Nathan Söderblom (original) (raw)

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Swedish bishop

The Most ReverendNathan Söderblom
Archbishop of UppsalaPrimate of Sweden
Church Church of Sweden
Diocese Uppsala
Elected 20 May 1914
In office 1914–1931
Predecessor Johan August Ekman
Successor Erling Eidem
Orders
Ordination 1893 (priest)
Consecration 8 November 1914by Gottfrid Billing
Personal details
Born Lars Olof Jonathan Söderblom(1866-01-15)15 January 1866Trönö, Sweden
Died 12 July 1931(1931-07-12) (aged 65)Uppsala, Sweden
Nationality Swedish
Denomination Church of Sweden
Parents Jonas Söderblom and Nikolina Sophie Blûme
Spouse Anna Söderblom (born as Forsell) (1870–1955)
Children 12
Alma mater Uppsala University
Ordination history ofNathan Söderblom
HistoryPriestly ordinationOrdained byGottfrid BillingDate1893Episcopal consecrationConsecrated byGottfrid BillingDate8 November 1914PlaceUppsala Cathedral

Bust of Nathan Söderblom at Kungsholms Church in Stockholm, Sweden

Bust of Nathan Söderblom at Kungsholms Church in Stockholm, Sweden

Lars Olof Jonathan Söderblom (Swedish pronunciation: [ˈnɑ̌ːtan ˈsø̌ːdɛrblʊm]; 15 January 1866 – 12 July 1931) was a Swedish bishop. He was the Church of Sweden Archbishop of Uppsala from 1914 to 1931,[1] and recipient of the 1930 Nobel Peace Prize. He is commemorated in the Calendar of Saints of the Lutheran Church on 12 July.[2]

Söderblom was born in the village of Trönö in Söderhamn Municipality, Gävleborg County. His father was a parish priest. He enrolled at Uppsala University in 1883. Although not initially convinced what he wanted to study, he eventually decided to follow in his father's footsteps. On returning from a journey to the United States, he was ordained as a priest in 1893. During the years 1892 and 1893, he was first vice president and then president of the Uppsala Student Union.[2]

From 1894 to 1901, he had a ministry position at the Swedish Embassy in Paris, where his congregation included both Alfred Nobel (1833–1896) and August Strindberg (1849–1912). In 1897, he officiated at the memorial service for Nobel. From 1901 to 1914, Söderblom held a chair in the School of Theology at Uppsala University and from 1912 to 1914 was also a professor of religious studies at Leipzig University. In 1914, he was elected as Archbishop of Uppsala, the head of the Lutheran church in Sweden. During the First World War, he called on all Christian leaders to work for peace and justice while working to alleviate the conditions of prisoners of war and refugees.[3]

He believed that church unity had the specific purpose of presenting the gospel to the world and that the messages of Jesus were relevant to social life. His leadership of the Christian "Life and Work" movement in the 1920s has led him to be recognised as one of the principal founders of the ecumenical movement. He had begun the movement toward intercommunion between the Church of Sweden and the Church of England and was a close associate of the English ecumenist George Bell (1883–1958), Dean of Canterbury, Bishop of Chichester. He was instrumental in chairing the World Conference of Life and Work in Stockholm, in 1925. In 1930 he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.[2][4]

  1. ^ "Religious Organizations" (in Swedish). World Statesmen. Retrieved 22 December 2014.
  2. ^ a b c "Nathan Söderblom". The Nobel Foundation. Retrieved July 1, 2020.
  3. ^ "Nathan Söderblom". The Giffordlectures. Retrieved July 1, 2020.
  4. ^ "Nathan Söderblom 1930". Nobel Peace Center. Retrieved July 1, 2020.
Titles in Lutheranism
Preceded byJohan August Ekman Archbishop of UppsalaPrimate of Sweden 1914–1931 Succeeded byErling Eidem
Cultural offices
Preceded byWaldemar Rudin Swedish Academy,Seat No. 16 1921–1932 Succeeded byTor Andræ
Awards and achievements
Preceded byFrank B. Kellogg Laureate of the Nobel Peace Prize 1930 Succeeded byNicholas Murray Butlerand Jane Addams