Sletta Church ( no, Sletta 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 ...

in Frøya municipality in

Trøndelag Trøndelag (; sma, Trööndelage) is a county in the central part of Norway. It was created in 1687, then named Trondhjem County ( no, Trondhjems Amt); in 1804 the county was split into Nord-Trøndelag and Sør-Trøndelag by the King of Denmar ...

county,

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

. It is located to the northeastern shore of the island of Frøya, about north of the municipal center of

Sistranda Sistranda is the administrative centre of the municipality of Frøya in Trøndelag county, Norway. The village is located on the east side of the island of Frøya, about north of the village of Hammarvika and the entrance to the Frøya Tunnel ...

. It is one of several churches for the Frøya

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 ...

which is part of the

Orkdal prosti This list of churches in Nidaros is a list of the Church of Norway churches in the Diocese of Nidaros which covers all of Trøndelag county in Norway. The list is divided into several sections, one for each deanery in the diocese. Administrati ...

(

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 Nidaros Nidaros is a diocese in the Lutheran Church of Norway. It covers Trøndelag county in Central Norway and its cathedral city is Trondheim, which houses the well-known Nidaros Cathedral. Since 10 September 2017, the Bishop of Nidaros is Herborg ...

. The white, concrete church was built in a modern, circular design in 1990 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 ...

Odd Østbye. The church seats about 430 people.

History

Historically, the people of northern Frøya attended church at Sula Chapel, on a small island to the northwest of the present church site. In 1755, the old Sula Chapel was closed and moved from the island of Sula to Sletta on the island of Frøya where it was rebuilt to be the main church for the parish. Upon completion of the new church,

Bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

Frederik Nannestad Frederik Nannestad (21 October 1693 – 11 August 1774) was a Norwegian theologian, author, and bishop. Biography Frederik Nannestad was born at Eidsberg in Østfold, Norway. He was the son of Christopher Jenssen Nannestad (1633–1707) and h ...

consecrated 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 ...

the building on 4 September 1755. Eventually, that little wooden church became too small for the parish, so a new church was built just next to the old church in 1880. The new church was one of Norway's largest wooden churches, seating about 1,000 people. The last

worship service A church service (or a service of worship) is a formalized period of Christian communal worship Worship is an act of religious devotion usually directed towards a deity. It may involve one or more of activities such as veneration, adorat ...

in the old church was held on 26 September 1880, and then the new church was

on 30 September 1880 by Bishop

Andreas Grimelund Andreas Grimelund (26 January 1812 – 3 January 1896) was a Norwegian bishop. The son of a farmer in Aker, he graduated as cand.theol. in 1835. He became residing chaplain in Nannestad in 1844 and Ullensaker in 1847. He was a teacher at the the ...

. For a time, the two churches stood side by side before the old one was taken down and sold. On 8 June 1984, the large wooden church building burned to the ground in a big fire. It was said that the whole building was gone in about one hour. After the fire, the old site was cleared and plans for a new church were made. Both the type of church building and location of the church were debated amongst the people of the parish. It was eventually decided to build the new church about to the east of the old church site and that it would be a more modern design rather than a traditional . Construction on the new building began in 1988, and it was completed in 1990. On 21 October 1990, Bishop

Kristen Kyrre Bremer Kristen Kyrre Bremer (12 July 1925 – 16 May 2013) was a Norwegian theologian and bishop in the Church of Norway. Education and career Bremer was born in Tana, Norway in 1925. Bremer received his cand.theol. degree in 1953 in the Faculty of The ...

consecrated the new church. The new building has a modern-style sanctuary with a separate

church hall A church hall or parish hall is a room or building associated with a church, generally for community and charitable use.

with a kitchen. There are also a number of classrooms in the basement.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sletta Church (Froya) Frøya, Trøndelag Churches in Trøndelag Fan-shaped churches in Norway Concrete churches in Norway 20th-century Church of Norway church buildings Churches completed in 1990 1755 establishments in Norway

History

See also

References