Church of Norway Delivers Sincere Apology to LGBTQ+ People for ‘Shame, Great Harm and Pain’

Set against crimson theater drapes at a well-known Oslo location for LGBTQ+ gatherings, Norway's national church expressed regret for hurtful actions and exclusion caused by the church.

“The church in Norway has caused LGBTQ+ people pain, shame and significant harm,” the presiding bishop, Olav Fykse Tveit, announced this Thursday. “This should never have happened and which is the reason today I say sorry.”

“Harassment, discrimination and unfair treatment” resulted in some to lose their faith, the bishop admitted. A church service at Oslo's main cathedral was scheduled to take place after his statement.

The apology occurred at a venue called London Pub, one of two bars attacked during the 2022 violent incident that resulted in two deaths and caused serious injuries to nine during Oslo’s Pride celebrations. A Norwegian citizen originally from Iran, who swore loyalty to Islamic State, was sentenced to at least 30 years in prison for carrying out the attacks.

In common with various worldwide religions, Norway's church – an evangelical Lutheran church that is the most extensive faith community in the country – historically excluded the LGBTQ+ community, preventing them from serving as pastors or to marry in church. During the 1950s, church leaders described gay people as “a worldwide social threat”.

However, as Norway's society grew more liberal, ranking as the second globally to permit registered partnerships for same-sex couples in 1993 and by 2009 the first Scandinavian country to allow same-sex marriage, the church slowly followed.

Back in 2007, the Norwegian Lutheran Church commenced the ordination of LGBTQ+ clergy, and LGBTQ+ partners could have church weddings starting in 2017. During 2023, the bishop took part in the Oslo Pride event in what was called a historic moment for the religious institution.

The apology on Thursday received a mixed reaction. The leader of an organization representing Norwegian Christian lesbians, Hanne Marie, herself a gay pastor, referred to it as “a crucial act of amends” and a moment that “finally marked the end of a difficult period within the church's past”.

As stated by Stephen Adom, the leader of the Norwegian Association for Gender and Sexual Diversity, the apology represented “strong and important” but arrived “not in time for those who passed away from AIDS … with hearts filled with anguish because the church considered the epidemic to be God’s punishment”.

Globally, several faith-based organizations have attempted to offer apologies for their actions regarding LGBTQ+ individuals. In 2023, the Church of England said sorry for what it described as its “shameful” treatment, even as it continues to refuse to allow same-sex marriages in church.

Similarly, the Methodist Church located in Ireland last year expressed regret for “inadequate pastoral assistance and care” to LGBTQ+ people and family members, but stayed firm in its conviction that marriage should only represent a partnership of one man and one woman.

Earlier this year, the United Church of Canada issued an apology to Two-Spirit and LGBTQIA+ groups, labeling it a reaffirmation of the church's “dedication to welcoming all and full inclusion” in all aspects of church life.

“We have not succeeded to rejoice and take pleasure in the beauty of all creation,” Reverend Blair, the general secretary of the church, remarked. “We caused pain to people instead of seeking wholeness. We apologize.”