The Northern Lights Cathedral - Alta Church ( no, Nordlyskatedralen - Alta Kirke) is a

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the 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 community activities, ...

of the

Church of Norway The Church of Norway ( nb, Den norske kirke, nn, Den norske kyrkja, se, Norgga girku, sma, Nöörjen gærhkoe) is an evangelical Lutheran denomination of Protestant Christianity and by far the largest Christian church in Norway. The church b ...

Alta Municipality ( se, Áltá ; fkv, Alattio; fi, Alattio) is the most populated municipality in Finnmark in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Alta. Some of the main villages in the municipality in ...

Troms og Finnmark Troms og Finnmark (; sme, Romsa ja Finnmárku ; fkv, Tromssa ja Finmarkku; fi, Tromssa ja Finnmark, lit. Troms and Finnmark in English language, English), is a Counties of Norway, county in Northern Norway, northern Norway that was established ...

county. It is located in the central part of the town of Alta. It is the main church for the Alta

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...

as well as the seat of the

Alta prosti Alta or ALTA may refer to: Acronyms * Alt-A, short for Alternative A-paper, is a type of U.S. mortgage * American Land Title Association, a national trade association representing the land title industry * American Literary Translators Associatio ...

(

deanery A deanery (or decanate) is an ecclesiastical entity in the Roman 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 residenc ...

) in the

Diocese of Nord-Hålogaland Nord-Hålogaland ( no, Nord-Hålogaland bispedømme) is a diocese in the Church of Norway. It covers the Church of Norway churches in Troms og Finnmark county as well as in the territory of Svalbard. The diocese is seated in the city of Tromsø ...

. The modern church was built in a

circular Circular may refer to: * The shape of a circle * ''Circular'' (album), a 2006 album by Spanish singer Vega * Circular letter (disambiguation) ** Flyer (pamphlet), a form of advertisement * Circular reasoning, a type of logical fallacy * Circula ...

style in 2013 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 ...

ural firm , in collaboration with Schmidt Hammer Lassen Architects. The church seats about 350 people. Prior to the opening of this church, the main church for the parish was the historic

Alta Church Alta Church ( no, Alta kirke) is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Alta Municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. It is located in the Bossekop area in the town of Alta. It is one of the churches for the Alta parish which is part ...

Design

The church construction period was 2009–2013. The building was constructed of concrete and wood with external cladding of titanium sheets. The central feature is its large spiral with belfry. The interior contains artwork by the artist

Peter Brandes Peter Brandes (born 5 March 1944 in Assens, Denmark) is a Danish painter, sculptor, ceramic artist and photographer. Brandes' art is abstract and often in brown colours. He had his breakthrough as artist in the beginning of the 1980s. He ...

. The cathedral is the result of an architectural competition launched in 2001 and was designed by Schmidt Hammer Lassen Architects in collaboration with architect Kolbjørn Jenssen of Link Arkitektur. It was

consecrate Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service. The word ''consecration'' literally means "association with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different grou ...

d on 10 February 2013 by the Bishop

Per Oskar Kjølaas Per Oskar Alfred Kjølaas (born 25 May 1948 in Kirkenes, Norway) was the bishop of the Diocese of Nord-Hålogaland in the Church of Norway from 2002 until 2014. Kjølaas studied at the MF Norwegian School of Theology in Oslo, having graduated wit ...

, with the Crown Princess Mette Marit in attendance. The church was built to replace the old

as the main church for the parish and deanery.

Name

The "Northern Lights" are the

Aurora Borealis An aurora (plural: auroras or aurorae), also commonly known as the polar lights, is a natural light display in Earth's sky, predominantly seen in high-latitude regions (around the Arctic and Antarctic). Auroras display dynamic patterns of br ...

associated with the Arctic night sky. At the opening service, bishop Per Oskar Kjølaas admitted that the word was contentious since it technically meant not a parish church but a

cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denomination ...

(for which the more common Norwegian word is ). He defended the name by the informal precedents of the and , and argued that a bishop is at home in all churches of the diocese.

Media gallery

Nordlyskatedralen-Alta.jpg, Nordlyskatedralen Entrance Nordlyskatedralen fra utsiden.jpg, Outer courtyard CatedralDSCN5208.JPG, Exterior view Inside of the Northern Lights Cathedral.jpg, Interior view Inne i Nordlyskatedralen.jpg, Nordlyskatedralen Sanctuary Kirkeorgelet i Nordlyskatedralen.jpg, Nordlyskatedralen Organ Nordlyskatedralen Tom Skoglund.jpg, Nordlyskatedralen Spiral Nordlyskatedralen fra inngangen.jpg, Nordlyskatedralen Altar AltarDSCN5225.JPG, Altar

References

External links

Nordlyskatedralen website
{{use dmy dates, date=February 2021 Alta, Norway Churches in Finnmark 21st-century Church of Norway church buildings Churches completed in 2013 2013 establishments in Norway Fan-shaped churches in Norway Concrete churches in Norway

Design

Name

Media gallery

See also

References

External links