Christian Alta
When we come to celebrate the Saami Church Days in Alta, we come to an area where the Christian faith has had a longstanding, visible presence. The religious landscape of Alta is diverse: Not only does the Church of Norway occupy a central spot with its Northern Lights Catedral, but people also frequent the church and use its services.
Included in the deanery of Alta are the parishes of Loppa, Hasvik, Alta and Talvik. Within in the parish of Alta, there are five churches: The Northern Lights Cathedral, the Old Church of Alta, Elvebakken Church and the churches in Kåfjord and Rafsbotn.
Alta Parish is a parish with a lot going on, especially at the Northern Lights Cathedral. In addition to the worship, there are activities almost daily. The Christian education provides classes for most age groups, a part of which are organized at Elvebakken Church, where there is a service usually every other week. Alta Parish organizes a gospel choir for children, a church choir, comprehensive confirmation classes (around 170 attendants in 2024!), Bible lessons and, in addition, concerts and other events. The congregation room of the Northern Lights Cathedral is used, among other things, as a “church market”, that is as a meeting place with different themes open on Thursdays.
There are also tourist activities, first and foremost at the Northern Lights Cathedral, where a museum with interactive exhibitions about northern lights is located in the basement. The profits from this work supports the activities of the parish.
The parishes of Alta and Talvik cooperate closely, for example the Northern Lights Cathedral houses the office of the minister of Talvik Parish, and all chaplains work across parish boundaries. Talvik Parish covers both sides of Altafjorden and includes six churches: From Langfjord Church and Talvik Church on the eastern side, to Leirbotn Church, Storekorsnes Chapel, Komagfjord Church and Rognsund Church on the island of Seiland.
Laestadianism has, with a presence since the middle of the 19th century, been an influence on Alta. For many years, the Church of Norway has worked together with the Laestadian Congregation of Elvebakken (ELM) and the Laestadian Congregation of Rafsbotn to organize worship and other activities. Nowadays, ELM is about to complete its new house of worship and also handles its own sacraments.
The cooperation between Normisjon and Alta Parish has since many years been good and fruitful. The Pentecostal Filadelfia Church is also an important and visible church, with which the Church of Norway cooperates to organize different events, while furthermore, Frikirken, the Free Church of Norway, has a loyal congregation and forms an important element in the religious landscape of Alta. The Norwegian Missionary Society has an active local association, and the Norwegian Saami Mission and the Home Mission of Norway are active to a certain extent. These groups use Normisjon’s house of worship located at Bossekop. The Catholic Church possesses a chapel on Elvebakken, where it organizes regular service.
Most of the above-mentioned congregations and groups offer youth activities, but over the years the YWCA-YMCA scouts have come to provide an important gathering spot. In addition, Laget (The Norwegian Christian Student and School Association) does also periodically work to reach out with the Gospel.