Feast of St. Matthias the Apostle

February 24th is the feast day of St. Matthias, who was the apostle chosen by lot to replace Judas Iscariot among the Twelve. 

According to tradition, he preached the gospel in Judea, in Turkey and in the areas around the Caspian Sea, and suffered martyrdom in today's Georgia in the year 63. 

 

The Nordic Catholic Church was established in Norway in 2000 under the auspices of the Polish National Catholic Church (PNCC). Today the Nordic Catholic Church is led by Bishop Roald Nikolai Flemestad as a member Church of the Union of Scranton.

The following is taken from the preamble of the Statutes of the Union of Scranton:

"The Union of Scranton is a union of Churches – and their bishops governing them – that is determined to maintain and pass on the Catholic faith, worship, and essential structure of the Undivided Church of the first millennium. The Union of Scranton finds its origins in the development of the Union of Utrecht established on September 24, 1889, in Utrecht, Holland (…) The full communion of the Churches found its expression and was evident in the bishops uniting to form a Bishops’ Conference, which other bishops later joined. Since the Polish National Catholic Church (PNCC) continues to hold the Declaration of Utrecht as a normative document of faith, the development of the Union of Scranton follows a similar design.

The Union of Scranton emerged because certain member Churches of the Union of Utrecht unilaterally began to ordain women to the Priesthood and to bless same-sex unions in opposition to Holy Scripture and the Sacred Tradition of the Undivided Church. Since November 20, 2003 the PNCC is neither in communion, nor affiliated with the Churches of the Union of Utrecht."

Within the context of the Union of Scranton the Nordic Catholic Church has its orders and has received apostolic succession from the PNCC. Additionally, the theology reflects the doctrinal dialogue between the Chalcedonian Orthodox patriarchates and the Old Catholic churches as agreed in the consensus document Road to Unity from 1989. Thus, like the PNCC, the Nordic Catholic Church adheres to the teachings and praxis of the Undivided Church.

Furthermore, the Nordic Catholic Church emphasises in its Statement of Faith that it adheres to its Scandinavian Lutheran heritage to the extent that it has embraced and transmitted the orthodox and catholic faith of the Undivided Church.

The Nordic Catholic Church has presently five parishes in Norway and a developing community in Stockholm, Sweden. The activities outside Scandinavia take place in cooperation with the PNCC within the framework of the Union of Scranton.

Episcopal Consecration



 

Bishop Roald Nikolai

Fr. Geoffry Kirk on the future of Anglo-Catholicism

(Fr Anthony Chadwick, 2012) read more.

Looking for a new home?

The article with this title by Bishop Roald Nikolai - published in the December issue of "New Directions" - is available here or via the website of New Directions. (New Directions is a monthly magazine published by the Forward in Faith movement in the UK.)

The Church's Right to Perform Marriage

The changes in the institution of marriage that result from the new Norwegian Marriage Act of 2008 break with the Christian understanding of marriage and family life. Christians have therefore asked what... read more.

What is the meaning of the word "Catholic"?

Colloquial use gives the impression that the adjective "catholic" designates the Roman Catholic Church as opposed to other church bodies such as the... read more.

 

 

- The Faith of the Undivided Church -