Ole Kristian Bonden is the new bishop in Hamar diocese – news Innlandet – Local news, TV and radio

The search for Solveig Fiske’s replacement as bishop in Hamar diocese is over. Fiske turned 70 this autumn, and the time has come to pass on the baton. There has been a lot of excitement about who will take over. Now the church council in Hamar has made the final decision. Ole Kristian Bonden is the new bishop. Bonden will be presented as the new bishop on Friday morning in Hamar Cathedral. This meeting is open to everyone. Preoccupied with proximity Church council leader Gunleiksrud Raaum tells news that she cannot reveal what the council has emphasized in the election. – But it was a clear signal to appoint Bonden as the new bishop, she says. Ole Kristian Bonden is the parish priest in Sør-Østerdal, and has been connected to Elverum throughout his priestly life. Among other things, he has been a board member of the Open Folk Church and the Support Center for incest and sexual abuse. Bonden is concerned with the closeness between church and people, and that people of all ages and different life situations should find belonging in the church. The Hamar diocesan council put him as number one on the list before the church council had to make the decision. Among the twelve bishops in the Church of Norway, there were two who wanted him to become the new bishop in Hamar. Tradition for inclusion Since the 1950s, the Diocese of Hamar has been known for being very liberal. It was here that Norway’s first female priest was ordained. Rosemarie Köhn, who was bishop in Hamar from 1993 to 2006, was Norway’s first female bishop. She also fought an important battle for the place of homosexuals in the church. Solveig Fiske is also described as a bishop with clear positions, while at the same time she has been generous and inclusive. Bonden will follow that tradition, says the church council leader. A long process There has been a lot of tension about who would take over as bishop after Solveig Fiske. In March, it was opened for anyone who wanted to be able to make proposals for candidates. After a month, there had been 222 proposals for a total of 92 candidates. Then the demanding work began. The list of 92 candidates was to be reduced to five names. These five were presented in Hamardomen on 13 September. And again the list was to be reduced – five was to become three. The three were Ole Kristian Bonden, Hege Elisabeth Fagermoen and Tor Even Fougner. TOP THREE: Ole Kristian Bonden, Tor Even Fougner and Hege Fagermoen were the last three candidates in the search for the new bishop. Photo: Diocese of Hamar – It was a difficult choice. When you have three good and solid candidates, it must be difficult, says church council leader Kristin Gunleiksrud Raaum.



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