Den norske kirke og misjon

Jeg skrev oppgave om Den norske kirke og misjon i et globalt perspektiv i forrige semester. Nå publiserer jeg teksten min her og håper på debatt. Jeg har ikke tatt meg tid til å oversette, men tror de fleste av dere skjønner engelsken min.

I wrote a paper on the Norwegian Church and Mission during the last semester. Now I’m publishing my text here and I hope to get some reactions. 

The Mission of the Church of Norway (DnK) in a Global Missiological Perspective, seen with the eyes of a Norwegian in Tanzania:

Introduction

The parishes in the Church of Norway, like in most other churches, vary a lot from place to place.

It is therefore a challenge to try to say something about the mission of a whole national church in a few pages. Yet I will in this paper try to pin-point some main tendencies in my home church and describe those with help from some official statements and my own experiences from parishes in different parts of Norway. Through immigration the Church of Norway has already got the global world as our neighbours, and I have therefore decided to deal with the global perspective only within the Norwegian context.

As resources I am mainly using Lutheran World Federation’s paper from 2004: “Mission in Context - Transformation, Reconciliation, Empowerment”, Church of Norway National Council‘s “Church of Norway Plan for Diakonia” from 2009 and a report from the Norwegian conference marking the Edinburgh 1910-2010: “Misjon til forandring – Transforming Mission.” My paper is also reflecting my own experiences from the parishes in Nenset (suburb of Skien city, East of Norway), Høvåg (village outside Kristiansand city, South of Norway), Hammerfest (city in the North of Norway) and Oslo International Church (Oslo city).

The Context

Norway is, if you count square meters, a big country, but the population is only about 5 million people. The Church of Norway is the Lutheran state church and this is even stated in the constitution. This is now in the process of changing, but I will not go into that here.

Almost 80% of the population are members of the church, but the average Sunday service attendance is less than 2%. This indicates that the number of so-called ‘nominal Christians’ are high. On the other hand the percentage of church members baptizing their children, attending confirmation classes and getting married in the church are quite high. Here there are also some variations between town and countryside.   

Traditionally Norwegian “foreign mission” is not done by the church directly, but by different mission societies and mission agencies. Some of those are defining themselves within the Church of Norway, and some not. SMM (Council of Cooperation for Parish and Mission), a part of the Church of Norway, is working as a connection between the local parishes and the mission organisations. This board is also working to engage people in the local parishes in mission: “We want to provoke a Holy restlessness to put the Mission of the Church as the centre of everything we are and do.”[1]

The Church’s Official Statements on Mission

According to the website of the Church of Norway mission is seen in two ways. First, mission should be “border-breaking and inviting in all activities”, this goes with sayings like ‘the church is mission’. Second, the word ‘mission’ is also used for the specific activities of the church. So the word ‘mission’ here has at least two meanings. Further it is said that “mission is a common task for the Church worldwide”. Cooperation with mission organisations and other churches by giving, receiving and sharing resources is also mentioned.[2] It probably tells quite a lot about the focus of this church that there is no well-known plan for mission. Yet an interesting document is the Church of Norway Plan for Diakonia. Here we find a plan and vision for the diaconal ministry: “The love of God for all people and the whole of creation revealed through our life and service”[3]. It is clearly a mission aspect in this vision. The vision is further supported by a definition:     

”Diakonia is the caring ministry of the Church.

It is the Gospel in action and is expressed through

loving your neighbour, creating inclusive communities,

caring for creation and struggling for justice.”[4]

It is all through the Plan for Diakonia document easy to see that it is very much influenced by the Mission in Context document. Yet the mentioned plan is made for the Norwegian context, and I therefore find it even more interesting in this setting. How to show solidarity with people in other parts of the world, the ethnic diversity in Norway, the challenges of consumerism, the ideal of self-realization and the many divorces and new family situations are some of the examples. The work for reconciliation with the indigenous Sámi people, and the nomadic Romanis are also mentioned.

Multicultural society

Norway has during the last 20 years become a multicultural society. More than 50 000 immigrants are arriving every year and the number of non-ethnic Norwegians is now more than 500 000. These are refugees, labour immigrants, students and immigrants coming to be united with their families.

In Oslo 27 percent of the population are immigrants.[5] In fact the immigrants are the main reason that the city is still growing. The Plan for Diakonia is therefore right stating that “cultural and ethnic diversity is a fact of life in Norwegian parishes.”[6] It is a big paradox that the same document also states: “there is often little contact between the ethnic majority and people with a non-western background.”[7] Sadly this is the truth. In Oslo on a normal Sunday there are more immigrants going to Sunday service than ethnic Norwegians. The Church of Norway has not managed to make the immigrants feel at home in the local parishes, and the number of immigrant churches is therefore very high, approximately more than 100 only in Oslo. On the Norwegian conference marking the Edinburgh 1910-2010, “Misjon til forandring – Transforming Mission,” representatives from churches in the South were commenting and challenging the Norwegian church life. One of the things they were giving most focus in their critics was the lack of relations to the immigrant churches in Norway. It was even stated that migration might be “the most important way of mission in our times”.[8] From my different experiences both from parishes and from the organisation KIA (Christian Intercultural Work) I know that this challenge is important. Most immigrants have many resources and want to participate and help out, but very often there are no one asking them or inviting them. When the Church of Norway finds out how to engage and cooperate with the immigrants and immigrant churches there will be great achievements and blessings to harvest.  

Being a Prophetic Voice

The mentioned critics from the South are also asking for more ecumenical relations and Christian unity in Norway. The question if the relation state –church is a hindrance for mission is also raised.

Even more important is the challenge on the relation between spirituality and consumption; has the wealth become a hindrance for renewal and revival in Norway?[9] Where are the ideas of the church as a countercultural force in the society? This goes very much together with the other documents mentioned in this paper: the Church should be a prophetic voice in the society. The Plan for Diakonia speaks very clear about where the problem lays:

”Global systems affect the lives of individuals. We must therefore expose the causes of human poverty and suffering, strive to change the circumstances that sustain poverty and do what we can to make acceptable living conditions possible. To show solidarity is to engage in the struggle for justice and peace.”[10]

Some things are already being done here. The Church of Norway General Synod is for example focusing on ethical trade, the issue of indigenous peoples, debt cancellation and climate, environmental and resource issues.[11] Some bishops are also doing a good job giving focus and publicity to those in need. This is good, but it is not enough. Taking the challenges from south seriously the “buy and throw away mentality” that is so strong in the Western world should also be criticized. The challenge is given, but making words to deeds is usually not easy. Here the bishops, pastors, parish leaders and board members have a formidable job to do changing the mentality in the parishes. 

Growing need for Reconciliation

The divorce rates in Norway are very high. Almost 50% of all marriages end with divorce. This brings many sad family situations. Some Norwegians are smilingly speaking of “my, your and our children”, this saying becoming the reality is sadly more and more common. Plan for Diakonia points out that here also lays a job to do for the churches:

“The large number of divorces and break-ups of relationships is a sign that many people have difficulties in their close relationships. We need to support families and prevent break-ups, and also help to meet the needs that many experience after a break-up.”[12]

Both in preventing break-ups and supporting families in difficult situations the Church of Norway has a great potential. Too often people are entering marriage only based on feelings and the aspect of making a choice for life is not given priority. Here the pastors and priest should be courageous and wise, and the parishes could offer courses for the couples both before and after entering marriage. This is already done in several parishes, and it turns out to often be a popular offer.

The daily contact with people will always be the most important, and all Christians should be courageous to give friends and people close to them advice if they see signs of family problems.  

Even when the preventing initiatives are done, marriages are ending, and therefore reconciliation is the most important task of the church. Reconciliation is needed in relations to family, friends, and colleagues and also to the nature. The Plan for Diakonia has important inputs also here:

”We also live in a culture where we experience a need for reconciliation in many of our basic relationships, including our relationship to creation.[…] The internet contributes to new forms of social relations between people, while at the same time offering access to communities and contacts that can be harmful. The dominant culture of consumerism tries to convince us that buying things can fulfil our longing for a meaning in life.”[13]

It is in this setting the Church of Norway should stand firm and strong. Freely proclaiming the restoring of relation between God and human, building and sustaining human relations and liberating people from what binds them.[14] The commentators from south here also adds that the Church of Norway should have as a goal to influence the Norwegian state to work for reconciliation and forgiveness for the exploitation by the colonial powers in the global south in the past. They advocate that memories of historical abuse against the global south must be healed and forgiven.[15]

Mission to the Church members

The situation in Norway is in several places starting to be what one could call ‘post-Christian’.

After removing Christianity as a subject in school some years ago and replacing it with the subject ‘Religion, Worldview and Ethics’ (RLE), some have now starting talking about the ‘RLE Generation’. If you ask the youth about Jesus they will answer that he is the son of God. Then if you ask them about Mohammad, they will answer that he was a great prophet from God. The youth are answering what they are taught in school. The Norwegian scholar Morten Holmqvist studying this tendencies are claiming that the youth now more and more are creating their own belief.[16] There is not one truth, you can have yours and I have mine. Teaching a confirmation class in Hammerfest in the Northern part of Norway in 2010 I experienced the same. The Bible was totally unknown for most of the 14 and 15 year olds. Examples like this shows that although most Norwegians are members of the Church of Norway it does not thereby mean that they know the Gospel.

The Plan for Diakonia says:        

”Through the ceremonies of baptism, confirmation, marriage and burial, church workers come into contact with a majority of the population, and with a large number of life stories that call for diaconal presence and involvement.”[17]

The rather positive view of this plan tells us that the Christian rituals now are becoming areas for mission and evangelization. The rituals have probably always been evangelizing, but the need for communicating clear and in an understandable way are now more important than ever before. Working as a pastor in Hammerfest the summer 2010 I experienced to have funerals without any of the family members, or the departed one, being confessing Christians. They just wanted to have a Christian funeral because it is the culture. Of course people often have more belief than people from outside are able to see, but still I find this tendency of ‘post Christianity’ reality challenging.

But the Plan for Diakonia is reminding us that in this challenge there are also great possibilities! Seldom is the Gospel more clear and concrete than Jesus saying “I am the resurrection and the life, the one who believe in me shall live even if he dies” next to the coffin and the grave.

Still this new reality requires great attention by the churches. In these days several Norwegian parishes are working on a so-called ‘liturgy reform’. Contextualization, involvement and flexibility are set as the keywords. The parish should challenge each member to relate to the calling of the baptism. The Mission in Context document is here calling for a focus on God’s empowerment,

“God sharing power with people for participation” in His mission.[18] Saying this is a plea for more space for the spiritual gifts, the priesthood of all believers and the bringing of salvation and healing in Christ’s way.

The Church in mission should be an active force in the society serving, healing, witnessing and teaching the clear message of Jesus. Mission in Context also focus the important role of preaching and living out the “justification by grace in a world where all seem to be measured by their market value”[19] Bringing out this mission can only be done by devoted Christians in fellowship.

Conclusion

In this paper I have been trying to pin-point some of the challenges and possibilities for the Church of Norway. The paper might be more describing what I feel is main tendencies in the church than concrete local examples. What I have not mentioned here is that it is already a big project named Trosopplæringsreformen (Reform for educating in faith). This is a creative program for teaching all baptized members of the church aged from 0 to 18 about the religion they are belonging. The goal of the Church of Norway is introducing this program in all parishes. In my opinion this is a good initiative, but it is not enough to help the church becoming missional in everything it is doing. That can only happen through devoted leaders and parish members together starting seeking God, loving their neighbours, creating inclusive communities, caring for creation and struggling for justice.

Each parish should struggle for making their own community a better one. A good way of doing this is starting going out of the churches and asking: What is the need in our society? In many parts of Norway the immigrants could be good helpers in doing this.

Bibliography

Mission in Context - Transformation, Reconciliation, Empowerment. Lutheran World Fed., 2004.

Church of Norway Plan for Diakonia. Church of Norway National Council, 2009.

Rapport: Misjon til forandring – Transforming Mission. Report from the Norwegian conference marking the Edinburgh 1910-2010 in Oslo 7^th - 9^th September 2010.

Holmqvist, Morten. Jeg tror jeg er lykkelig... Ung tro og hverdag.

(’I think I am happy’. Young belief and daily life), Kloster forlag, Oslo: 2007. 

Resources on the Internet

Church of Norway Web Site – www.kirken.no

Council of Cooperation for Congregation and Mission (SMM) – www.menighetogmisjon.no

Norwegian Statistics Agency (SSB): http://www.ssb.no/innvandring/

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[1] kirken.no (Jan 19th 2011)

[2] kirken.no (Jan 17th 2011)

[3] Church of Norway Plan for Diakonia: 4.

[4] Church of Norway Plan for Diakonia: 5.

[5] ssb.no/innvandring/ (Feb 7^th 2011)

[6] Church of Norway Plan for Diakonia: 5.

[7] Church of Norway Plan for Diakonia: 17.

[8] Report: Misjon til forandring – Transforming Mission: 4.

[9] Report: Misjon til forandring – Transforming Mission: 2.

[10] Church of Norway Plan for Diakonia: 8.

[11] Church of Norway Plan for Diakonia: 21.

[12] Church of Norway Plan for Diakonia: 14.

[13] Church of Norway Plan for Diakonia: 10.

[14] Mission in Context: 34-36.

[15] Report: Misjon til forandring – Transforming Mission: 2.

[16] Holmqvist: Jeg tror jeg  er lykkelig, 2007.

[17] Church of Norway Plan for Diakonia: 11.

[18] Mission in Context: 35.

[19] Mission in Context: 37.