Bible Translators
87-717: 1164, establishment of the Archdiocese of Uppsala 1536, separation from Rome through the abolition of Canon Law The Church of Sweden ( Swedish : Svenska kyrkan ) is an Evangelical Lutheran national church in Sweden . A former state church , headquartered in Uppsala , with around 5.4 million members at year end 2023, it is the largest Christian denomination in Sweden, the largest Lutheran denomination in Europe and
174-465: A pastorat with a head minister or vicar called a kyrkoherde (literally 'church shepherd') and sometimes other assistant priests called komminister ( minister ). At a cathedral an assistant minister is called a domkyrkosyssloman . In addition to the 13 dioceses, the Church of Sweden Abroad ( Swedish : Svenska kyrkan i utlandet – SKUT) maintains more than 40 overseas parishes. Originally
261-535: A collection of overseas churches under the direction of a committee of the General Synod , SKUT was reorganised on 1 January 2012 with a quasi-diocesan structure. Under this reorganisation it gained a governing council, constituent seats on the General Synod of the Church of Sweden (like the 13 mainland dioceses), and for the first time, full-time deacons to provide a programme of social welfare alongside
348-641: A deacon. All deacons of the Church of Sweden are, therefore, permanent deacons . The order of bishop is not entered through direct ordination, however, and a Church of Sweden bishop is required to be a validly ordained priest prior to their consecration; if a deacon or lay person were to be selected for the position, they would first be ordained as a priest. After the Reformation, the Swedish Church seems to have practiced variously both direct ordination and sequential ordination. Although direct ordination
435-572: A faithful exposition of the Bible . The Holy Scriptures are set forth in The Book of Concord to be the sole , divine source and norm of all Christian doctrine. The Book of Concord was compiled by a group of theologians led by Jakob Andreae and Martin Chemnitz at the behest of their rulers, who desired an end to the religious controversies in their territories that arose among Lutherans after
522-579: A later date the diocese of Växjö , as well as the diocese of Åbo in neighbouring Finland (which came to be ruled by the Swedish crown) were added. The first Archbishop of Uppsala was Stephen, a Cistercian monk from the celebrated Alvastra Abbey . Cardinal William of Sabina came as papal legate to Sweden during the archiepiscopate of Jarler, a Dominican friar (1235–55). The legate had been commissioned, among other things, to establish cathedral chapters wherever such were lacking, and to grant them
609-669: A local cult following, including Saint Botvid and Saint Eskil in Södermanland , Saint Helena of Skövde , and Saint Sigfrid in Småland . In their names, miracles were performed and churches were named. Shortly after seizing power in 1523, Gustav Vasa addressed the Pope in Rome with a request for the confirmation of Johannes Magnus as Archbishop of Sweden , in the place of Gustav Trolle who had been formally deposed and exiled by
696-614: A national level. Since 2022, the position of archbishop is held by Martin Modéus . An additional position as assistant bishop in Uppsala diocese was created in 1990. In 2000 the diocese was divided into two pastoral regions, the smaller part of which is pastored by the archbishop and the greater by the bishop in Uppsala diocese, the position of assistant bishop thus being made a bishop in his own right. This office has been held by Tord Harlin (1990–2000) and Ragnar Persenius (2001–2019), before
783-442: A new English version was deemed desirable. This was begun but left unfinished by John C. Mattes, who died in 1948. In 1959, the "Tappert" edition was produced, with Theodore G. Tappert as general editor and translator and with Jaroslav Pelikan , Robert H. Fisher, and Arthur Carl Piepkorn as additional translators. This edition discontinued the practice of inserting translations of variant readings in square brackets. However, it began
870-482: A parish in Swedish is socken , which was used both in the registry and in the church administration. After the municipal reforms in 1862, the latter usage officially was replaced with församling , a term somewhat meaning 'congregation', originally and still used for the Lutheran territorial and nonterritorial congregations in cities and also for other religious congregations. One or several parishes are included in
957-512: A provincial synod at Linköping . He had been commissioned to establish an independent Church province in Sweden, but the matter was deferred, as the Swedes could not agree upon the see of the archbishop. In 1164 Pope Alexander III established a separate ecclesiastical province of Sweden with the see at Uppsala. The suffragans were the Bishops of Skara , Linköping, Strängnäs and Västerås ; at
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#17327649794011044-457: A stole at the beginning of the rite. In this way the churches express a significant aspect of their understanding of ordination. The white alb, used both by the ordinands to the diaconate as well as to the priesthood, is a sign that the ordination is a new beginning, rooted in the priesthood of all the baptised." The Church of Sweden employs full-time deacons to staff its extensive outreach and social welfare diakonia programme. Whilst deacons have
1131-498: Is doctrinally normative among traditional and conservative Lutheran churches, which require their pastors and other rostered church workers to pledge themselves unconditionally to the Book of Concord. They often identify themselves as " confessional Lutherans ." They consider the Book of Concord the norma normata (Latin, "the normed norm") in relation to the Bible , which they consider the norma normans (Latin, "the norming norm"), i.e.
1218-426: Is elected by priests, deacons , and some laity in the diocese and is the chairman of the cathedral chapter. Priest and deacon members of a cathedral chapter are elected by priests and deacons in the diocese, while its lay members are selected by the stiftsfullmäktige , a body elected by church members. A diocese is divided into "contracts" kontrakt ( deaneries ), each with a kontraktsprost ( provost ), as
1305-458: Is known to have had Calvinist leanings. The New Testament was translated into Swedish in 1526 and the entire Bible in 1541. Revised translations were published in 1618 and 1703. New official translations were adopted in 1917 and 2000. Many hymns were written by Swedish church reformers and several by Martin Luther were translated. A semi-official hymnal appeared in the 1640s. Official hymnals of
1392-592: Is now Sweden later than that; for instance the important religious center known as the Temple at Uppsala at Gamla Uppsala was evidently still in use in the late 11th century, while there was little effort to introduce the Sámi of Lapland to Christianity until considerably after that. The Christian church in Scandinavia was originally governed by the archdiocese of Bremen . In 1104, an archbishop for all Scandinavia
1479-437: Is the same as used in the Swedish parliamentary or municipal elections (see Elections in Sweden ). To vote in the Church general elections, one must be member of the Church of Sweden, at minimum 16 years of age, and nationally registered as living in Sweden . The groups that take part in the elections are called nominating groups ( Swedish : nomineringsgrupper ). In some cases the nationwide political parties take part in
1566-918: The Anglican churches of the British Isles and the Iberian Peninsula , together with the other Lutheran churches of the Nordic nations and the Baltic states. In 1995, full communion was achieved with the Philippine Independent Church . Since 2015, the Church of Sweden has also been in full communion with the Episcopal Church of the United States. In 2016, the Church of Sweden reached full communion with
1653-821: The Old Catholic churches within the Union of Utrecht . Archdiocese of Uppsala The Archdiocese of Uppsala ( Swedish : Uppsala ärkestift ) is one of the thirteen dioceses of the Church of Sweden and the only one having the status of an archdiocese. Uppsala is the seat of the Lutheran Archbishop of Uppsala. The diocese, which has its centre in the city of Uppsala , covers Uppsala County , Gävleborg County and parts of Stockholm County and Västmanland County . The archdiocese originally also included those parts of Norrland , which were included in
1740-560: The Riksdag of the Estates . Gustav promised to be an obedient son of the Church, if the pope would confirm the elections of his bishops. But the pope requested Trolle to be re-instated. King Gustav protested by promoting the Swedish reformers, the brothers Olaus and Laurentius Petri , and Laurentius Andreae . The king supported the printing of reformation texts, with the Petri brothers as
1827-646: The Smalcald Articles , the Treatise , and the Formula of Concord explain, defend, or serve as addenda to The Augsburg Confession. The simple Latin title of the Book of Concord, Concordia , ( Latin for "an agreeing together" ) is fitting for the character of its contents: Christian statements of faith setting forth what is believed, taught, and confessed by the confessors "with one heart and voice." This follows St. Paul's directive: "that you all speak
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#17327649794011914-525: The University of Uppsala and an efficient helper in the introduction of printing into Sweden. He died in the Carthusian monastery of Mariefred (Mary's Peace) in 1522. There were also scholars, such as Johannes Magnus (died 1544), who wrote the "Historia de omnibus Gothorum sueonumque regibus" and the "Historia metropolitanæ ecclesiæ Upsaliensis", and his brother Olaus Magnus (d. 1588), who wrote
2001-503: The historical episcopate and claims apostolic succession . Some Lutheran churches have congregational polity or modified episcopal polity without apostolic succession, but the historic episcopate was maintained in Sweden and some of the other Lutheran churches of the Porvoo Communion . The canons of the Church of Sweden states that the faith, confession and teachings of the Church of Sweden are understood as an expression of
2088-475: The "Historia de gentibus septentrionalibus" and who was the last Archbishop of Upsala. The archbishops and secular clergy found active co-workers among the regular clergy. Among the orders represented in Sweden were the Benedictines , Cistercians, Dominicans, Franciscans, Brigittines (with the mother-house at Vadstena Abbey ) and Carthusians. The monks and friars laboured in things spiritual and were also
2175-526: The "Rule and Norm" section of the Formula . Following the preface written by Andreae and Chemnitz (1578–80) the "Three Ecumenical Creeds " were placed at the beginning in order to show the identity of Lutheran teaching with that of the ancient Christian church. These creeds, the Apostles' Creed , Nicene Creed , and Athanasian Creed , were formulated before the East-West Schism of 1054, but
2262-469: The 16th century. The first complete English translation of The Book of Concord was the 1851 Henkel edition followed by a second edition in 1854. These volumes included historical introductions. Henry E. Jacobs and others published the next English version in 1882 with a revised "People's Edition" in 1911. The 1882 edition was accompanied by a companion volume that contained historical introductions and English translations of other documents illustrative of
2349-808: The 16th century. They are also known as the symbolical books of the Evangelical Lutheran Church. The Book of Concord was published in German on June 25, 1580, in Dresden , the fiftieth anniversary of the presentation of the Augsburg Confession to Emperor Charles V at the Diet of Augsburg . The authoritative Latin edition was published in 1584 in Leipzig . Those who accept it as their doctrinal standard recognize it to be
2436-407: The 1800s–1900s, the Church of Sweden supported the Swedish government by opposing both emigration and preachers' efforts recommending sobriety ( alcoholic beverages are sold in Sweden by a government monopoly). This escalated to a point where its ministers were even persecuted by the church for preaching sobriety, and the reactions of many congregation members to that contributed to the desire to leave
2523-501: The 19th and 20th centuries, a variety of teachings were officially approved, mostly directed towards ecumenism : In practice, however, Lutheran creed texts play a minor role, and parishes instead rely on Lutheran tradition in conjunction with influences from other Christian denominations and diverse ecclesial movements, such as Low Church , High Church , Pietism ("Old Church"), and Laestadianism , which locally might be strongly established, but have little nationwide influence. During
2610-411: The 20th century, the Church of Sweden oriented itself strongly towards liberal Christianity and human rights . In 1957, the General Synod rejected a proposal for the ordination of women , but a revised Church Ordinance bill proposal from the Riksdag in the spring of 1958, along with the fact that, at the time, clergy of the Church of Sweden were legally considered government employees, put pressure on
2697-557: The Augsburg Confession uses the later octavo edition text of 1531 rather than the earlier quarto edition text of 1531, with the variant readings of the quarto edition appearing in italics. The Tappert edition had used the quarto edition as the basis of its translation. The editors and translators of the Kolb-Wengert edition decided to use the octavo edition as the main source for their translation because they believed
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2784-533: The Church of Sweden Synod . In 2000, the Church of Sweden ceased to be the state church , but it maintains strong ties with communities, particularly in relation to rites of passage . There are many infants baptized and teenagers confirmed (currently 40% of all 14 year olds) for families even without formal church membership. While some Swedish areas had Christian minorities in the 9th century, Sweden was, because of its geographical location in northernmost Europe , not Christianized until around AD 1000, around
2871-512: The Church of Sweden ( Swedish : Den svenska psalmboken ) were adopted in 1695, 1819 , 1937 and 1986 . The last of these is ecumenical , and combines traditional hymns with songs from other Christian denominations, including Seventh-day Adventist , Baptist, Catholic, Mission Covenant , Methodist, Pentecostal, and the Salvation Army . In October 2013, the Church of Sweden elected Antje Jackelén as Sweden's first female archbishop. In
2958-760: The Church of Sweden in 1536 during his reign as King of Sweden . This act separated the church from the Roman Catholic Church and its canon law . In 1571, the Swedish Church Ordinance became the first Swedish church order following the Reformation . The Church of Sweden became Lutheran at the Uppsala Synod in 1593 when it adopted the Augsburg Confession to which most Lutherans adhere. At this synod, it
3045-525: The Church of Sweden, ministerial function is indicated by the usual vestments of western tradition, including the stole , worn straight by bishops, crossed by priests (wearing the stole straight by priests is only permitted when in choir dress, i.e., a surplice rather than an alb, as no cincture is then used that would permit crossing the stole), and diagonally across the left shoulder by deacons. However, whereas in Roman Catholic or Anglican ordinations
3132-513: The General Synod and the College of Bishops to accept the proposal, which passed by a synod vote of 69 to 29 and a collegiate vote of 6 to 5 respectively in the autumn of 1958. Since 1960, women have been ordained as priests , and in 1982, lawmakers removed a "conscience clause" allowing clergy members to refuse to cooperate with female colleagues. A proposal to perform same-sex weddings was approved on 22 October 2009 by 176 of 249 voting members of
3219-581: The German text into the main body of his translation of the original Latin text. Justus Jonas , who had originally translated the Apology from Latin into German, made use of both the quarto and the octavo editions. The other reason for the differences is the "looseness" of the Jonas translation that is more like a paraphrase than a translation. With the appearance of the 1930 Bekenntnisschriften critical text
3306-402: The Lutheran confessions are truly ecumenical and catholic in character. They contain the truths believed universally by true Christians everywhere, explicitly by all consistent Christians, implicitly even by inconsistent and erring Christians. Christian truth, being one and the same the world over is none other than that which is found in the Lutheran confessions. To this day the Book of Concord
3393-694: The Nicene Creed is the western version containing the filioque . The other documents come from the earliest years of the Lutheran Reformation (1529–77). They are the Augsburg Confession , the Apology of the Augsburg Confession , both by Philipp Melanchthon , the Small and Large Catechisms of Martin Luther, his Smalcald Articles , Melanchthon's Treatise on the Power and Primacy of
3480-572: The Pope , and the Formula of Concord , which was composed shortly before the publishing of the Book of Concord and intended for the same purpose: the pacification and unification of the growing Lutheran movement. The preface of the Book of Concord was considered to be the preface of the Formula of Concord as well. The Augsburg Confession has singular importance as the unanimous consensus and exposition of our Christian faith, particularly against
3567-524: The Scriptures in them. In some cases this is the manner of subscription of some other Lutheran churches, which regard the Book of Concord as an important witness and guide to the historical teachings of the Lutheran Church although not necessarily doctrinally binding. English translations of individual documents of The Book of Concord , notably The Augsburg Confession , were available since
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3654-557: The Swedish reformation in the 16th century. The Diocese of Lund was founded in 1060, became an archdiocese in 1104, and lay in Denmark. The Province of Lund consisted of Denmark, Sweden, and Finland throughout the Middle Ages (originally also Norway and Iceland), although Uppsala had their own subordinate ecclesiastical province and archbishop from 1164. When Eva Brunne was consecrated as Bishop of Stockholm in 2009, she became
3741-761: The Tappert edition, the "Kolb-Wengert Edition" was translated by scholars from two different Lutheran denominations (Kolb of the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod and Wengert of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America ). This edition provided the translations of both German and Latin texts of the Augsburg Confession on alternating pages. The translation team also included Eric Gritsch, Charles Arand, William Russell, James Schaaf, and Jane Strohl. The Kolb-Wengert edition exhibits one of
3828-652: The active relations between our monasteries and those in southern lands were the arteries through which the higher civilization reached our country." (incomplete) Book of Concord Theologians The Book of Concord (1580) or Concordia (often referred to as the Lutheran Confessions ) is the historic doctrinal standard of the Lutheran Church , consisting of ten credal documents recognized as authoritative in Lutheranism since
3915-457: The archbishops extended in all directions. Some were zealous pastors of their flocks, such as Jarler and others; some were distinguished canonists , such as Birger Gregersson (1367–83) and Olof Larsson (1435-8); others were statesmen, such as Jöns Bengtsson Oxenstierna (d. 1467), or capable administrators, such as Jacob Ulfsson Örnfot , who was distinguished as a prince of the Church , royal councillor, patron of art and learning, founder of
4002-590: The bishops was Henry , who took part in the Crusade to Finland led by king Eric IX of Sweden and suffered martyrdom there in 1157. The bishops of Sweden were first suffragans of the Archdiocese of Hamburg-Bremen , of which see Ansgar was archbishop when he died. Afterwards the Swedish bishops were suffragans of the Archbishop of Lund in Denmark, then Primate of Scandinavia . In 1152 Cardinal Nicholas of Albano , later Pope Adrian IV, visited Sweden and held
4089-527: The candidates for priesthood will already be wearing the diagonal deacon's stole, in the Church of Sweden candidates for both diaconate and priesthood are unordained at the start of the service. Tiit Pädam of Uppsala University and a Swedish-based priest of the Estonian Evangelical Lutheran Church writes: "At the beginning of the [Evangelical Lutheran] ordination service, the candidates are dressed in white albs and no one wears
4176-508: The catholic Christian faith. It further states that this does not serve to create a new, confessionally peculiar interpretation, but concerns the apostolic faith as carried down through the traditions of the church, a concept similar to the doctrine of "reformed and catholic" found within the Anglican Communion . Its membership of 5,484,319 people accounts for 52.1% (per the end of 2023) of the Swedish population. Until 2000 it held
4263-537: The changes were not as drastic as in Germany ; as in Germany, Swedish churches kept not only crosses and crucifixes , but also icons and the traditional liturgical vestments which in Germany were usually discarded in favor of the black preaching gown and stole used until recent times. Many holy days, based on saints' days , were not removed from the calendar until the late 18th century due to strong resistance from
4350-465: The clergy and to enforce the law of celibacy. A century later Bridget (d. 1373), laboured zealously for the enforcement of the same law. A new era arose in the history of the archdiocese when Archbishop Folke (1274–77) transferred the see from Old Uppsala to Aros , a town nearby on the Fyris which was given the name of Uppsala. This change was approved by the pope, the king and the bishops. The relics of
4437-430: The country (which, however, was against the law until 1840). The 19th century coat of arms is based on that of the Archdiocese of Uppsala . It is blazoned Or on a cross Gules an open crown of the field and thus features a gold/yellow field with a red cross on which there is a gold/yellow crown. The crown is called the victory crown of Christ , based on the royal crowns used in medieval times and corresponds in form to
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#17327649794014524-647: The crowns in the Swedish coat of arms and to that resting on the head of Saint Eric in the coat of arms of Stockholm . The Church adopted, at the time that it was still a state church, an administrative structure largely modelled after the state. Direct elections are held to the General Synod ( Swedish : Kyrkomötet , The Church Assembly), and the diocesan and parish ( Swedish : Församling ) assemblies (and in some cases, confederation of parishes ( Swedish : kyrklig samfällighet , 'church association') assemblies and directly elected parish councils). The electoral system
4611-520: The death of Martin Luther in 1546. It was intended to replace German territorial collections of doctrinal statements, known as corpora doctrinæ ( bodies of doctrine ) like the Corpus doctrinæ Philippicum or Misnicum . This aim is reflected by the compilers' not calling it a corpus doctrinæ although it technically is one. The list of writings predating the Formula of Concord that would be included in The Book of Concord are listed and described in
4698-636: The difficulties in the translation of The Apology of the Augsburg Confession . Two editions of The Apology were published in 1531, namely, the " quarto edition" and the " octavo edition", which are so designated based on the format in which they were printed. The quarto edition was printed with the first publication of The Augsburg Confession in April or May 1531; hence, the name "editio princeps" ["first edition"]. The octavo edition followed in September, 1531. The Kolb-Wengert translation of The Apology of
4785-400: The elections, such as the Social Democrats and the Centre Party . After the formal separation of Church of Sweden from the State of Sweden , the growing tendency in the elections is towards independent parties forming for candidature, either based on a political conviction, for example Folkpartister i Svenska kyrkan founded by Liberal People's Party members, or a pure church party such as
4872-436: The exclusive right of electing the bishops. Another important matter which the legate had been ordered to carry out was the enforcement of the law of clerical celibacy . At a provincial synod held at Skänninge in 1248 under the presidency of the cardinal, the rules as to celibacy were made more severe. The pious and energetic Archbishop Jarler and his successor Laurentius (1257–67), a Franciscan , constantly strove to elevate
4959-424: The false worship, idolatry, and superstition of the papacy and against other sects, and as the symbol of our time, the first and unaltered Augsburg Confession, which was delivered to Emperor Charles V at Augsburg during the great Diet in the year 1530 ... A recent book on Lutheranism asserts, "To this day ... the Augsburg Confession ... remains the basic definition of what it means to be a 'Lutheran.'" The Apology ,
5046-400: The feast ... The sacrifices are made thus: Nine heads are offered for every living creature of the male sex. By the blood of these the gods are appeased. The bodies are hung up in a grove not far from the temple. Dogs and horses may be seen hanging close by human beings; a Christian told me he had seen seventy-two bodies hanging together." An episcopal see was established at Old Uppsala. One of
5133-438: The first openly lesbian bishop in the world. The Church of Sweden has several monastic communities. The Church of Sweden is a founding member of the Lutheran World Federation , formed in Lund , Sweden in 1947. Anders Nygren , later the Bishop of Lund , served as the first President of the Lutheran World Federation. Since 1994, the Church of Sweden has been part of the Porvoo Communion , bringing it into full Communion with
5220-412: The history of The Book of Concord . The third complete English translation was published in 1921 as a jubilee observance of the 400th anniversary of the Reformation (1917) along with the German and Latin texts as the Concordia Triglotta: The Symbolical Books of the Ev. Lutheran Church, German-Latin English edited by Friederich Bente. This edition introduced the practice of inserting in square brackets
5307-576: The incumbent Karin Johannesson . When Ansgar , the Apostle of the North, went to Sweden in 829, the Swedes were still heathen and the country contained many sacrificial groves and temples for the worship of Germanic pagan idols. One of the most celebrated of the latter was the temple at Uppsala in what is now called Old Uppsala , the centre of idolatrous worship not only for Sweden but for all Scandinavia. Even after Christianity had spread through Sweden, heathen sacrifices were still maintained at Uppsala. The "Bishops' Chronicle", written by Adam of Bremen in
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#17327649794015394-432: The leader. Deaneries with a diocesan cathedral are called domprosteri . Titular provosts can also sometimes be appointed, in Swedish called prost or titulärprost . The dean and head minister of a cathedral is called domprost , "cathedral dean" or "cathedral provost", and is a member of the cathedral chapter as its vice chairman. At the parish level, a parish is called a församling . A more archaic term for
5481-403: The major instructors on the texts. In 1526, all Catholic printing presses were suppressed, and two-thirds of the Church's tithes were appropriated for the payment of the national debt. A final breach was made with the traditions of the old religion at the Riksdag called by the king at Västerås in 1544. Other changes of the Reformation included the abolition of some Catholic rituals. However,
5568-429: The national saint, Eric, were also transferred to the new see. The cathedral of Uppsala , the most important church of Sweden and the largest in Scandinavia, was built by the French architect Etienne de Bonnuille in 1287. It was a masterpiece of the Gothic style, and is a monument of what Catholic art and Catholic self-sacrifice were able to create under the leadership of zealous archbishops and prelates. The labours of
5655-411: The new Diocese of Härnösand when it was founded in 1647 and the City of Stockholm , which was made a diocese of its own in 1942. As of 2005 the archdiocese consists of 201 parishes ( församlingar or [historically] socknar ) distributed over 86 pastorats and a smaller number of deaneries . As the archbishop besides being head of Uppsala diocese also has a central role in the Church of Sweden on
5742-411: The octavo edition was the official text of The Apology . This is the position of the German scholar Christian Peters, who claimed the quarto edition was merely a stage on the way to a definitive text, i.e. the octavo edition. The octavo edition Latin text was utilized in a private Latin edition of The Book of Concord in 1580. Scholars question whether or not this octavo edition text can be considered
5829-407: The only source of Christian doctrine (God's authoritative word). In this view the Book of Concord, on the topics that it addresses, is what the church authoritatively understands God's authoritative word to say. This is also called a " quia " (because) subscription to the Lutheran confessions, i.e. one subscribes because the Book of Concord is a faithful exposition of the Scriptures. It implies that
5916-410: The political independents' Partipolitiskt obundna i Svenska kyrkan (POSK) and Frimodig kyrka . The Church of Sweden maintains the historic threefold ministry of bishops , priests , and deacons , and has approximately 5,000 ordained clergy in total. It practices direct ordination, also called ordination per saltum (literally, ordination by a leap), in which candidates are directly ordained to
6003-417: The population. After the death of Gustav Vasa, Sweden was ruled by John III , who had Catholicizing tendencies, and then by his more openly Catholic son, Sigismund , who was also ruler of Catholic Poland . The latter was eventually deposed from the Swedish throne by his uncle, who acceded to the throne as Charles IX , and used the Lutheran church as an instrument in his power struggle against his nephew. He
6090-422: The position of state church . The high membership numbers arise because, until 1996, all newborn children were made members, unless their parents had actively cancelled their membership. Approximately 2% of the church's members are regular attenders. According to a Gallup poll conducted in 2009, 17% of the Swedish population considered religion as an important part of their daily life. King Gustav Vasa instigated
6177-434: The practice of providing the translations of both the German and Latin texts of the Augsburg Confession since both texts of that confession are considered authoritative. The manner of presentation was the translation of the German text on the top of the page, that of the Latin on the bottom. An extensive revision of the Tappert edition was published in 2000, translated and edited by Robert Kolb and Timothy J. Wengert. As with
6264-482: The same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment." ( 1 Cor. 1:10 ; NKJV ). The creeds and confessions that constitute the Book of Concord are not the private writings of their various authors: Inasmuch, however, as they are in complete agreement with Holy Scripture, and in this respect differ from all other particular symbols (i.e., denominational creeds and credal statements ),
6351-610: The same time as the other Nordic countries , when the Swedish King Olof was baptized. This left only a modest gap between the Christianization of Scandinavia and the Great Schism , however there are some Scandinavian/Swedish saints who are venerated eagerly by many Orthodox Christians , such as St. Olaf . However, Norse paganism and other pre-Christian religious systems survived in the territory of what
6438-460: The specific order of ministry for which they have trained. This is an alternative approach to the sequential ordination of other historic churches (including the Anglican, Orthodox, and Catholic churches) in which candidates must be ordained in the strict sequence of deacon, then priest, then bishop. A Church of Sweden priest can be ordained directly to that office, without any previous ordination as
6525-400: The subscriber has examined the Lutheran confessions in the light of the Scriptures in order to arrive at this position, which in the subscriber's view does not require the disclaimer implied in a " quatenus " (insofar as) subscription. One who subscribes the Lutheran confessions quatenus , insofar as they are a faithful exposition of the Scriptures, believes that there might be contradictions of
6612-425: The teachers of the people in agriculture and gardening. Still greater credit is due the members of the orders, both men and women, for their services in the intellectual training of the people of Sweden. A Swedish Protestant investigator, Carl Silfverstolpe, wrote: "The monks were almost the sole bond of union in the Middle Ages between the civilization of the north and that of southern Europe, and it can be claimed that
6699-528: The text approved by the Lutheran Church in the 16th century. The official 1584 Latin Book of Concord has the quarto edition text as its text of The Apology of the Augsburg Confession . Another notable feature of the Kolb-Wengert edition is the setting off of "the filioque " of the Nicene Creed in square brackets. The most recent English version of the Book of Concord was published in 2005 to commemorate
6786-556: The third-largest in the world, after the Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania . A member of the Porvoo Communion , the church professes Lutheranism . It is composed of thirteen dioceses , divided into parishes. It is an open national church which, working with a democratic organisation together with the ministry of the church, covers
6873-438: The traditional liturgical role (and vesture) in the Swedish Church, their principal focus of work is outside the parish community, working in welfare roles. Nonetheless, deacons are attached to local parishes to be connected with church communities, and with a parish priest. The Church of Sweden is divided into thirteen dioceses ( Swedish : stift ), each with a bishop and cathedral chapter (Swedish: domkapitel ). A bishop
6960-533: The translations of variant readings of either the Latin translation of the German or the German translation of the Latin text. A smaller edition with just the English text was also published. The differences of the German translation of The Apology of the Augsburg Confession from the original Latin text were made apparent by Bente's insertion within square brackets of the variant readings of his English translation of
7047-588: The whole nation. The Primate of the Church of Sweden, as well as the Metropolitan of all Sweden, is the Archbishop of Uppsala . It is liturgically and theologically " high church ", having retained priests, vestments , and the Mass during the Swedish Reformation . In common with other Evangelical Lutheran churches (particularly in the Nordic and Baltic states), the Church of Sweden maintains
7134-476: The work of priests and lay workers. However, SKUT does not have its own bishop, and is placed under the episcopal oversight of the Bishop of Visby . [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] The Diocese of Kalmar existed as a superintendentia from 1603 to 1678 and as a diocese between 1678 and 1915, at which time it
7221-403: The years 1072–76, says, "The Swedes have a well-known heathen temple called Upsala", and "Every ninth year, moreover, a great feast is celebrated at Upsala, which is observed in common by all the provinces of Sweden. None is permitted to avoid participation in the feast ... More horrible than any punishment is that even those who have become Christians must purchase exemption from participation in
7308-644: Was decided that the church would retain the three original Christian creeds : the Apostolic , the Athanasian , and the Nicene . In 1686, the Riksdag of the Estates adopted the Book of Concord , although only certain parts, labelled Confessio fidei , were considered binding, and the other texts merely explanatory. Confessio fidei included the three aforementioned Creeds, the Augsburg Confession and two Uppsala Synod decisions from 1572 and 1593. During
7395-693: Was installed in Lund . Uppsala was made Sweden's archdiocese in 1164, and remains so today. The papal diplomat William of Modena attended a church meeting in Skänninge in March 1248, where the ties to the Catholic Church were strengthened. The most cherished national Catholic saints were the 12th-century King Eric the Saint and the 14th-century visionary Bridget , but other regional heroes also had
7482-508: Was merged with the Diocese of Växjö . Another diocese which no longer exists is the Diocese of Mariestad , which existed as superintendentia between 1580 and 1646 and was replaced by the Diocese of Karlstad . The dioceses of Uppsala, Strängnäs, Västerås, Skara, Linköping, Växjö, and the now-Finnish Diocese of Turku , are the original seven Swedish dioceses, dating from the Middle Ages. The rest have come into existence after that time and
7569-496: Was more widespread, and became normative, the practice of sequential ordination is attested in the seventeenth century Swedish Church. Bishop Johannes Rudbeckius (1619–1646) habitually ordained men to the diaconate in advance of ordaining them to the priesthood, and this was said by Archbishop Johannes Lenaeus of Uppsala (in 1653) to be usual Church of Sweden practice. In the Evangelical Lutheran churches, including
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