| Summary: | In Sweden the Sami people is a national minority of indigenous people. Traditionally they are living in northern Sweden but can be found all over the country. The Church of Sweden has a long tradition of giving church services using the native Sami language in the Swedish part of Sapmi, the Sami people name of their land. The problem of recruiting Sami speaking clergy has always been great and different solutions has been tried. In the 1950’s Bishop Bengt Jonzon instituted a position as vicar for the Sami people, “kyrkoherde för samer”, in the diocese of Luleå with responsibility for church services in Sami language for all Sami people in Sweden. It was not a territorial parish, but the work of the vicar should be coordinated and integrated in agreement with the local territorial parishes. This paper will investigate why Bishop Jonzon did this organizational change in the diocese of Luleå at that time. The work is done as Narrative Analyses applied on Jonzon´s investigation in the past and present situation for church services dedicated for the Sami people, his records from the bishopric, his pastoral letter, his diary and other writings and archive material from his life as well as the biography about him written by his son. References are made to present documents within the Swedish church. As this is a Protestant Lutheran church, references are also made to its creed and the ordination promise for its bishops and clergy. At ordination they promise that the Holy word shall be presented clear and true in a way understandable by the people. Luther had the idea that this can best be made by using the mother tongue. The official view on the laps, which was how the Sami people was called around year 1900, was that they should either be fully assimilated in the Swedish society by abandoning all their Sami identity and speak only Swedish or remain as a separate group managing their reindeers in the mountain area and living in their Lapp cots and not taste the ordinary Swedish lifestyle according to the “Lapps should ...
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