Willem Nicolaysen Gran (monastic name: John; 5 April 1920 – 20 March 2008) was the bishop of the

Roman Catholic Diocese of Oslo The Roman Catholic Diocese of Oslo ( la, Osloënsis) is an exempt diocese located in the city of Oslo in Norway. Parishes The territory is divided into 25 parishes, located in the following sites: Oslo (3), Moss, Askim, Fredrikstad, Halden, L ...

from 1963 to 1983.

Life

Gran traveled Europe at the end of the 1930s, with plans to take a degree in opera. When German forces invaded Norway in 1940, he was stuck in Italy and here he met active young Catholics. Though baptised at birth in the Norwegian Protestant Church, he had regarded himself as an atheist, considering Buddhist practice for a brief period. Gran converted to

Roman Catholicism The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwide . It is am ...

in 1941, and was confirmed in

St Peter's Basilica The Papal Basilica of Saint Peter in the Vatican ( it, Basilica Papale di San Pietro in Vaticano), or simply Saint Peter's Basilica ( la, Basilica Sancti Petri), is a church built in the Renaissance style located in Vatican City, the papal en ...

. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, Gran did military service, first stationed in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

and then in peacetime he was posted in Norway, where in 1945-1946 he was a liaison officer at

Akershus Fortress Akershus Fortress ( no, Akershus Festning, ) or Akershus Castle ( no, Akershus slott ) is a medieval castle in the Norwegian capital Oslo that was built to protect and provide a royal residence for the city. Since the Middle Ages the fortress h ...

. During 1946–7, after discharge, he worked in the film industry as assistant director on ''Operation Swallow'', which documented the

Norwegian heavy water sabotage The Norwegian heavy water sabotage ( nb, Tungtvannsaksjonen; nn, Tungtvassaksjonen) was a series of Allied-led efforts to halt German heavy water production via hydroelectric plants in Nazi Germany-occupied Norway during World War II, involvi ...

. Gran felt an attraction to the monastic life, and in November 1949 he entered the

Cistercian The Cistercians, () officially the Order of Cistercians ( la, (Sacer) Ordo Cisterciensis, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint ...

Trappist The Trappists, officially known as the Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance ( la, Ordo Cisterciensis Strictioris Observantiae, abbreviated as OCSO) and originally named the Order of Reformed Cistercians of Our Lady of La Trappe, are a ...

monastery on

Caldey Island Caldey Island ( Welsh:''Ynys Bŷr'') is a small island near Tenby, Pembrokeshire, Wales, less than off the coast. With a recorded history going back over 1,500 years, it is one of the holy islands of Britain. A number of traditions inherited f ...

off the coast of

Pembrokeshire Pembrokeshire ( ; cy, Sir Benfro ) is a Local government in Wales#Principal areas, county in the South West Wales, south-west of Wales. It is bordered by Carmarthenshire to the east, Ceredigion to the northeast, and the rest by sea. The count ...

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

. He took the name John. After theological studies at the monastery of Scourmont in

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

, he was ordained a priest in Caldey Abbey in 1957 by Bishop Theodor Suhr OSB from Copenhagen. Two years later he was sent to Rome for further theological studies and earned a licentiate. From 1960 to 1963 he served in the Order in Rome as a financial administrator. On 27 December 1962 Pope

John XXIII Pope John XXIII ( la, Ioannes XXIII; it, Giovanni XXIII; born Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli, ; 25 November 18813 June 1963) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 28 October 1958 until his death in June 19 ...

named him Coadjutor-Bishop (Assistant Bishop) with the right of succession in

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

, and titular Bishop of Raphia. On 24 March 1963 he was consecrated in St Olav's cathedral in Oslo. He was appointed as

Bishop of Oslo Oslo bishopric is the Church of Norway's bishopric for the municipalities of Oslo, Asker and Bærum. It is one of Norway's five traditional bishoprics and was founded around the year 1070. History Oslo was established as a diocese in 1068. It w ...

after Jacob Mangers on 13 December 1964, and was in office until 26 November 1983, when he resigned. As the newly appointed bishop, he was the only Norwegian to participate in the

Second Vatican Council The Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the , or , was the 21st Catholic ecumenical councils, ecumenical council of the Roman Catholic Church. The council met in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome for four periods (or sessions) ...

in Rome. Gran was a member of the Pontifical Secretariat for Christian Unity until 1970, and a member of the Pontifical Secretariat for Dialogue with Non-believers until 1984. In 1984 he was appointed Commander of the

Order of St Olav The Royal Norwegian Order of Saint Olav ( no, Den Kongelige Norske Sankt Olavs Orden; or ''Sanct Olafs Orden'', the old Norwegian name) is a Norwegian order of chivalry instituted by King Oscar I on 21 August 1847. It is named after King Olav II ...

. In his later years he lived most of the time on

Corsica Corsica ( , Upper , Southern ; it, Corsica; ; french: Corse ; lij, Còrsega; sc, Còssiga) is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the 18 regions of France. It is the fourth-largest island in the Mediterranean and lies southeast of ...

. Bishop Gran died on 20 March 2008 in Paris, and was buried in

Bergen Bergen (), historically Bjørgvin, is a city and municipality in Vestland county on the west coast of Norway. , its population is roughly 285,900. Bergen is the second-largest city in Norway. The municipality covers and is on the peninsula of ...

on 3 April 2008. He was the first Catholic bishop to be buried in Bergen since 1522, when Bishop Andor Ketilsson was buried there.

Second Vatican Council

In 2001 he published "Det annet Vatikankonsil: oppbrudd og fornyelse"(The second Vatican council: departure and renewal), detailing his recollections of the council. He was part of the preparatory commission led by Cardinal Bea, and during the council he held a speech in favor of religious freedom.

References

External links

Catholic Hierarchy profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gran, John Willem 1920 births 2008 deaths Converts to Roman Catholicism Converts to Roman Catholicism from atheism or agnosticism Norwegian military personnel of World War II Former Lutherans 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in Norway Trappist bishops Norwegian Roman Catholic bishops

Life

Second Vatican Council

References

Further reading

External links