Key points
- After last year’s General Conference, a United Methodist church in Norway saw much of its congregation vote to leave the denomination.
- Now those who opted to stay United Methodist are seeing their church rebound.
- A prominent church member also received an award from the town’s young people that in part recognizes the church’s inclusive stance toward LGBTQ people.
It has been a dramatic year for the United Methodists in Flekkefjord, an idyllic small town on the south coast of Norway.
The town of about 10,000 people is in the middle of Norway’s “Bible Belt” with a church on almost every street corner. For a long time, Flekkefjord’s United Methodist church — standing amid the town’s small, white wooden houses — was among the largest and most active.
However, intense disagreement over LGBTQ inclusion last year led to a break with a large portion of conservative members opting to leave and form a new congregation.
But that was not the end for The United Methodist Church in Flekkefjord. In just six months, the congregation has gone from crisis to optimism and increasing activity.
“We want to be an open community, where there is room for different opinions and where we wish each other well,” said Christina Louise Frøysland, one of the church’s newest members.
“It is good to be enthusiastic and have faith in the future for us and the congregation.”
Church member Elise Løvland this summer also received recognition that she shares with the entire congregation.
Every year, the town — on roughly the same latitude as Anchorage, Alaska — hosts Norway’s longest-running rock festival, Fjellparkfestivalen, Norwegian for Mountain Park Festival. There, young people voted to give an award to Løvland for her commitment to children in Gaza and for standing up as the leader of the first church in Flekkefjord that stands for inclusion and openness for all.
“It was a great experience to receive the award in front of all the young people,” Løvland said. “We find that this is something that engages many young people. We have seen young people take selfies outside our church. They feel that they are safe with us, that we are a counter-voice that tells them that they are valuable.”
A year ago, the situation was completely different. General Conference, the denomination’s top lawmaking assembly, had just removed decades-old, denomination-wide bans on openly gay clergy and same-sex weddings. In response, the staff and council of the Flekkefjord church led a process for the congregation to withdraw from The United Methodist Church.
Those who wanted to remain United Methodists felt alone and powerless. They were denied access to the congregation’s mailing lists, website and Facebook page to let people know that there were people who wanted to continue being United Methodists.
It also was difficult to go up against friends and family with whom they had shared church for so many years. Many gave up and did not get involved in the informational meetings. When the congregation held its vote in the fall of 2024, over two-thirds of those present voted to withdraw.
With no other churches in Flekkefjord publicly committed to LGBTQ inclusion, the congregation’s remaining United Methodists were worried they would be left spiritually homeless.
That’s when the central leadership of the Norway Annual Conference stepped in with the commitment to support a United Methodist church in the town.
The first open meeting at a local school for those who wanted to remain United Methodist drew 50 people — an encouraging start.
The United Methodists elected a temporary congregational council. They also made plans to get the word out about what was happening with their church.
Svein Tore Sinnes wrote a letter to the editor in the local newspaper about what he experienced as a “church coup.” The letter drew multiple responses — both negative and positive.
Fast facts about Norwegian church
- The United Methodist Church in Norway has 36 congregations, and about 10,000 members today.
- The conference saw two churches — representing about 3% of members — disaffiliate because of disagreement over same-sex marriage.
- The Norway Annual Conference and United Methodist Summer Festival this year focused on serving together.
“I experienced that colleagues wanted to talk to me in the staff room at the school where I work, and friends where I met them,” he said. “I have never talked so much about faith, with so many people, ever before.”
Ultimately, Sinnes said he received great support for both the United Methodists’ inclusive path and the challenges they faced.
Those who wanted to continue as United Methodists held a raffle to support their small congregation. When members sold raffle tickets at a local shopping center, many who came over to buy tickets said they had read about what was happening and were cheering the church on.
Throughout the fundraising, the United Methodists expected that those who had voted to withdraw would get to keep the church building and other assets under the disaffiliation policy temporarily extended by the Norway Annual Conference.
However, that year’s General Conference had deleted the denomination’s disaffiliation policy. In late October last year, the Judicial Council — the denomination’s top court — ruled that General Conference had removed the only pathway for disaffiliation and that the denomination’s longtime trust clause was back in full force. The trust clause states that church property is held in trust for the benefit of the entire denomination.
In January, the annual conference announced it did not have the authority to extend the disaffiliation policy beyond what General Conference allows. Thus, those who wished to do so were free to withdraw, but the properties and funds in Flekkefjord remained with The United Methodist Church.
With this news, those who wished to remain United Methodists threw themselves into the work of renewing their church. They continued the church’s tradition of weekly Thursday dinners, inviting everyone who wanted to come. The church also started a children’s choir named Jubel, the Norwegian word for jubilation.
The Rev. Christina Thaarup, pastor of a nearby congregation in Kristiansand, took a quarter-time appointment at Flekkefjord United Methodist. The Rev. Ola Westad, a former pastor of the congregation, also traveled over five hours one way to support the congregation with pastoral ministry.
While the congregation is not over the grief of separation yet, Thaarup said together they will be able to move forward.
“We are excited about what we will achieve together,” she said. “In my first sermon, I highlighted, among other things, that John Wesley said that the best thing is that God is with us. This also applies to the UMC in Flekkefjord.”
The first church service back in the old building was a big event. The Norwegian flag was raised, and several new faces appeared.
One of those who has found a church home in Flekkefjord is Frøysland. She had grown up United Methodist and was excited by General Conference’s move in a more inclusive direction. But she was initially leery to join the Flekkefjord congregation when she learned of its plans to withdraw from the denomination. That changed when she learned of the people who wanted to maintain the United Methodist presence in town.
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“The first time I came to church, it was like coming home,” she said. “We were offered a cup of coffee, and several people contacted us and chatted with us. It was a nice sermon and warm leadership. It was good to see so many children in church. It was all a strong experience. We have a 45-minute journey each way. But there is no doubt, this is now our congregation.”
Flekkefjord’s United Methodists were well represented at the Norway United Methodist summer festival. The revised Social Principles, newly translated into Norwegian, were a big part of the celebration. The Social Principles contain the denomination’s social teachings. The revisions approved at the 2024 General Conference eliminated the denomination’s 52-year-old stance calling the practice of homosexuality “incompatible with Christian teaching.”
In June, the congregation organized a “Rainbow Service” to clearly show that the church stands with the new Social Principles and intends to fully include LGBTQ people.
Løvland, who was honored this summer, said all of the publicity has helped the Flekkefjord congregation get a fresh start,
“We have so many new people in the community,” she said. “We already have several who are in preparatory talks about membership and planning membership admissions.”
While she hopes to have a pastor appointed full time, she said, the church is well on its way.
“With the support of the local community and Methodists from all over the country,” she said, “we feel strong and hopeful about what will happen next.”
Ellingsen is head of communications for The United Methodist Church in Norway.
News media contact: Julie Dwyer at (615) 742-5470 or newsdesk@umnews.org. To read more United Methodist news, subscribe to the free UM News Digests.
