Fana church
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Fana Church is located in Fana, approximately 20 kilometers south of the medieval town of Bergen. The existing stone building celebrated 850 years anniversary in 2003, but the church building history is long and complicated. Historians assert that the church has been rebuilt and enlarged several times.
Fana Church is for the first time mentioned in writings in the year 1228 when Pope Gregory IX release a conscription to the vicar and brothers at “the holy cross church and hospital in Fana”. In this letter it’s mentioned that the bishops in Bergen has let the church been founded again; “de novo fundari”. Parts of the existing church building are from the Romance époque, and also characteristics of some parts of the walls that there has been a stone building at the same place, most likely a church, before 1220. From this many believe that the core of the church is build in second half of the 1100 years.
Connected to Fana Church there is a legend “The Holly Silver Cross”. In 1626 when the king gave professor Worm at Copenhagen University commission to register all historical objects and occurrences in Bjørgvin bishopric, Skonvig, the son of a priest, sent a letter about the legend.
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[edit] The legend
Two fishermen found a silver cross in at Korsnes in Korsfjorden, they tried to get the cross on land with Milde, but the cross was too heavy to carry, so they knew that the cross was meant for Fana. When they came to Fanahammeren the cross was easy to carry, they brought it to the Church were it was settled at the altar. One of the fishermen was blind; when he touched the cross and scratched his eyes he gained sight again. The story about the healing cross reached many, and pilgrims visited the church hoping to be healed. It is said that at a little knoll close to the church there was a lot of crutches and canes that pilgrims had left behind after having been healed at the cross. In 1546 the priest in Fana burned 6 horse loads of crutches.
[edit] Short history
The window painting telling the history of the church The latest rebuilding of magnitude was done as late as in 1927-28, during this rebuilding the window was changed. Bernhard Greve window paintings illustrates the history of the church.
- 1228: Building of Fana Church after the christening of Norway by Olav den Hellige.
- 1228: Conscription from Pope Gregory IX
- The legend of The Holly Silver Cross
- 1537: removing of the silver cross, other treasures and lead row
- 1644: the church burns after been struck by lightning
- 1928- the church is re-consecrated after rebuilding
[edit] Ownership of Fana Church
Since the church was rather big compared to other church outside a town, some believes that the church was a county church in the early years. One thinks that the hospital next to the church was shut down around 1300.
In 1303 Fana church was one of 14 royal chapels after having been transferred from Bishop in Bergen to the Apostle church in Bergen. Fana church is one of only 3 remaining royal chapels.
In 1723 the royal deed was sold to two men from the parish; Nils Olson Austevoll and Vinsens Nilsson Nedre Titlestad. The church was privately held until 1862 when it was sold in an action and the parish bought it. The parish decided to rebuild the church in 1870-71. There was done major changes, but after some years they saw that the rebuilding was a mistake. In 1920 they hired an architect; Fredrik Konow Lund that tried to give the church the Middle age look it once had.
