Bertil Werkström (9 June 1928 – 10 July 2010) was

Archbishop of Uppsala The Archbishop of Uppsala (spelled Upsala until the early 20th century) has been the primate of Sweden in an unbroken succession since 1164, first during the Catholic era, and from the 1530s and onward under the Lutheran church. Historical ove ...

from 1983 to 1993.

Early years and education

Bertil Werkström was the son of the Gunnar Werkström (1904-1975) and Ingar Hedenskog (1908-1971). He grew up in

Dalsland Dalsland () is a Swedish traditional province, or ''landskap'', situated in Götaland in southern Sweden. Lying to the west of Lake Vänern, it is bordered by Värmland to the north, Västergötland to the southeast, Bohuslän to the west, ...

and studied theology at

Lund University Lund University () is a Public university, public research university in Sweden and one of Northern Europe's oldest universities. The university is located in the city of Lund in the Swedish province of Scania. The university was officially foun ...

in 1954. He graduated in 1959. Afterwards he underwent hospitalization in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

between 1959 and 1960. He became a doctor of theology in 1963 with the dissertation ''Bekännelse och avlösning. En typologisk undersökning av Luthers, Thurneysens och Buchmans biktuppfattningar'' (Confession and Relief. A Typological Examination of Lutheran, Thurneysen and Buchman's Concept of Conflict). In 1959 he married Brita Caroli, who died in 2013. During his time as Archbishop he supported

ecumenical Ecumenism ( ; alternatively spelled oecumenism)also called interdenominationalism, or ecumenicalismis the concept and principle that Christians who belong to different Christian denominations should work together to develop closer relationships ...

efforts and in international affairs favored sanctions against

Apartheid Apartheid ( , especially South African English: , ; , ) was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. It was characterised by an ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

. In 1984 he also maintained that homosexuality was "against the orders of creation."

Ministry

Werkström was a hospital priest in

Sundsvall Sundsvall () is a city and the seat of Sundsvall Municipality in Västernorrland County, Sweden. It has a population of 58,807 as of 2020; more than 95,000 live in the municipal area. It is Sweden's 21st largest city by population. Old town i ...

between 1964 and 1970 and Rector of Sköndalsinstitutet between 1970 and 1975. He became the royal chief predictor in 1974. In 1975 he was elected

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

, a post he kept till 1983 when he was elected

and Primate of Sweden. He retired in 1993. He died in 2010 after a long-term illness.

Porvoo Communion

Werkström was active in the creation of the

Porvoo Communion The Porvoo Communion is a Communion (Christian), communion of 15 predominantly northern European Anglican and Lutheran, Evangelical Lutheran churches, with a couple of far-southwestern European (in the Iberian Peninsula) church bodies of the sa ...

, which is a recognition and an agreement of unity between Lutheran churches in the Nordic and Baltic countries and Anglican churches on the British Isles. The so-called Porvoo agreement was signed in 1992 in the city of

Porvoo Porvoo (; ; ) is a city in Finland. It is located on the south coast of the country, on the Gulf of Finland. Porvoo lies in the eastern part of the Uusimaa region. The population of Porvoo is approximately , while the Porvoo sub-region, sub-re ...

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

Rome visit

In 1991, he visited

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

to commemorate the 600th anniversary of the canonization of

Bridget of Sweden Bridget of Sweden, Bridgettines, OSsS ( – 23 July 1374), also known as Birgitta Birgersdotter and Birgitta of Vadstena (), was a Swedish Catholic Mysticism, mystic and the founder of the Bridgettines. Outside Sweden, she was also known as the ...

together with the

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

pope.

References

Lutheran archbishops of Uppsala 20th-century Lutheran archbishops 1928 births 2010 deaths Bishops of Härnösand 21st-century Swedish Lutheran bishops 20th-century Swedish Lutheran priests {{Sweden-Lutheran-bishop-stub