Minneapolis church with Norwegian ties honors victims of attacks

Published 7:54 am Monday, July 25, 2011

Among dozens of biblical passages shared at a Twin Cities church Sunday, one held particular resonance to the assembly: “But when I looked for good, evil came; and when I waited for light, darkness came.”

The verse from the Old Testament’s Book of Job was shared in Norwegian, and it characterized in brief the tragedy to which Minneapolis’ Norwegian Lutheran Memorial Church was paying homage.

After a bombing in central Oslo claimed at least seven lives Friday, the death toll rose past 90 after a mass shooting at a youth camp. When people at the island camp heard gunfire, some tragically sought respite from the gunman himself, who was dressed as a police officer.

The 89-year-old church – often called by its Norwegian name, Mindekirke – has about 200 members, the majority of whom claim Norwegian descent.

Gary Gandrud, the Norwegian Honorary Consulate General in Minneapolis, and U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar delivered opening remarks Sunday at the church, packed to standing room only for its service of remembrance. More than 280 congregation members, Norwegian-American Minnesotans and other supporters gathered in their Sunday best or in Norway sports jerseys, some of them flanked by miniature flags of Norway.

Gandrud, a Norwegian-American, told the crowd that a show of support from Minnesota, home to the largest number of people of Norwegian heritage outside of Norway, was very important.

He drew parallels from Norway’s King Harald V, who recently told the people of Norway not to be conquered by fear, to Franklin Delano Roosevelt and his World War II-era speech in which he told Norwegians battling the German occupation: “If there is anyone who has any delusions that this war could have been averted, let him look to Norway; and if there is anyone who doubts the democratic will to win, again I say, let him look to Norway.”

In her remarks, Klobuchar also referenced American presidential statements drafted in times of chaos.

“As President Clinton reminded our nation after the Oklahoma City bombing, ‘When there is talk of hatred, let us stand up and talk against it,’ ” she said. ” ‘When there is talk of violence, let us stand up and talk against it.’ “

The remainder of the service, held primarily in Norwegian, included several moments of silence to honor the victims. As a bell was rung 92 times, 92 red roses were set on the altar in remembrance of each life lost.

Arne Selbyg of Edina grew up in Norway and attended the service Sunday because he he was in shock and needed to be around people who shared a connection to his homeland, he said.

“I wish I could be there in Norway,” he said. “I want to be a part of this recovery. I want to talk to everyone. It’s a very strange feeling. I just want to hug everyone in Norway, and I can’t.”

Ole Anton Hoel and Bjorn Overn, Norwegian nationals who were in Minnesota visiting friends this week, also attended the Mindekirke service before heading back to Europe on Sunday afternoon.

“I am very touched by the service,” Hoel said. “This deep tragedy…it reminds us how important it is to fight those ideals.”

The suspect, Anders Behring Breivik, 32, has been characterized as a right-wing Christian fundamentalist obsessed with what he thought was a threat of multiculturalism and Muslim immigration in Norway.

“We really have to take care of our democracies, tend to them,” Overn said. “It is totally unbelievable. We think of ours as a country of peace.”

The two said they were apprehensive about returning to Norway to find out whether they were connected to any of the victims.

“The names have not been released,” Hoel said. “It’s hard to go home. I am scared to read the names.”

Student pastor Margrete Telhaug of Oslo gave the sermon Sunday, focusing on the frailty and complexity of human life. She asked the church both to take time to mourn and to recognize the heroism of the survivors and victims.

“I read one story about a young man who swam with a friend who’d been shot, all the way from the island to the mainland…which is maybe 600 meters,” Telhaug said. “The courage, love and dedication this man showed is deeply touching….It is a soft voice of goodness in all of this.”

The service came to a close Sunday as the congregation joined in song to a Norwegian folk tune said to be a favorite of the Utoya island youth camp.

The Norwegian lyrics, Telhaug said, pronounced “the unique value of every human being to be our weapon as we face the challenges of this world.”