Bishop emerita Rosemarie Köhn died on the night of Sunday 30 October, after a long illness, aged 83. She was a bishop in Hamar diocese from 1993 to 2006. – Köhn was the first woman to be appointed bishop in Norway and the Nordic countries. She is survived by her spouse Susanne Sønderbo, writes Den norske kirke in a press release. From 11 o’clock Hamar church opens its doors to those who wish to light candles. A condolence protocol will also be published. Rosemarie Köhn during the festive service in Hamar Cathedral in 2006. Photo: Bjørn Sigurdsøn / NTB – An important bishop – Rosemarie Köhn won people’s hearts. She quickly became a popular bishop who helped change the Church of Norway, says church council leader Kristin Gunleiksrud Raaum. Raaum refers to Köhn as a pioneer. – She created more space for queers and many who otherwise did not feel at home in the church. President of the Church of Norway, Olav Fykse Tveit also remembers Rosemarie Köhn. – When Rosemarie Köhn was appointed, it was the start of an important and new phase in the life of the Church of Norway. Rose became an icon for the open folk church and for women as church leaders in Norway and throughout the Nordics, says Tveit, and continues: – She had probably experienced firsthand how important it was that the Norwegian church became more spacious. She conveyed that in both the matters she got involved in and the way she met people. An important bishop in his time who opened the church to more people. We pray for her memory. Came to Norway after the war Köhn was born in 1939 in Rathenow in Germany. Together with her Norwegian mother, she arrived in Norway after the war in 1945.
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