Archdiocese of Uppsala Archidioecesis Upsaliensis Uppsala ärkestift | |
|---|---|
 Arms of the archdiocese of Uppsala | |
| Location | |
| Country | Sweden |
| Deaneries | 11kontrakt[1] |
| Coordinates | 59°51′29″N17°38′00″E / 59.85806°N 17.63333°E /59.85806; 17.63333 |
| Statistics | |
| Parishes | 82[1] |
| Congregations | 136[1] |
| Information | |
| Denomination | Church of Sweden |
| Established | 11th century[2] |
| Cathedral | Uppsala Cathedral |
| Current leadership | |
| Bishop | Karin Johannesson[3] |
| Metropolitan Archbishop | Martin Modéus |
| Bishops emeritus | Anders Wejryd K. G. Hammar Gunnar Weman |
| Map | |
 | |
| Website | |
| svenskakyrkan.se/uppsalastift | |
TheArchdiocese of Uppsala (Swedish:Uppsala ärkestift) is one of the thirteendioceses of theChurch of Sweden and the only one having the status of an archdiocese.
Uppsala is the seat of the Lutheran Archbishop of Uppsala. The diocese, which has its centre in the city ofUppsala, coversUppsala County,Gävleborg County and parts ofStockholm County andVästmanland County. The archdiocese originally also included those parts ofNorrland, which were included in the newDiocese of Härnösand when it was founded in 1647 and theCity of Stockholm, which was madea diocese of its own in 1942.
As of 2005 the archdiocese consists of 201 parishes (församlingar or [historically]socknar) distributed over 86pastorats and a smaller number ofdeaneries.
As the archbishop besides being head of Uppsala diocese also has a central role in the Church of Sweden on a national level. Since 2022, the position of archbishop is held byMartin Modéus. An additional position as assistant bishop in Uppsala diocese was created in 1990. In 2000 the diocese was divided into two pastoral regions, the smaller part of which is pastored by the archbishop and the greater by the bishop in Uppsala diocese, the position of assistant bishop thus being made a bishop in his own right. This office has been held byTord Harlin (1990–2000) andRagnar Persenius (2001–2019), before the incumbentKarin Johannesson.
WhenAnsgar, the Apostle of the North, went to Sweden in 829, the Swedes were still heathen and the country contained many sacrificial groves and temples for the worship of Germanic pagan idols. One of the most celebrated of the latter was the temple at Uppsala in what is now calledOld Uppsala, the centre of idolatrous worship not only for Sweden but for all Scandinavia. Even after Christianity had spread through Sweden, heathen sacrifices were still maintained at Uppsala. The "Bishops' Chronicle", written byAdam of Bremen in the years 1072–76, says, "The Swedes have a well-knownheathen temple called Upsala", and "Every ninth year, moreover, a great feast is celebrated at Upsala, which is observed in common by all the provinces of Sweden. None is permitted to avoid participation in the feast ... More horrible than any punishment is that even those who have become Christians must purchase exemption from participation in the feast ... The sacrifices are made thus: Nine heads are offered for every living creature of the male sex. By the blood of these the gods are appeased. The bodies are hung up in a grove not far from the temple. Dogs and horses may be seen hanging close by human beings; a Christian told me he had seen seventy-two bodies hanging together."
An episcopal see was established at Old Uppsala. One of the bishops wasHenry, who took part in theCrusade to Finland led by kingEric IX of Sweden and suffered martyrdom there in 1157. The bishops of Sweden were firstsuffragans of theArchdiocese of Hamburg-Bremen, of which see Ansgar was archbishop when he died. Afterwards the Swedish bishops weresuffragans of theArchbishop of Lund in Denmark, thenPrimate of Scandinavia.
In 1152Cardinal Nicholas of Albano, later Pope Adrian IV, visited Sweden and held a provincial synod atLinköping. He had been commissioned to establish an independentChurch province in Sweden, but the matter was deferred, as the Swedes could not agree upon the see of the archbishop. In 1164Pope Alexander III established a separate ecclesiastical province of Sweden with the see at Uppsala. The suffragans were the Bishops ofSkara, Linköping,Strängnäs andVästerås; at a later date thediocese of Växjö, as well as the diocese ofÅbo in neighbouringFinland (which came to be ruled by the Swedish crown) were added.
The firstArchbishop of Uppsala was Stephen, aCistercian monk from the celebratedAlvastra Abbey. CardinalWilliam of Sabina came aspapal legate to Sweden during the archiepiscopate of Jarler, aDominican friar (1235–55). The legate had been commissioned, among other things, to establishcathedral chapters wherever such were lacking, and to grant them the exclusive right of electing the bishops. Another important matter which the legate had been ordered to carry out was the enforcement of the law ofclerical celibacy. At aprovincial synod held atSkänninge in 1248 under the presidency of the cardinal, the rules as to celibacy were made more severe. The pious and energetic Archbishop Jarler and his successor Laurentius (1257–67), aFranciscan, constantly strove to elevate the clergy and to enforce the law of celibacy. A century laterBridget (d. 1373), laboured zealously for the enforcement of the same law.
A new era arose in the history of the archdiocese when Archbishop Folke (1274–77) transferred the see from Old Uppsala toAros, a town nearby on the Fyris which was given the name of Uppsala. This change was approved by the pope, the king and the bishops. The relics of the national saint, Eric, were also transferred to the new see. Thecathedral of Uppsala, the most important church of Sweden and the largest in Scandinavia, was built by the French architectEtienne de Bonnuille in 1287. It was a masterpiece of the Gothic style, and is a monument of what Catholic art and Catholic self-sacrifice were able to create under the leadership of zealous archbishops and prelates.
The labours of the archbishops extended in all directions. Some were zealous pastors of their flocks, such as Jarler and others; some were distinguishedcanonists, such asBirger Gregersson (1367–83) andOlof Larsson (1435-8); others were statesmen, such asJöns Bengtsson Oxenstierna (d. 1467), or capable administrators, such asJacob Ulfsson Örnfot, who was distinguished as aprince of the Church, royal councillor,patron of art and learning, founder of theUniversity of Uppsala and an efficient helper in the introduction of printing into Sweden. He died in theCarthusian monastery ofMariefred (Mary's Peace) in 1522. There were also scholars, such asJohannes Magnus (died 1544), who wrote the "Historia de omnibus Gothorum sueonumque regibus" and the "Historia metropolitanæ ecclesiæ Upsaliensis", and his brotherOlaus Magnus (d. 1588), who wrote the "Historia de gentibus septentrionalibus" and who was the last Archbishop of Upsala.
The archbishops and secular clergy found active co-workers among the regular clergy. Among the orders represented in Sweden were theBenedictines, Cistercians, Dominicans, Franciscans,Brigittines (with the mother-house atVadstena Abbey) and Carthusians. The monks and friars laboured in things spiritual and were also the teachers of the people in agriculture and gardening. Still greater credit is due the members of the orders, both men and women, for their services in the intellectual training of the people of Sweden. A Swedish Protestant investigator, Carl Silfverstolpe, wrote: "The monks were almost the sole bond of union in the Middle Ages between the civilization of the north and that of southern Europe, and it can be claimed that the active relations between our monasteries and those in southern lands were the arteries through which the higher civilization reached our country."
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This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "Ancient See of Upsala".Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.| 12th century |  | ||
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