Please open the church door in times of crisis

Therefore, the Oslo Cathedral and the Oslo Diocese organise a gathering in the Cathedral about the phenomenon of Open Church this week.

"We have seen that open church rooms strengthen neighbourhoods and provide ownership and commitment to the church", Valborg Orset Stene says. She is usually a conversational priest in the Cathedral but currently acts as a leading cathedral priest.

Orset wants to reach out to volunteers, daily leaders, deacons, priests and youth workers in congregations so that more people open the doors of their church. She can tell from experience that many people use the open doors of the Oslo Cathedral. In the area of the Norwegian capital, there are several houses of worship with extended opening hours. The Norwegian Church would like to see this phenomenon spread over larger parts of the country.

A resource group under the Church Council has prepared a booklet to help those who want to open their local church as much as possible. "We want to inform and inspire more congregations in our diocese to start with Open Church and those congregations elsewhere in the country. Some participants are already up and running, and some want to get started. We try to create motivation and help those who are not in the same situation as us to find schemes that suit them", Orset Stene tells Kristelig Pressekontor (KPK).

Church is open until midnight on Friday

The doors of the Oslo Cathedral are not always open wide, but they are so more often than many other places. "The Cathedral has a tradition of being open a lot. We have done this for over 15 years. We are among the churches that are open most," Orset Stene says.

In her opinion, the fact that churches are more open is connected to the development of people's religiosity. The need for a quiet room is evident in crises. The July 22 terror attack (during which Anders Behring Breivik killed 77 people, ed.) showed this to the fullest. Then people flocked around the Cathedral in Oslo and created a sea of roses in the square outside.

On weekdays, except Friday, the church is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. There is a so-called night open church on Friday evenings from 4 p.m. until 11.30 p.m. Previously, the church was also open through the whole night until 6 in the morning.

"The idea of a night open church came when there was a lot of violence in central Oslo", Orset Stene says. "Then there were several diaconal and social actors, including The Church City Mission, which came in with funds to contribute to a safer city. Then we found out that it was a good sign in the city if people could enter the church at night."

Orset Stene has several years of experience talking to people who use the open church, whether the contact is just short or becomes a more extended and confidential conversation agreed to via SMS.

"The church is an open space in the centre of Oslo for both good and difficult periods in life", the Cathedral's website reads. Orset Stene has also discovered that many people like to go to a priest or deacon when life is hard. The corona pandemic and the war in Ukraine have exacerbated this. An apparent belief in God is not a prerequisite for those seeking a church interlocutor. Still, the cathedral priest notices that more people believe in God than expected.

The Cathedral offers "a room for candle lighting, reflection, silence and prayer", it says on its website. There are no statistics on how many people make use of these opportunities. However, the city's population – including those with and without permanent residence – resort to the church in central Oslo. Some do so as a regular habit, while others come in spontaneously. The latter group contains many tourists.

Ukrainian refugees want to visit church often

During Thursday's gathering in the Cathedral, Christian Pagh, the director and chief curator of the Oslo Architecture Triennial, talked about the subject "What can the church and the church room mean for the neighbourhood?" Pastor Roger Jensen gave a lecture "About the sanctuary and open spaces". Moreover, church people from several congregations talked about their experiences with open churches.

"I think there is a need for the open and quiet space in the church. The room is the bearer of some stories that have been important to generations, and many come here and express their faith and hope by lighting candles here. Some ask for peace in Ukraine", Orset Stene says.

She notices that many people have what she calls a longing for belonging. She points to a strong tradition in Southern Europe for open churches. "It is more common there than here, and it gives an experience of ownership of the church. This feeling has also become an important part of our way of being a church. Gradually, the phenomenon has spread to several places in the country".

For the Oslo Diocese, the Open Church has also become extra relevant because it tries to meet the needs of refugees from Ukraine. "They often have an active relationship with the Orthodox Church and may want to visit the church room often", communication manager Jorunn Strand Askeland from the Oslo Diocese says.

Every open church may work differently

The conditions for opening a church are different from place to place. The Church Council's resource group knows this because it contains people from several parts of the country. In some areas, one is used to the church room being open and expecting it to be so, while in others, one is not. "There is no one model that suits all churches. What works well for Oslo Cathedral might be hardly possible to implement for everyone else because it requires a lot of resources", Orset Stene says.

In her workplace, people show up at different times of the day. In a big city, staffing is required in the form of church employees or volunteers. Elsewhere it may be enough for a church servant to unlock the church in the morning and lock it again in the evening. "Unserviced churches can also function", Orset Stene says. She has not heard about any problems with unmanned open churches.

The KA Employer's Organisation for Church Activities has made a booklet with tips on how church buildings can be secured, among other things, regarding the scheme for Open Church.

People have confidence in the church

When Valborg Orset Stene enters into an agreed conversation, any topics may arise. "We can talk about life in its full breadth. It may be a crisis that has triggered the urge to talk to a priest or deacon. Still, surprisingly often, it is the everyday and existential things that lie there. In these circumstances, many have a need to talk to someone outside the family or close circle of friends. In the church, we have a long tradition of receiving people's stories, and it is no coincidence that people come here with them. They have confidence in the church, according to the conversation pastor in Oslo Cathedral."

This article was published first in Norwegian by the Christian Press Agency KPK and was translated for CNE.news.