Norway's Church Issues Formal Apology to LGBTQ+ People for ‘Shame, Great Harm and Pain’

Set against crimson theater drapes at a leading Oslo LGBTQ+ venue, the Church of Norway expressed regret for hurtful actions and exclusion perpetrated over the years.

“Norway's church has brought LGBTQ+ people harm, suffering and humiliation,” bishop Olav Fykse Tveit, Olav Fykse Tveit, announced during a Thursday event. “This ought not to have occurred and which is the reason I offer my apology now.”

“Unequal treatment, harassment and discrimination” led to some to lose their faith, Tveit recognized. A worship service at Oslo's main cathedral was scheduled to take place after his statement.

The apology occurred at a venue called London Pub, one among two bars attacked during the 2022 violent incident that resulted in two deaths and caused serious injuries to nine at Oslo's Pride event. A Norwegian of Iranian origin, who swore loyalty to Islamic State, received a sentence to at least 30 years in incarceration 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, refusing to allow them to become pastors or from marrying in religious ceremonies. During the 1950s, bishops of the church characterized LGBTQ+ persons as “a worldwide social threat”.

However, as Norway's society grew more liberal, becoming the second in the world to permit registered partnerships for same-sex couples back in 1993 and by 2009 the first in Scandinavia to approve gay marriage, the church slowly followed.

Back in 2007, the Church of Norway commenced the ordination of gay pastors, and gay and lesbian couples have been able to get married in religious ceremonies from 2017 onward. During 2023, Tveit participated in Oslo’s Pride parade in what was called a historic moment for the religious institution.

The apology on Thursday was met with varied responses. The leader of an organization representing Norwegian Christian lesbians, Pedersen-Eriksen, herself a gay pastor, referred to it as “an important reparation” and a moment that “represented the closure of a difficult period in the history of the church”.

For Stephen Adom, the director of the Norwegian Association for Gender and Sexual Diversity, the apology was “strong and important” but arrived “not in time for those who lost their lives to AIDS … with hearts filled with anguish as the church regarded the disease as divine punishment”.

Globally, several faith-based organizations have tried to reconcile for historical treatment concerning the LGBTQ+ community. During 2023, the Church of England expressed regret for what it described as “shameful” actions, although it continues to refuse to allow same-sex marriages in church.

In a similar vein, the Methodist Church located in Ireland in the past year apologised for “inadequate pastoral assistance and care” to LGBTQ+ people and family members, but remained staunch in its conviction that matrimony must only constitute a bond between male and female.

Several months ago, the United Church of Canada delivered a statement of regret toward Two-Spirit and LGBTQIA+ individuals, labeling it a confirmation of the church's “dedication to welcoming all and full inclusion” throughout every area of church life.

“We have failed to rejoice and take pleasure in the wonderful diversity of creation,” Michael Blair, the top administrative leader of the church, said. “We have wounded people instead of seeking wholeness. We express our regret.”