Norwegian Baptism campaigns seem to be effective
Norwegian Prince Sverre Magnus is held by his grandmother Queen Sonja as he is baptised by Oslo bishop Ole Christian Kvarme in the Chapel in the Royal Palace in Oslo. Photo AFP, Tor Richardsen
Northern Europe
After years of decline, the number of baptisms has stabilised in Norway. The Church thinks this is due to its campaigns.
In 2022, 27,971 newborn babies were baptised in the Church of Norway. That means that more than half of the babies born to members of the Church of Norway are baptised (53.4 per cent). The year before, there were 898 fewer children baptised, Vart Land reports.
The Church of Norway has seen its baptism numbers drop significantly between 2005 and 2018. In 2005, 75.8 per cent of the newborns were baptised. In 2018, only 51.9. Now, that downward trend seems to have stabilised.
Results
Since 2019, the number of baptisms has been around 28,000 annually, the Church of Norway writes on its website. Jan Christian Kielland, the department director for church studies and ecumenism in the Church Council, thinks the baptism campaigns are showing results.
One example of such a campaign is the concept of drop-in baptism. People can get baptised or baptise their children without a lengthy procedure. During certain hours, they can just walk into a church and have the ceremony performed. “Greater flexibility in the implementation of baptism characterises congregations all over the country”, Kielland notices.
Covid pandemic
Last month, figures from Statistics Norway showed that the number of baptised people in the Church of Norway increased in 2022 compared to a year earlier. That was reported by Vart Land. However, this could also be partly due to the Covid pandemic, which was still in full swing in 2021.
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