Rørstad Church

Rørstad Church (Norwegian: Rørstad kirke) is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Sørfold Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is located in the isolated village of Rørstad. It is a church in the Sørfold parish which is part of the Salten prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Sør-Hålogaland. The white, wooden church was built in a cruciform style in 1761 by an unknown architect. The church seats about 300 people.[1][2]

Rørstad Church
Rørstad kirke
Rørstad Church Location of the church Show map of Nordland Rørstad Church Rørstad Church (Norway) Show map of Norway
67.5894°N 15.2244°E / 67.5894; 15.2244
Location	Sørfold, Nordland
Country	Norway
Denomination	Church of Norway
Churchmanship	Evangelical Lutheran
History
Status	Parish church
Founded	16th century
Architecture
Functional status	Active
Architect(s)	Unknown
Architectural type	Cruciform
Completed	1761
Specifications
Capacity	300
Materials	Wood
Administration
Parish	Sørfold
Deanery	Salten prosti
Diocese	Sør-Hålogaland

History

The oldest existing historical record referring to Rørstad Church dates back to 1589. In 1661, the church was noted as being in terrible condition and so it was decided that it would be torn down and rebuilt, reusing any salvageable materials from the old building. The new church was consecrate in 1665. The wooden church was cruciform with a steeple above the centre of the church.[3]

In 1761, a new church was built at Rørstad to serve the whole Sørfold parish. The church was located along the heavily traveled Sørfolda fjord, making it an ideal location for the church for a long time due to the prevalence and ease of boat travel at that time. Nearing the end of the 19th century, however, roads were becoming better and more well-used in Norway and since there was no road to Rørstad, it was decided to close the church in 1880 and only use it for special occasions.[3]

A new church, Røsvik Church, was built in Røsvika to replace the old, isolated church.[4] There are no real permanent residents in Rørstad anymore due to its lack of a road connection to the rest of the municipality. Rørstad is now mostly a collection of summer cottages, so the church no longer used regularly, except for special worship services that are held twice each summer.[5]

Media gallery

• 
  Exterior view
• 
  Parsonage
• 
  View of the area
• 
  Church and congregation (c. 1930)
• 
  Interior view

See also

• List of churches in Nordland

References

1. "Rørstad kirke". Kirkesøk: Kirkebyggdatabasen. Retrieved 2018-10-18.
2. "Oversikt over Nåværende Kirker" (in Norwegian). KirkeKonsulenten.no. Retrieved 2018-10-18.
3. "Rørstad kirkested" (in Norwegian). Norwegian Directorate for Cultural Heritage. Retrieved 2018-10-18.
4. Rygh, Oluf (1905). Norske gaardnavne: Nordlands amt (in Norwegian) (16 ed.). Kristiania, Norge: W. C. Fabritius & sønners bogtrikkeri. p. 234.
5. Staff (21 June 2018). "Kirkesøndag på Rørstad" (in Norwegian). Sørfold kommune. Retrieved 2019-01-27.