Sexual Diversity, the statement was “strong and important” but arrived “overdue for individuals who lost their lives to AIDS … with hearts filled with anguish since the church viewed the disease to be God’s punishment”.
Globally, a few churches have attempted to make amends for their actions towards LGBTQ+ people. In 2023, the Anglican Church apologised for what it described as “disgraceful” conduct, even as it continues to refuse to authorize same-sex weddings in religious settings.
Similarly, the Methodist Church in Ireland in the past year expressed regret for its “failures in pastoral support and care” toward LGBTQ+ individuals and their relatives, but held fast in its belief that marriage could only be a bond between male and female.
Several months ago, the United Church based in Canada issued an apology toward Two-Spirit and LGBTQIA+ individuals, describing it as a renewed commitment of the church's “dedication to welcoming all and full inclusion” in every part of the church's activities.
“We have not succeeded to honor and appreciate the beauty of all creation,” Rev Michael Blair, the top administrative leader of the church, remarked. “We have hurt individuals rather than pursuing healing. We apologize.”
A software engineer and tech writer passionate about open-source projects and AI advancements.
