DEUTERONOMY 4: 28 There youwillworship man-made gods of wood and stone, which cannot see or hear or eat or smell. 29 But if from there you seek the LORD your God, you will find him if you look for him with all your heart and with all your soul.
Tonight's Yahoo!News featured Iceland and the closing down of the only three McDonald's in the country due to the weakening of their currency. But this blog isn't about the world's economy. I just feel fascinated with Iceland as a country and it's identification as a Christian state having a national church. In addition to being a worship pastor, I also teach worship studies and Church history adjunctively in a Bible college. Hence, the fascination.
As early as the 9th century AD, Christianity is believed to have reached the island. Some of them were monks from the British Isles seeking solitude. But a vast majority of the island's settlers coming from Norway were pagans and thus within a generation, Christianity had died-- blame celibacy (monks do not marry, remember?) and extreme solitude!
In 999, Thorvald Konradsson came to Iceland accompanied by a German Bishop (German Shepherd) named Fridrek, of whom little is known. Thorvald and Fridrek began the evangelization of Iceland. Their efforts were fruitless and they had become subject of ridicule-- what kind of a Norseman would believe a God who died on a cross anyway?
It was under King Olaf Tryggvason when the Christianization of Iceland became a serious business of the Norwegian crown. Olaf sent an iceland native Stefnir Thorgilsson to begin the work. But Stefnir had a totally different technique. He violently destroyed every altar and idol he found in Iceland. Stefnir was outlawed by the Icelandic people and was exiled back to Norway. Olaf sent a priest named Thangbrand whose missionary efforts won many to Christianity in the Faeroe Island. He was relatively successful in winning some Icelandic chieftains but he also murdered three in an effort to win everyone. Olaf took weirder measures- he banned Icelandic seafarers from Norway, and taking hostage Icelandics living in Norway, some of whom were relatives of chieftains. Olaf threatened to murder the hostages if Iceland will keep refusing Christianization!
Paganism and Christianity came to a point of rivalry in Iceland and threatened civil war. During an Althing (their primitive version of parliament), Thorgeir Thorkelsson, a pagan priest spoke and convinced the assembly that Iceland embrace Christianity as its official religion. His decision to favor of Christianity was made after a day and a night of silent meditation under a fur blanket. As an agreement, pagans could still practice their religion in private, and be Christians by name in public!
Not long after, Thorgeir took his household gods and threw them into the godafoss (waterfall of the gods). The people followed suit and within the next few weeks, the entire Icelandic population decided to be baptized.
A 10th century image of THOR, the thunder god.
Now Iceland has a national Church of the Lutheran branch of Christianity with which 80+% of the population identify and baptized into.
The Hallmigur Lutherna Church, Reykjavik, Iceland
But according to the most recent Eurobarometer Poll 2005,[5]
- 38% of Icelandic citizens responded that "they believe there is a God".
- 48% answered that "they believe there is some sort of spirit or life force".
- 11% answered that "they do not believe there is any sort of spirit, God, or life force".
- 3% responded that they "don't know".
The worship of Christ and conversion to Christianity cannot be forced upon someone or a community. It is a personal decision of obedience to the initial call of the Holy Spirit-- conviction of sin, realizing the need for a Savior, and being gifted with faith, trusting Christ alone for salvation. That's when Christianity begins! That's the genesis of worship.
