Scandinavian Catholics debate how to handle new wave of conversions

OSV news ^ | 24th October 2026 | Jonathan Luxmoore

[Cronos]

As the northern winter approaches, Scandinavia’s Catholic Church is witnessing unprecedented growth, with more people turning to the faith in reaction to the region’s highly secularized culture.

“The Church is gaining strength thanks to an upsurge in Catholic conversions,”

“And where there was once anti-Catholic feeling, public prejudices are now much diminished. Young people are finding each other in parishes across the country, while others show a positive interest in ways we haven’t seen before,”

The lay Catholic spoke as Bishop Fredrik Hansen of Oslo marked World Mission Sunday Oct. 18 by unveiling plans for his diocese’s first-ever synod on evangelical needs and challenges.

In an OSV News interview, Aadland Høen said many young people have discovered the faith after “terrifying experiences” of pagan and New Age practices, adding that Norway’s Church was now seeing a significant rise in confirmations and adult initiation courses.

Meanwhile, a prominent Danish Catholic told OSV News the country’s Church was also observing new signs of interest, but was also seeking to ensure converts properly understood Catholic teaching and were not merely making a “conservative, counter-cultural statement.”

“The growth isn’t as pronounced here as in Norway and Sweden,” said Nik Bredholt, parish council chairman at St. Ansgar’s Cathedral in Copenhagen.

“But many are discovering the Catholic Church via the internet and coming to our Masses in a genuine search for God,” Bredholt said. “Something significant is clearly happening.”

Catholics suffered severe repression throughout post-Reformation Scandinavia, when predominant Lutheran churches gained official denomination status.

However, although Norway’s Constitution, amended in 2014, still declares the Lutheran Church to be “established,” it no longer requires government ministers to be practicing members and says other faith communities must be “supported on equal terms.”

Demands for similar modernizing reforms have been made where Lutheran state churches still hold sway.

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TOPICS: Catholic; Religion & Culture; Religion & Politics
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[Cronos]

[Jeff Chandler]

seeking to ensure converts properly understood Catholic teaching and were not merely making a “conservative, counter-cultural statement.”

Are they afraid that the converts might not approve of the New And Improved Church of the Synod?

[Tell It Right]

That is great! I’m Protestant, but the government funded Protestant churches there are the fake churches promoting modern day hedonism. I’d rather people there go to Catholic church.

[Big Red Badger]

“Terrifying Experiences”...?
New Age garbage no Doubt.
The enemy is alive and Well
On Planet earth
But His time Is Short !
.
Maranatha!

[Cronos]

Denmark and other Scandanavian countries have NOT been religious since the 19th century.

In the 1930s, only about 8% of Danes attended a Sunday church service on an average weekend. Attendance was even lower in urban areas like Copenhagen

Secularization began during the Enlightenment around 1750–1800 — you see the same in England, in France, the Netherlands, Belgium etc.

I think the welfare state’s expansion also had an impact (but I’m not sure fo that). Because the Lutheran Church of Denmark (Folkekirken) has been state-subsidized and integrated into government administration (handling birth registries and parish taxes), it faced very little religious competition.

[Cronos]

the enemy is alive an well.

the problem societies face when they declare “God is dead” is that that is actually “the core of our society is dead’

An athiest society has no sense of self - unless they elevate worship of the state to a religion