Ólafur Hjaltason ( – 9 January 1569) was

bishop of Hólar A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

from 1552 until his death. He was the first Lutheran bishop of Holar.

Early life

Ólafur's father was Hjalti Arnkelsson, a carpenter in

Hólar Hólar (; also Hólar í Hjaltadal ) is a small community in the Skagafjörður district of northern Iceland. Location Hólar is in the valley Hjaltadalur, some from the national capital of Reykjavík. It has a population of around 100. It is t ...

. His date of birth is uncertain with some sources pointing to 1481 and 1484, but others centering on 1491 or 1492. Ólafur grew up in Hólar, studied in

Bergen Bergen (, ) is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestland county on the Western Norway, west coast of Norway. Bergen is the list of towns and cities in Norway, second-largest city in Norway after the capital Oslo. By May 20 ...

, Norway, and became a priest around 1517. Shortly afterwards he was granted a post at Vesturhópshólar before serving in Húnaþing from 1527 to 1532.

The Reformation

After 1532, Ólafur came to the

Hólar Cathedral Hólar Cathedral (Icelandic language, Icelandic: ''Hóladómkirkja'') is a Church of Iceland cathedral church located in Hólar, Iceland. It is the official church of the Bishop of Hólar, currently Gísli Gunnarsson. History The Cathedral lost it ...

where he gained the esteem of Bishop

Jón Arason Jón Arason (1484 – November 7, 1550) was an Icelandic Roman Catholic bishop and poet, who was executed in his struggle against the Reformation in Iceland. Background Jón Arason was born in Gryta, educated at Munkaþverá, the Benedictine ...

. He was one of the three men who were tasked by Jón to travel to Denmark in 1542 negotiate before King Christian III whether Iceland would remain Catholic or become Lutheran. During his stay in Copenhagen, Ólafur was swayed for the

Reformation The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major Theology, theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the p ...

but he did not break with the Catholic leader Jón initially. Over the years, Ólafur became more disenchanted with the Catholic Church and more outspoken in favor of Luther's teaching, causing Jón to banish him in 1549. Ólafur fled to Copenhagen and received the approval of the king to return to Iceland in 1551 to assume the role of bishop of Hólar, a position he held until his death in 1569. As the first Lutheran bishop, Ólafur focused on training priests in the new order of service and tenets of Lutheranism. To this end, he continued Hólar's printing activities, publishing several books including translations of several hymns into Icelandic.

Personal life

Ólafur married the much younger woman Sigríður Sigurðardóttir. They had no children together; however, Ólafur fathered at least two children out of wedlock, Hallfríður Ólafsdóttir and Hjalti Ólafsson (d. 1588), who also became a priest.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hjaltason, Ólafur 1491 births 1569 deaths Ólafur Hjaltason Ólafur Hjaltason