Stamsund 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 ...

Vestvågøy Municipality Vestvågøy is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Nordland Counties of Norway, county, Norway. It is part of the Districts of Norway, traditional district of Lofoten. The administrative centre of the municipality is the List of t ...

Nordland Nordland (; , , , ) is one of the three northernmost Counties of Norway, counties in Norway in the Northern Norway region, bordering Troms in the north, Trøndelag in the south, Norrbotten County in Sweden to the east, Västerbotten County to t ...

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

Stamsund Stamsund is a fishing village in Vestvågøy Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is located on the southern side of the island of Vestvågøya in the Lofoten archipelago, along the Vestfjorden. The village is located about east of the to ...

on the island of

Vestvågøya Vestvågøya (or less-commonly: ''Vest-Vågøy'') is an island in the Lofoten archipelago in Nordland county, Norway. The island is located within Vestvågøy Municipality. The island lies between the islands of Austvågøya and Gimsøya to t ...

. It is the church for the Stamsund

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

Lofoten prosti Lofoten ( , ; ; ) is an archipelago and a traditional district in the county of Nordland, Norway. Lofoten has distinctive scenery with dramatic mountains and peaks, open sea and sheltered bays, beaches, and untouched lands. There are two towns, ...

(

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 Sør-Hålogaland Sør-Hålogaland is a diocese in the Church of Norway. The Diocese covers the Lutheran Church of Norway churches located within Nordland county in Norway. The diocese is headquartered in the Bodø (town), town of Bodø at Bodø Cathedral, the sea ...

. The white,

concrete Concrete is a composite material composed of aggregate bound together with a fluid cement that cures to a solid over time. It is the second-most-used substance (after water), the most–widely used building material, and the most-manufactur ...

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 ...

style in 1937 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 ...

Sigmund Brænne. The church seats about 500 people.

History

The old Steine Chapel was built in the nearby village of Steine in 1853, but was heavily damaged during a storm on 28 January 1905. The chapel needed to be rebuilt and was no longer usable. During the discussion about the structure of the chapel there was a debate about where the new church would be built. After more than 30 years of debate and discussion, a church was built in

to replace the old Steine Chapel. The 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 13 July 1937 by the Bishop Eivind Berggrav. The church was built with its own

crematorium A crematorium, crematory or cremation center is a venue for the cremation of the Death, dead. Modern crematoria contain at least one cremator (also known as a crematory, retort or cremation chamber), a purpose-built furnace. In some countries a ...

that was in operation until 2002. The church was originally part of the Buksnes parish, but in 1969 it became its own parish.

Priests

The following

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

s have served at Stamsund Church: *1937-1952: Halvdan Thun *1952-1965: Reidar Mørch *1965-1969: Rolv Beisvåg *1969-1976: Asbjørn Bjarne Reknes *1976-1977: Ivar Ruud *1977-1982: Knut Are Aston Eikrem *1982-1983: Trygve Knutsen *1983-2003: Harold Holtermann *2003-2009: Uffe Kronborg *2009-2010: Jan Sahl *2011-2015: Aud Meaas Sigurdsen *since 2015: Gunnar Már Kristjánsson

Media gallery

Stamsund kirkested.jpg, Stamsund kirkested2.jpg, Stamsund kyrkje.jpg, Stamsund - no-nb digifoto 20150122 00032 NB MIT FNR 20031.jpg, Kanstadsamlingen - NMF010005-01951.jpg,

References

{{use dmy dates, date=March 2021 Vestvågøy Churches in Nordland 20th-century Church of Norway church buildings Churches completed in 1937 1937 establishments in Norway Long churches in Norway Concrete churches in Norway

History

Priests

Media gallery

See also

References