Craving a touch of Norway in Durban? St Olav’s Church offers just that. It is a testament to the Norwegian community’s faith and heritage in South Africa. St Olav’s Norwegian Church began its journey in the 1880s. It served as a spiritual home for Scandinavian settlers. Most of these settlers were Norwegian.
The Norwegian Mission Society played a vital role. Missionaries from the society served as pastors here until 1922. After that, the Seamen’s Mission took over the responsibility. They ensured the church always had pastors.
In 1968 the Norwegian Mission Society renewed its involvement. This happened after the Seamen’s Mission withdrew. St Olav’s faced a difficult decision during the apartheid era. Other white Lutheran settler churches refused to join the black Lutheran Church. It was called the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Southern Africa. Many believed this refusal was due to racist attitudes.
The Lutheran World Federation defined apartheid as heresy in 1977. The Norwegian Mission Society risked legitimizing segregated churches. They risked indirectly supporting apartheid. The society’s goal was to influence St Olav’s. They wanted the church to join the black Lutheran church. They wanted it to become a sign of reconciliation.
A dramatic meeting took place in 1984. The majority of the congregation rejected an agreement. The agreement was negotiated between St Olav’s leadership and the Evangelical Lutheran Church. This rejection was a defeat for the Norwegian Mission Society’s vision. The society withdrew its cooperation with St Olav’s.
A group within St Olav’s favored joining the black Lutheran church. This group also withdrew and founded a new church. They called it St Michael. The missionaries felt morally obliged to support this group. They saw it as the true remnant of St Olav’s. They provided clerical services.
Later St Michael joined a black church. In a sense they realized the Norwegian Mission Society’s original vision. The Seamen’s Mission closed its work in Durban in 1987. The Evangelical Lutheran Church wanted to buy the St Olav’s building. Their goal was to secure a permanent location for St Michael.
The Seamen’s Mission sold the building to an organization for deaf people. They claimed the Evangelical Lutheran Church had not presented a financial plan. Several Norwegian Mission Society missionaries criticized this decision. They felt it lacked solidarity with a sister church facing hardship.
Today St Olav’s Church is interdenominational. It welcomes all Christian denominations. The hall displays paintings by Nils Andersen. He was a sought after painter and WWII official artist. Stepping inside St Olav’s Norwegian Church you connect with the history. You acknowledge the Norwegian community’s contribution to Durban. You appreciate the church’s journey through times of change and division.