Berlevåg ( Northern Sami : Bearalváhki ) is a municipality in Finnmark county , Norway . It is located in the traditional district of Øst-Finnmark . The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Berlevåg .
67-653: Kongsfjord is a fishing village in Berlevåg Municipality in Finnmark county, Norway . It is one out of two preserved " væreier " localities in Finnmark. The fishing village is located along the Norwegian county road 890 , about 30 kilometres (19 mi) to the southeast of the village of Berlevåg . 70°43′N 29°19′E / 70.717°N 29.317°E / 70.717; 29.317 This article about
134-612: A few years later enshrined in Nidaros Cathedral . The cathedral with its shrine to St. Olav became the major Nordic place of pilgrimage until the Lutheran reformation in 1537. The whereabouts of Saint Olaf's grave have been unknown since 1568. Saint Olaf is traditionally regarded as being responsible for the final conversion of Norway to Christianity, and is still seen as Norway's patron saint and "eternal king" ( Rex Perpetuus Norvegiae ). The Nordic churches were initially subordinate to
201-740: A flexible breakwater that can resist the Barents Sea. The port was completely secured with breakwaters in 1973. Since then, the Coastal Ferry has been able to dock in Berlevåg. Prior to that time, a smaller vessel had to unload cargo and passengers from it in the open sea and then ferry them in to the port. Berlevåg Municipality is responsible for primary education (through 10th grade), outpatient health services , senior citizen services, welfare and other social services , zoning , economic development , and municipal roads and utilities. The municipality
268-471: A location in Finnmark is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Berlev%C3%A5g Municipality There are two settlements in the municipality of Berlevåg: the village of Berlevåg and the village of Kongsfjord . The village of Berlevåg is by far the biggest; Kongsfjord only has around 45 inhabitants. Kjølnes Lighthouse is located along the shore, east of the village of Berlevåg. The 1,122-square-kilometre (433 sq mi) municipality
335-598: A number of large Christian organizations were created; they still serve as a "second line" in Church structure. The most notable of these are the Norwegian Missionary Society and the Norwegian Lutheran Mission . During World War II , after Vidkun Quisling became Minister President of Norway and introduced a number of controversial measures such as state-controlled education, the church's bishops and
402-473: A person to end membership in the Church of Norway. The Dissenter Act ( Lov angaaende dem, der bekjende sig til den christelige Religion, uden at være medlemmer af Statskirken ) was approved by the Storting on 16 July 1845 to allow the establishment of alternative religious (Christian) bodies. This act was replaced in 1969 by Lov om trudomssamfunn og ymist anna . Until 2012, the constitutional head of
469-562: A provost are known as provostship priest ( prostiprest ). All priests were appointed by the King-in-Council until the late 20th century and thus held the status of embetsmann (higher civil servant appointed by the King). Prior to 2000 ordination required the theological civil servant examination ( cand.theol. ) that required six years of university studies, but from 2000 other equivalent degrees may also be accepted for certain applicants over
536-805: A tour of the United States and were featured at Ground zero in New York City . The choir's oldest and most famous member, Einar Strand, died at the age of 98 in 2004. Berlevåg is also the place for the fictional story "Babette's Feast" by the Danish author Karen Blixen / Isak Dinesen published in the anthology Anecdotes of Destiny (1958). (See also the homonym film Babette's Feast .) The following are twin towns of Berlevåg: Church of Norway The Church of Norway ( Bokmål : Den norske kirke , Nynorsk : Den norske kyrkja , Northern Sami : Norgga girku , Southern Sami : Nöörjen gærhkoe )
603-491: A year, is the highest representative body of the church. It consists of 85 representatives, of whom seven or eight are sent from each of the dioceses. Of these, four are lay members appointed by the congregations; one is a lay member appointed by church employees; one is a member appointed by the clergy; and the bishop. In addition, one representative from the Sami community in each of the three northernmost dioceses, representatives from
670-403: Is " Per fess rayonny Or and azure " ( Norwegian : Delt av gult og blått ved flammesnitt ). This means the arms have a field (background) that is divided by a line with a rayonny design with five waves with yellow over blue. The field above the line has a tincture of Or which means it is commonly colored yellow, but if it is made out of metal, then gold is used. The color below
737-434: Is July and August, both with mean 10.4 °C (51 °F). The sea and the islands along this part of Finnmark's coastline are home for thousands of seabirds . As well as the large seabird colonies with thousands of nesting birds, there are also areas of unspoiled nature consisting of mountains , moorlands , and marshes . This enables birdwatching in a natural environment. A 17,855 ha area of marine waters along
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#1732855139168804-810: Is a member of Communion of Protestant Churches in Europe , having signed the Leuenberg Agreement with other Lutheran and Reformed churches in 1973. It is also a member of the Porvoo Communion with 12 other churches, among them, the Anglican churches of Europe. It has also signed some other ecumenical texts, including the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification with the Roman Catholic Church and
871-454: Is a member, automatically become members. This has been controversial, because many become members without knowing, and this favours the Church of Norway over other churches. This law remained unchanged even after the separation of church and state in 2012. In 2000, the Church of Norway appointed the first openly partnered gay priest. In 2007, a majority in the general synod voted in favour of accepting people living in same-sex relations into
938-651: Is an evangelical Lutheran denomination of Protestant Christianity and by far the largest Christian church in Norway . The church became the state church of Norway around 1020, and was established as a separate church intimately integrated with the state as a result of the Lutheran reformation in Denmark–Norway which broke ties with the Holy See in 1536–1537; the King of Norway was
1005-532: Is governed by a municipal council of directly elected representatives. The mayor is indirectly elected by a vote of the municipal council. The municipality is under the jurisdiction of the Indre og Østre Finnmark District Court and the Hålogaland Court of Appeal . The municipal council (Kommunestyre) of Berlevåg is made up of 13 representatives that are elected to four year terms. The tables below show
1072-449: Is retained", On 27 May 2016 Stortinget ( Parliament of Norway ) approved a new legislative act to establish the Church of Norway as an independent legal entity rather than a branch of the civil service, and the law took effect on 1 January 2017. The church remains state funded. Until 1845 the Church of Norway was the only legal religious organization in Norway and it was not possible for
1139-402: Is the 100th largest by area out of the 357 municipalities in Norway. Berlevåg is the 341st most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 892. The municipality's population density is 0.8 inhabitants per square kilometre (2.1/sq mi) and its population has decreased by 15.6% over the previous 10-year period. The municipality of Berlevåg was established on 1 January 1914 when it
1206-570: The Book of Concord: Confessions of the Evangelical Lutheran Church presented in 1580. All Evangelical Lutheran clergy (bishops, priests/pastors, deacons and other ministers) along with the teaching in classes for the Rite of Confirmation for young people and those considering full adult membership are required to read and understand with clergy swearing faithfulness at their ordination . The church
1273-830: The Archbishop of Bremen , until the Nordic Archdiocese of Lund was established in 1103. The separate Norwegian Archdiocese of Nidaros (in today's Trondheim ) was created in 1152, and by the end of the 12th century covered all of Norway , parts of present Sweden , Iceland , Greenland , the Isle of Man , the Orkney Islands , the Shetland Islands , the Faroe Islands and the Hebrides . Another site of medieval pilgrimage in Norway
1340-509: The Diocese of Nord-Hålogaland . Berlevåg Airport is located just outside the village of Berlevåg. Norwegian County Road 890 runs through Berlevåg, connecting it to the neighboring municipalities, and the rest of Norway. Facing rough ocean conditions, the four man-made breakwaters that protect the harbor of Berlevåg have been destroyed several times due to bad weather. The current breakwaters include tetrapods that intertwine and have made for
1407-782: The Evangelical Lutheran tradition of Western Christian faith, with its foundation on the Bible ' s Old and New Testaments and occasionally including the Apocrapha , along with the three historic creeds of faith in the Apostles' , Nicene , and Athanasian Creeds , Luther's Small Catechism , Luther's Large Catechism , the Smalcald Articles and the Augsburg Confession of 1530, along with several other seminal documents in
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#17328551391681474-631: The Holy See , around two decades after the start of the Protestant Reformation . It later resulted in the separation of the Catholic Church dioceses in Norway and throughout Scandinavia and establishment of a state church intimately integrated with the state and completely subject to royal authority, with the King as Head of the Church on Earth instead of the Pope/Bishop of Rome. This action followed
1541-448: The Joint Declaration of Pope Francis and Bishop Munib Younan in the city of Lund , Sweden , in 2016. As of 2017 the church is legally independent of the government. According to the constitution it serves as the "people's church" in the Kingdom of Norway . Until 1969, the church's name for administrative purposes was simply the "State Church" or sometimes just "the Church", whereas
1608-441: The Norwegian word perle which means " pearl " and the last element is våg which means " bay ". On 21 December 1917, a royal resolution enacted the 1917 Norwegian language reforms . Prior to this change, the name was spelled Berlevaag with the digraph " aa ", and after this reform, the name was spelled Berlevåg , using the letter å instead. The coat of arms was granted on 22 July 1988. The official blazon
1675-545: The Sami Church Council is responsible for the Church of Norway's work among the country's indigenous Sami people. The Bishops' Conference of the Church of Norway convenes three times a year, and consists of the twelve bishops in the church (the 11 diocesan bishops and the Preses ). It issues opinions on various issues related to church life and theological matters. The church also convenes committees and councils both at
1742-409: The 2012 constitutional reform. Each parish has an autonomous administration. The state itself does not administer church buildings; buildings and adjacent land instead belong to the parish as an independent public institution. The Minister of Church Affairs, Trond Giske , was responsible for proposing the 2012 amendments, explaining that "the state church is retained". An act approved in 2016 created
1809-415: The Church of Norway as an independent legal entity, effective from 1 January 2017. The church has an episcopal-synodal structure, with 1,284 parishes, 106 deaneries, 11 dioceses and, since 2 October 2011, one area under the supervision of the Preses . The dioceses are, according to the rank of the five historic sees and then according to age: The General Synod of the Church of Norway, which convenes once
1876-563: The Church of Norway increased autonomy, and states that "the Church of Norway, an Evangelical-Lutheran church, remains Norway's people's church, and is supported by the State as such" ('people's church' or folkekirke is also the name of the Danish state church , Folkekirken ), replacing the earlier expression which stated that "the Evangelical-Lutheran religion remains the public religion of
1943-462: The Church of Norway voted to allow same-sex marriages . The decision was ratified on 11 April 2016. The first same-sex marriage ceremony in the church occurred on 1 February 2017 just after midnight. On 21 May 2012, the Norwegian Parliament passed a constitutional amendment for the second time (such amendments must be passed twice in separate parliaments to come into effect) that granted
2010-484: The Church of Norway was a church free of the State. Since World War II, a number of structural changes have taken place within the Church of Norway, mostly to institutionalize lay participation in the life of the church. Norwegians are registered at baptism as members of the Church of Norway, and many remain members, using services such as baptism , confirmation , marriage and burial, rites which still have cultural standing in Norway. 68.7% of Norwegians were members of
2077-407: The Church of Norway. The church is led by ordained priests , traditionally and primarily divided into the ranks chaplain , parish priest ( sogneprest ) who was traditionally the head of a parish ( prestegjeld ; literally area that owes allegiance to a priest), provost ( prost ) and bishop . Today more priests may hold the title parish priest, while some priests who work directly under
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2144-580: The Church of Norway. The Church of Norway does not own church buildings, which are instead owned by the parish and maintained by the municipality. The focus of church life is the Sunday Communion and other services, most commonly celebrated at 11:00 a.m. The liturgy is similar to that in use in the Roman Catholic Church. The language is entirely Norwegian, apart from the Kyrie Eleison , and
2211-463: The Constitution states that the church is to be Evangelical-Lutheran. After the changes in 1997 and 2012, until the change in 2017, all clergy remained civil servants (state employees), and the central and regional church administrations remained a part of the state administration. The Church of Norway is regulated by its own law ( kirkeloven ) and all municipalities are required by law to support
2278-556: The German airfield. In November 1944, the village was completely burned down and the inhabitants evacuated by force as part of the scorched earth strategy of the Germans . In the aftermath, the Norwegian government wanted to relocate the inhabitants to nearby Kongsfjord because of a better harbour, but they refused, and the village was rebuilt. As there are absolutely no trees in Berlevåg, many of
2345-455: The Lutherans, Presbyterians, Reformed, Methodists, etc. Until the modern era, the Church of Norway was not only a religious organisation but also one of the most important instruments of royal power and official authority, and an important part of the state administration, especially at the local and regional levels. The church professes to be "truly Catholic, truly Reformed, truly Evangelical" in
2412-546: The Netherlands (now in Belgium). Catholic priests were persecuted, monastic orders were suppressed, and the crown took over church property, while some churches were plundered and abandoned, even destroyed. Bishops (initially called superintendents ) were appointed by the king. This brought forth tight integration between church and state. After the introduction of absolute monarchy in 1660 all clerics were civil servants appointed by
2479-526: The Reformation until 2017, when the church became a legal entity separate from the state administration. The Church of Norway is mentioned specifically in the 1814 constitution and is subject to the Church Act. Municipalities are required by law to support activities of parishes and to maintain church buildings and church yards. Other religious communities are entitled to the same level of government subsidies as
2546-409: The State." The constitution also says that Norway's values are based on its Christian and humanist heritage, and according to the Constitution, the king is required to be Lutheran. The government still provides funding for the church as it does with other faith-based institutions, but the responsibility for appointing bishops and provosts now rests with the church instead of the government. Prior to 1997,
2613-529: The activities of the Church of Norway and municipal authorities are represented in its local bodies. The amendment was a result of a compromise from 2008. Minister of Church Affairs Trond Giske then emphasized that the Church of Norway remains Norway's state church , stating that "the state church is retained. Neither the Labour Party nor the Centre Party had a mandate to agree to separate church and state." Of
2680-513: The age of 35 with relevant experience. Norway was gradually Christianized beginning at the end of the Early Middle Ages and was part of Western Christianity , acknowledging papal authority until the 16th century. The Roman Catholic Church exercised a significant degree of sovereignty in Norway and essentially shared power with the King of Norway as the secular ruler. The Lutheran reformation in Denmark–Norway in 1536–1537 broke ties with
2747-497: The appointments of parish priests and residing chaplains was also the responsibility of the government, but the church was granted the right to hire such clergy directly with the new Church Law of 1997. The 2012 amendment implies that the church's own governing bodies, rather than the Council of State , appoints bishops. The government and the parliament no longer have an oversight function with regard to day-to-day doctrinal issues, although
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2814-411: The church as the country's " people's church " and requires the King of Norway to be a member. It is by far the largest church in Norway; until the mid 19th century the state church had a near-total monopoly on religion in Norway. It was the only legal church in Norway, membership was mandatory for every person residing in the kingdom and it was forbidden for anyone other than the official priests of
2881-625: The church was the King of Norway , who is obliged to profess himself a Lutheran. After the constitutional amendment of 21 May 2012, the church is self-governed with regard to doctrinal issues and appointment of clergy. The Church of Norway was subject to legislation, including its budgets, passed by the Storting, and its central administrative functions were carried out by the Royal Ministry of Government Administration, Reform and Church Affairs until 2017. Bishops and priests were civil servants also after
2948-461: The church's head from 1537 to 2012. Historically the church was one of the main instruments of royal power and official authority, and an important part of the state administration; local government was based on the church's parishes with significant official responsibility held by the parish priest. In the 19th and 20th centuries it gradually ceded most administrative functions to the secular civil service. The modern Constitution of Norway describes
3015-532: The coast, including supralittoral and neritic habitats, has been designated an Important Bird Area (IBA) by BirdLife International because it supports a population of Steller's eiders . Berlevåg, along with the rest of Finnmark , was occupied during World War II . Berlevåg Airport was originally put into use at this time, when German occupying forces constructed it with the help of hundreds of Russian prisoners of war . From 1943 to 1944, there were nearly daily bombing raids from Russia on Berlevåg and
3082-460: The cold and windy summers. The municipality also contains the lakes Geatnjajávri and Skonsvikvatnan . The highest point in the municipality is the 619-metre (2,031 ft) tall mountain Hanglefjellet. Berlevåg's coastal location serves to moderate temperatures during winter, giving it a marine subarctic climate. Coldest month is February with mean −4.6 °C (24 °F), while warmest month
3149-543: The constitution described it as the "Evangelical-Lutheran Church". A constitutional amendment of 21 May 2012 designates the church as "Norway's people's church" ( Norges Folkekirke ), with a new provision that is almost a verbatim copy of the provision for the Danish state church ( folkekirken ) in the Constitution of Denmark ; the Minister of Church Affairs Trond Giske stressed that the reform meant that "the state church
3216-524: The current and historical composition of the council by political party . The mayors ( Norwegian : ordfører ) of Berlevåg: The municipality is situated in the northwestern part of the Varanger Peninsula , facing the open Barents Sea to the north and the Tanafjorden to the west. It is an isolated and barren region with mostly rocks and tundra. There are no native trees in Berlevåg because of
3283-508: The example set earlier in the reformation of the Church of England (Anglican Church) that was begun by the intense political action and requests for an annulment by King Henry VIII . This was followed in later centuries by a worldwide movement of the Anglican Communion which later recognized in the 20th and 21st century and declared intercommunion with several other denominations such as
3350-595: The government parties, the Labour Party and the Centre Party supported a continued state church, while only the Socialist Left Party preferred a separation of church and state, although all parties eventually voted for the 2008 compromise. The final amendment passed by a vote of 162–3. The three dissenting votes, Lundteigen , Ramsøy , and Toppe , were all from the Centre Party . Though still supported by
3417-483: The houses in Berlevåg were built by the help of the wooden planks in the " tarmac " and runway of the previous German airfield. Berlevåg was brought some fame in Norway when the Norwegian film director Knut Erik Jensen made a documentary film about Berlevåg Mannsangsforening , Berlevåg's men's choir . The movie Heftig og begeistret (English: "Cool and Crazy" ) was a big hit 2001 in Norway, first shown at Tromsø International Film Festival . The choir later went on
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#17328551391683484-670: The king, but theological issues were left to the hierarchy of bishops and other clergy. When Norway regained national independence from Denmark in 1814, the Norwegian Constitution recognized the Lutheran church as the state church. The pietism movement in Norway (embodied to a great extent by the Haugean movement fostered by Hans Nielsen Hauge ) has served to reduce the distance between laity and clergy in Norway. In 1842, lay congregational meetings were accepted in church life, though initially with limited influence. In following years,
3551-455: The line has a tincture of azure (blue). The design is meant to symbolize the sun over the waves of the sea that break against the shore. This can represent both the struggle against the sea as well as the dependence on it. The arms were designed by Arvid Sveen. The Church of Norway has one parish ( sokn ) within the municipality of Berlevåg. It is part of the Varanger prosti ( deanery ) in
3618-665: The liturgy for High Mass: (If there is a baptism it together with the Apostles' Creed may take place here or after the Sermon) (If there is no Communion, i.e., the Eucharist , the service concludes with the Lord's Prayer, an optional Offering, the Blessing and a moment of silent prayer) The Church of Norway traces its origins to the introduction of Christianity to Norway in the 9th century. Norway
3685-522: The national level (such as the Doctrinal Commission ( Den norske kirkes lærenemnd ), and at diocesan and local levels, addressing specific issues related to education, ecumenical matters, the Sami minority and youth. There are 1,600 Church of Norway churches and chapels. Parish work is led by a priest and an elected parish council. There are more than 1,200 clergy (in 2007, 21% were women ministers) in
3752-411: The origin of the name Berlevåg (or historically spelled Berlevaag ). The first is that it relates to an old Northern Sami language name that sounded like Berlevaggi or Perlavaggi . The second is that it derives from the name of the first settler or explorer at the bay whose name was Berle or Perle . The last theory of the name Berlevåg (which is less likely) is that the first element derives from
3819-496: The population attends church services or other religious meetings more than once a month. Baptism of infants fell from 96.8% in 1960 to 51.4% in 2019, while the proportion of confirmands fell from 93% in 1960 to 54.4% in 2019. The proportion of weddings to be celebrated in the Church of Norway fell from 85.2% in 1960 to 31.3% in 2019. In 2019 85.5% of all funerals took place in the Church of Norway. A survey conducted by Gallup International in 65 countries in 2005 found that Norway
3886-405: The priesthood. In 2008, the Norwegian Parliament voted to establish same-sex civil marriages, and the bishops allowed prayers for same-sex couples. In 2014, a proposed liturgy for same-sex marriages was rejected by the general synod. This question created much unrest in the Church of Norway and seems to serve as a trigger for conversions to independent congregations and other churches. In 2015,
3953-400: The singing of hymns accompanied by organ music is central. A priest (often with lay assistants) celebrates the service, wearing an alb and stole . In addition, a chasuble is worn by the priest during the Eucharist and, increasingly, during the whole service. The Church of Norway baptises children, usually infants and usually as part of ordinary Sunday services. This is a summary of
4020-468: The state Church of Norway as of the end of 2019, a 1.2% drop compared to the year before and down about 11% from ten years earlier. However, only 20% of Norwegians say that religion occupies an important place in their life (according to a recent Gallup poll ), making Norway one of the most secular countries of the world (only in Estonia , Sweden and Denmark were the percentages of people who considered religion to be important lower), and only about 3% of
4087-404: The state church to authorise religious meetings. After the adoption of the 1845 Dissenter Act , the state church retained its legally privileged position, while minority religious congregations such as Catholics were allowed to establish themselves in Norway and were legally termed "dissenters" (i.e. from the government-sanctioned Lutheran state religion). Church employees were civil servants from
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#17328551391684154-656: The three theological seminaries, representatives from the youth council. Other members of the national council are also members of the general synod. The national council, the executive body of the synod, is convened five times a year and comprises 15 members, of whom ten are lay members, four are clergy and one is the presiding bishop. It prepares matters for decision-making elsewhere and puts those decisions into effect. The council also has working and ad hoc groups, addressing issues such as church service, education and youth issues. The Council on Ecumenical and International Relations deals with international and ecumenical matters, and
4221-414: The vast majority of the clergy disassociated themselves from the government in the Foundations of the Church ( Kirkens Grunn ) declaration of Easter 1942, stating that they would function only as pastors for their congregations, not as civil servants. The bishops were interned with deposed clergy and theological candidates from 1943, but congregational life continued more or less as usual. For three years
4288-416: Was Christianized as a result of missions from both the British Isles (by Haakon I of Norway and Olaf I of Norway ), and from the Continent (by Ansgar ). It took several hundred years to complete the Christianization, culminating on 29 July 1030 with the Battle of Stiklestad , when King Olaf II of Norway was killed. One year later, on 3 August 1031, he was canonised in Nidaros by Bishop Grimkell , and
4355-451: Was separated from Tana Municipality . Initially, there were 784 residents. The borders have remained unchanged since that time. On 1 January 2020, the municipality became part of the newly formed Troms og Finnmark county. Previously, it had been part of the old Finnmark county. On 1 January 2024, the Troms og Finnmark county was divided and the municipality once again became part of Finnmark county. There are different opinions of
4422-438: Was the island of Selja on the northwest coast, with its memories of Saint Sunniva and its three monastery churches with Celtic influence, similar to Skellig Michael . The Reformation in Norway was accomplished by force in 1537 when Christian III of Denmark and Norway declared Lutheranism as the official religion of Norway and Denmark, sending the Roman Catholic archbishop, Olav Engelbrektsson , into exile in Lier in
4489-474: Was the least religious among the Western countries surveyed, with only 36% of the population considering themselves religious, 9% considering themselves atheist, and 46% considering themselves "neither religious nor atheist". In spite of the relatively low level of religious practice in Norwegian society, the local clergy often play important social roles outside their spiritual and liturgical responsibilities. By law all children who have at least one parent who
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