Bjorbekk Church () is a

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the Church (building), church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in com ...

of the

Church of Norway The Church of Norway (, , , ) is an Lutheranism, evangelical Lutheran denomination of Protestant Christianity and by far the largest Christian church in Norway. Christianity became the state religion of Norway around 1020, and was established a ...

Arendal Municipality Arendal () is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Agder counties of Norway, county in southeastern Norway. Arendal belongs to the Districts of Norway, region of Southern Norway, Sørlandet. The administrative centre of the munici ...

Agder Agder is a counties of Norway, county () and districts of Norway, traditional region in the southern part of Norway and is coextensive with the Southern Norway region. The county was established on 1 January 2020, when the old Vest-Agder and Au ...

county,

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

. It is located in the village of Bjorbekk. It is one of the churches for the Øyestad

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

which is part of the Arendal prosti (

deanery A deanery (or decanate) is an ecclesiastical entity in the Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Anglican Communion, the Evangelical Church in Germany, and the Church of Norway. A deanery is either the jurisdiction or residence of ...

) in the Diocese of Agder og Telemark. The white, wooden church was built in a

long church Church building in Norway began when Christianity in Norway, Christianity was established there around the year 1000. The first buildings may have been post churches erected in the 10th or 11th century, but the evidence is inconclusive. For inst ...

design in 1884 using plans drawn up by the

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs, and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

Johan Christoff Friedrich Reuter (1829-1909). The church seats about 650 people.

History

In the late 1800s, the centuries-old

Øyestad Church Øyestad Church () is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Arendal Municipality in Agder county, Norway. It is located in the village of Rykene, on the north side of the river Nidelva. It is one of the churches for the Øyestad parish which ...

had become too small for the parish which was located close to the quickly growing town of Arendal. Construction of the new church was approved in 1882. The design of the building was based on the design of the nearby

Stokken Church Stokken Church () is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Arendal Municipality in Agder county, Norway. It is located in the village of Saltrød. It is one of the churches for the Moland parish which is part of the Arendal prosti (deanery) i ...

which was designed by J.C. Reuter. The church cost about to construct at that time. The new church was

consecrate Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity; is considered worthy of spiritual respect or devotion; or inspires awe or reverence among believers. The property is often ascribed to objects ( ...

d on 23 July 1884. Originally, this church was named ''Øyestad Church'' since it was to be the new main church for that parish and the old

was renamed ''Old Øyestad Church''. Those names, however, did not stick and people began to call this new church ''Bjorbekk Church'' since it was on the Bjorbekk farm and they continued to refer to the old church as simply ''Øyestad Church''. The names were later officially changed to match the local usages. Kristoffer Gunstensen carved the frame of the

altarpiece An altarpiece is a painting or sculpture, including relief, of religious subject matter made for placing at the back of or behind the altar of a Christian church. Though most commonly used for a single work of art such as a painting or sculpture, ...

, the

pulpit A pulpit is a raised stand for preachers in a Christian church. The origin of the word is the Latin ''pulpitum'' (platform or staging). The traditional pulpit is raised well above the surrounding floor for audibility and visibility, accesse ...

, the

baptismal font A baptismal font is an Church architecture, ecclesiastical architectural element, which serves as a receptacle for baptismal water used for baptism, as a part of Christian initiation for both rites of Infant baptism, infant and Believer's bapti ...

, and a bell tower. The altarpiece from 1934 was painted by Leonard Rickhard.

References

{{use dmy dates, date=January 2021 Buildings and structures in Arendal Churches in Agder Wooden churches in Norway 19th-century Church of Norway church buildings Churches completed in 1884 1884 establishments in Norway

History

See also

References