The Icelandic Reformation. A Priest’s Story

The Icelandic Reformation: A Priest's Story The Icelandic Reformation may be seen as a number of steps rather than as an abrupt revolution. Not only were the existing Catholic priests influenced by their upbringing and education, unprepared for or even unwilling to abandon their customary practices, but initially they also lacked the paraphernalia of Protestantism even if they wished to convert. In addition, their congregations had grown up with the medieval Catholic understanding of how a person achieved harmony with God, so that priests had occasion to resist the reformatory changes rather than take part. The article deals with how one particular priest, Sigurður Jónsson, responded to the Reformation and was in the end cooperating closely with the first two Lutheran bishops at Hólar. Sigurður had previously been an important figure in the Hólar Diocese and was indeed a son of the last Catholic bishop there. There always came a point in time when individual priests had to take a stance on Protestant rituals and even lead worship in the vernacular. For Sigurður Jónsson, this step occurred on Easter Sunday, 1554. While he has hitherto been thought of as reforming relatively late, the article argues that he actually did so fairly quickly. He had undertaken two trips overseas in service of his father, firstly while the Reformation was most turbulent in Denmark (1533) and secondly while it was most turbulent in Iceland (1542), and these experiences had probably convinced him that Lutheranism would be the outcome. He had even had to swear allegiance to the king in matters of politics, and to some extent of faith. Although it is uncertain whether he ever became a critical Reformist or was influenced by Lutheranism during his latter trip abroad, he was definitely affected by Humanism and on the second trip was in close contact with the man who later became the first Lutheran bishop at Skálholt. Despite the various steps and the time Sigurður Jónsson took in adopting the new practices, the Reformation does not seem to have hurt his religious career. The same can probably be said about many of his clerical contemporaries.