Ask Church


Ask Church is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Askøy Municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It is located in the village of Ask, on the eastern coast of the island of Askøy. It is the church for the Ask parish which is part of the Vesthordland prosti in the Diocese of Bjørgvin. The white, wooden church was built in a long church style in 1908 using designs by the architect Hartvig Sverdrup Eckhoff. The church seats about 275 people.

History

The first church at Ask is referenced in historical records in 1320, but it is likely that it existed for some time before that, possibly as early as the 12th century. The exact church site is not known, but there is a stone cross memorial on a site where it likely could have been. The church was made an annex church to the Bergen Cathedral parish starting at the Reformation. Because of this, there was no resident priest at Ask, and residents had to go across the Byfjorden to the city of Bergen to get to the main church. The residents of Askøy petitioned the King for their own parish for many years and it was not until 1740 when a rich merchant named Henrik Schreuder offered to pay for a new church. In 1741, the new Strusshamn Church was built on the southern shore of the island and the old Ask Church was torn down.
In the late 19th century, the people of the village of Ask were tired of the long journey to the other side of the island to get to the church and so they began asking for a church of their own. Eventually, the new Ask Church was approved and it was built in 1908 using designs by the architect Hartvig Sverdrup Eckhoff. The new church was consecrated on 8 October 1908 by the Bishop Johan Willoch Erichsen. The church cost a total of and was built with a lot of volunteer labor. After its completion, it was made a chapel under the Strusshamn Church parish.

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