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The Catholic Church in Norway (where the state church is Lutheran) and its overseas territories has no ecclesiastical province nor belongs to any (all sees being exempt, i.e. directly subject to the Holy See) nor has a national episcopal conference, but the Norwegian Catholic episcopate partakes in the Episcopal conference of Scandinavia.
The three territorial sees are all part of the Latin Church:
- one diocese in the national capital
- two missionary territorial prelatures
The Eastern Catholics are pastorally served by a transnational apostolic exarchate from Germany.
There formally is also an Apostolic Nunciature to Norway, as papal embassy-level diplomatic representation, albeit vested in the Apostolic Nunciature to Sweden (in Djursholm), as are the nunciatures to Denmark, Finland and Iceland, covering the Nordic countries.
Current jurisdictions
editLatin jurisdictions
edit- Roman Catholic Diocese of Oslo, which also covers Bouvet island
- Roman Catholic Territorial Prelature of Tromsø, which also covers Svalbard and Jan Mayen (Spitzbergen)
- Roman Catholic Territorial Prelature of Trondheim
Eastern Catholic jurisdiction
edit- Ukrainian Catholic Apostolic Exarchate in Germany and Scandinavia, also covering Germany (with the see in Münich), Denmark, Finland and Sweden
Defunct Latin jurisdictions
editEarly in the 11th century, Norway became christianed. In the Middle Ages, Norway's territory was different, greater than the present. Below is a list of dioceses within the then boundaries, before the Protestant Reformation.
Dioceses subordinate the Archdiocese of Nidaros
editThe Ancient Nidaros Diocese (1015 - 1152) covered North-Western and Northern Norway before the Archdiocese was established.
Metropolitan Archdiocese of Nidaros (at Trondheim)
The Catholic Archdiocese of Nidaros (1152 - 1537) headed an ecclesiastical province which included the following suffragan dioceses.
| Diocese | Territory | Cathedral | Founded |
|---|---|---|---|
| Archdiocese of Nidaros | Central and Northern Norway Main cathedral and seat of the archbishop |
Nidarosdomen | 1152 |
| Bjørgvin (earlier Selja) | Western Norway | Christ Church | 1068 |
| Oslo | Eastern Norway | St. Hallvards Cathedral | 1068 |
| Hamar | Inland of Eastern Norway | Ancient Hamar Cathedral | 1152 |
| Stavanger | South-Western and Southern Norway | Stavanger Cathedral | 1125 |
| Kirkjubøur | Faroe Islands | St. Magnus Cathedral | c. 1100 |
| Kirkjuvagr | Orkney and Shetland | St. Magnus Cathedral | c. 1035 |
| Suðreyjar | Isle of Man, Islands of the Clyde and the Hebrides | Peel Cathedral | 1154 |
| Skálholt | Southern Iceland | Skálholt Cathedral | 1056 |
| Hólar | Northern Iceland | Hólar Cathedral | 1106 |
| Garðar | Greenland | Gardar Cathedral | 1124 |
Post-Reformation
editOnly direct precursors of the current sees.