Norwegian Bishop Eivind Berggrav

Norwegian bishop Eivind Berggrav (right) and the famous Norwegian author Ronald Fangen talking in a concentration camp about the serious situation in Norway.  

The Norwegian clergy refused to communicate directly with the Nazi authorities which led to their persecution and imprisonment. They forced the Nazis to retreat many times before their firm stand. 

The Norwegian clergy's organized resistance was prompted by the Nazis' attempts to control the church and indoctrinate the population with Nazi ideology, leading to a widespread boycott of the Nazi-controlled "church front".

In 1940, Germany invaded and occupied Norway, establishing a collaborationist government under Vidkun Quisling. 

The Nazi authorities and the Quisling regime sought to control the church, aiming to impose Nazi ideology and create a "church front" aligned with their agenda. 

The Norwegian clergy, led by Bishop Eivind Berggrav, resisted these efforts, viewing the attempts to control the church as a violation of religious freedom and national sovereignty. 

The clergy's refusal to cooperate with the Nazi authorities was a powerful act of passive resistance that united the nation and became a central part of the Norwegian resistance movement. 

Bishop Eivind Berggrav

As the leader of the Norwegian Church, Berggrav became a symbol of the church's resistance. He was arrested and imprisoned in a concentration camp in 1942 for his opposition to the Nazi-backed regime. 

Ronald Fangen

A prominent author and playwright, Fangen was a staunch opponent of the Nazi ideology and was also imprisoned in a concentration camp for his political and religious convictions.

Bishop Eivind Berggrav and wife, of Norway, greeting U.S. Brigadier General Owen Summers and Chaplain Major Albin L. Fortney, in Rome, Italy, 11 July 1945. Original caption: "Bishop Eivind Berggrav of Norway, famed as the 'soul' of the resistance movement during the German occupation, greets U.S. officers in Oslo. Left to right are Bishop Berggrav, Mrs. Berggrav, Brigadier General Owen Summers and Chaplain Major Albin L. Fortney." (US Signal Corps photo)