Selja is a small island in

Stad Municipality Stad is a municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Nordfjord. The municipality includes much of the northern shore of the Nordfjorden as well as the Stad peninsula. The administrative centre of the ...

Vestland Vestland is a Counties of Norway, county in Norway. The county is located in Western Norway, and its administrative centre is Bergen, where the executive and political leadership is based. The County governor (Norway), County Governor is based in ...

county,

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

. It was the original Catholic bishopric in Norway (; now a

titular see A titular see in various churches is an episcopal see of a former diocese that no longer functions, sometimes called a "dead diocese". The ordinary or hierarch of such a see may be styled a "titular metropolitan" (highest rank), "titular archbi ...

) which later became the pre-Reformation Ancient Diocese of Bergen (Bjørgvin). It has been formerly known as ''Sellø'' or ''Selø''. The island is located in the Sildagapet bay, just west of the harbor in the village of Selje. The sparsely populated island has about 5 permanent residents who commute by boat to the mainland since the island is not accessible by road. The painter Bernt Tunold grew up on the island, where his parents had established a farm on the church grounds.

Ecclesiastical history

The island is mainly known for its connection to Saint Sunniva, who, according to legend, landed and died there in the late 10th century and remains

patron saint A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, Eastern Orthodoxy or Oriental Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, fa ...

of the Diocese of Bergen. The discovery at Selo in 996 of the supposed remains of Sunniva and her companions led Norwegian King

Olaf Tryggvason Olaf Tryggvason (960s – 9 September 1000) was King of Norway from 995 to 1000. He was the son of Tryggvi Olafsson, king of Viken ( Vingulmark, and Rånrike), and, according to later sagas, the great-grandson of Harald Fairhair, first King ...

(995-1000) to build a church there. Today, the ruins of a

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of Monasticism, monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in Cenobitic monasticism, communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a ...

named ''"Sankta Sunniva kloster"'' (

Selje Abbey Selja Abbey (''Selja kloster'') was a Order of St. Benedict, Benedictine monastery located on the island of Selja, Selje, Selja in the municipality of Stad, Norway, Stad, Vestland, Norway. The island of Selja, which has been formerly known as Se ...

) is the only notable feature on the island. The cave of Saint Sunniva and the ruins of an early (and very small) cathedral are also located on the island. The cathedral was the episcopal see of a Catholic Bishopric, the Diocese of Selja (Latin: Selia), the predecessor of the Ancient Diocese of Bergen, a

suffragan A suffragan bishop is a type of bishop in some Christian denominations. In the Catholic Church, a suffragan bishop leads a diocese within an ecclesiastical province other than the principal diocese, the metropolitan archdiocese; the diocese led ...

of the German (Upper Saxon)

Archbishopric of Bremen The Prince-Archbishopric of Bremen () was an ecclesiastical principality (787–1566/1648) of the Holy Roman Empire and the Catholic Church that after its definitive secularization in 1648 became the hereditary Duchy of Bremen (). The prince-ar ...

, established with the monastery circa 1060 by King

Olaf Kyrre Olaf III or Olaf Haraldsson (Old Norse: ''Óláfr Haraldsson'', Norwegian: ''Olav Haraldsson''; – 22 September 1093), known as Olaf the Peaceful (Old Norse: ''Óláfr kyrri'', Norwegian: ''Olav Kyrre''), was King of Norway from 1067 until hi ...

. Its physical see was soon moved to Bjørgvin (Bergen), but it would take a few more bishops until that name supplanted Selja's.

Residential Suffragan bishops of Selja

* Bjarnvard (Bernard the Saxon) since 106O?7, Bishop of Selja till his death (1066?67) * Svein, Bishop of Selja, first also known as Bishop of Bjørgvin (Bergen) * (1115), (1128) : Magnus, Bishop of Selja * (1135) : Ottar Islänning, Bishop of Selja * 1156/57-1160 : Paal, Bishop of Selja * 1160 - 1170 (1194) : Nikolas Petersson of Sogn, 'last' Bishop of Selja, 'first' only known as Bishop of Bergen (Bjørgvin) after 1170

Titular see

The diocese, whose successor Bergen was suppressed in 1537 due to Denmark-Norway's Lutheran Reformation, was nominally restored in 1033 as Latin Catholic

Titular bishopric A titular see in various churches is an episcopal see of a former diocese that no longer functions, sometimes called a "dead diocese". The ordinary or hierarch of such a see may be styled a "titular metropolitan" (highest rank), "titular archbish ...

of Selja (in Latin and Curiate Italian; Latin adjective Selien(sis)) and renamed Selia in Latin in 1971 (still Selja in Italian).http://www.gcatholic.org/dioceses/former/t1565.htm GCatholic It has had the following incumbents, so far all of the fitting episcopal (lowest) rank : * Olaf Offerdahl (1930.03.13 – death 1930.10.07) as

Apostolic Vicar Apostolic may refer to: The Apostles An Apostle meaning one sent on a mission: *The Twelve Apostles of Jesus, or something related to them, such as the Church of the Holy Apostles *Apostolic succession, the doctrine connecting the Christian Churc ...

(

, Selja's home country) (1930.03.13 – 1930.10.07), previously

Apostolic Administrator An apostolic administration in the Catholic Church is administrated by a prelate appointed by the pope to serve as the ordinary for a specific area. Either the area is not yet a diocese (a stable 'pre-diocesan', usually missionary apostolic admi ...

of the same vicariate (1928.10.11 – 1930.03.13) * Jacques Mangers, Marists S.M. (1932.07.12 – 1953.06.29) as first Apostolic Vicar of

Oslo Oslo ( or ; ) 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 1,064,235 in 2022 ...

(previously called 'of Norway', see above) (1932.07.12 – 1953.06.29), promoted first Exempt Bishop of

(Norway) (1953.06.29 – 1964.11.25), emeritate as Titular Bishop of Afufenia (1964.11.25 – death 1972.01.07) * Claude Dupuy (1955.03.07 – 1961.12.04) as Auxiliary Bishop of

Lyon Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...

(primatial see in France) (1955.03.07 – 1961.12.04); later Metropolitan Archbishop of

Albi Albi (; ) is a commune in France, commune in southern France. It is the prefecture of the Tarn (department), Tarn Departments of France, department, on the river Tarn (river), Tarn, 85 km northeast of Toulouse. Its inhabitants are called ...

(France) (1961.12.04 – retired 1974.06.15); died 1989 * Eduard Macheiner (1963.03.01 – 1969.10.09) as Auxiliary Bishop of

Salzburg Salzburg is the List of cities and towns in Austria, fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020 its population was 156,852. The city lies on the Salzach, Salzach River, near the border with Germany and at the foot of the Austrian Alps, Alps moun ...

(primatial see of

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

) (1963.03.01 – 1969.10.09), later succeeded as Metropolitan Archbishop of Salzburg (Austria) ( 969.10.091969.10.18 – death 1972.07.17) * Salvador Lazo Lazo (1969.12.01 – 1981.01.20) first as Auxiliary Bishop of

Tuguegarao Tuguegarao ( or ), officially the City of Tuguegarao (; ; ; ), is a 2nd class Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, component city and capital of the Provinces of the Philippines, province of Cagayan, Philippines. According to the 2020 ...

(

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

) (1969.12.01 – 1977.08.03), then as Auxiliary Bishop of Nueva Segovia (Philippines) (1977.08.03 – 1981.01.20); later Bishop of San Fernando de La Union (Philippines) (1981.01.20 – retired 1993.05.28), died 2000 * Ângelo Domingos Salvador,

Capuchin Franciscans The Order of Friars Minor Capuchin (; postnominal abbr. OFMCap) is a religious order of Franciscan friars within the Catholic Church, one of three " First Orders" that reformed from the Franciscan Friars Minor Observant (OFMObs, now OFM), the ot ...

(O.F.M. Cap.) (1981.03.16 – 1986.05.16) as Auxiliary Bishop of São Salvador da Bahia (Brazil) (1981.03.16 – 1986.05.16); later

Bishop-Prelate In the Catholic Church, a bishop is an ordained minister who holds the fullness of the sacrament of holy orders and is responsible for teaching doctrine, governing Catholics in his jurisdiction, sanctifying the world and representing the c ...

of Coxim (

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

) (1986.05.16 – 1991.07.17), Bishop of Cachoeira do Sul (Brazil) (1991.07.17 – 1999.05.26), Bishop of Uruguaiana (Brazil) (1999.05.26 – retired 2007.06.27) * Eurico dos Santos Veloso (1987.03.12 – 1991.05.22) as Auxiliary Bishop of

Juiz de Fora Juiz de Fora (; ), also known as J.F., is a city in the southeastern Brazilian state of Minas Gerais, approximately from the state border with Rio de Janeiro (state), Rio de Janeiro. According to the 2022 census the current population is 54 ...

(Brazil) (1987.03.12 – 1991.05.22); later

Coadjutor Bishop A coadjutor bishop (or bishop coadjutor) ("co-assister" in Latin) is a bishop in the Latin Catholic, Anglican and (historically) Eastern Orthodox churches whose main role is to assist the diocesan bishop in administering the diocese. The coa ...

of Luz (Brazil) (1991.05.22 – 1994.05.18), Bishop of above Luz (1994.05.18 – 2001.11.28), Metropolitan Archbishop of above Juiz de For) (2001.11.28 – retired 2009.01.28) * Pero Sudar (1993.05.28 – ...), Auxiliary Bishop of

Vrhbosna Vrhbosna ( sr-cyrl, Врхбосна, ) was the medieval name of a small region in today's central Bosnia and Herzegovina, centered on an eponymous settlement (župa) that would later become part of the city of Sarajevo. The meaning of the name ...

(Sarajevo,

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to th ...

)

Media gallery

File:Selje klosterruiner.jpg, View of the Church ruins on the island File:Selje_kloster_alter_Albanuskirken.jpg, Altar in the Albanus Church in the Abbey File:Selje_kloster_smia.jpg, The forge at the abbey File: Selje_kloster_terrassemur_foran_Sunnivakirken.jpg, A wall in front of the Sunniva Church File:Selje_kloster_alter_Mikaelskirken.jpg, Altar in the Mikaels Church in the Abbey File:Selje_kloster_helleren_foran_Mikaelskirken.jpg, Cliff at the entrance to the Mikaels Church File:Selje_kloster_ Sunnivakilden.jpg, Well at Sunniva Church File:Selje_kloster_runestein_i_tårnet.jpg, Runestone in the abbey tower File:Selje_kloster_kirkegården.jpg, Church yard

References

External links