Norwegian parliament agrees to loosen church-state ties

After years of political debate, the Norwegian parliament has agreed changes to the country’s constitution that weakens the relationship between church and state. Paragraph 2 of the Constitution names the Lutheran Church as the state religion, but this will now be changed to read: "The basic values of our nation shall be our Christian and humanistic heritage." However, in another paragraph of the amended constitution, the Norwegian Lutheran Church will be named as a "folk church". It will also continue to state that the King confesses to the Evangelical Lutheran faith.

In addition, the compromise grants the Church the right to appoint bishops and deans, although they will still be state employees. (In the current selection process, the Church submits candidates to the government, which makes the final decision.)

The compromise also includes provisions for the Church of Norway to carry out a "democratic reform" to give church members more influence in church matters. The constitutional changes require a two-thirds majority in Parliament and are expected to pass in 2012.

18 April 2008