Visby is an urban area in Sweden and the seat of Gotland Municipality in Gotland County on the island of Gotland with 24,330 inhabitants as of 2017. Visby is also the episcopal see for the Diocese of Visby. The Hanseatic city of Visby is arguably the best-preserved medieval city in Scandinavia, and, since 1995, it has been on the UNESCO World Heritage Site list. Among the most notable historical remains are the 3.4 km (2.1 mi) long town wall that encircles the town center, and a number of church ruins. The decline as a Hanseatic city in the Late Middle Ages was the cause for many stone houses being preserved in their original medieval style.
The Church of Sweden is an Evangelical Lutheran national church in Sweden. A former state church, headquartered in Uppsala, with around 5.6 million members at year end 2021, it is the largest Christian denomination in Sweden, the largest Lutheran denomination in Europe and the third-largest in the world, after the Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania.
The Diocese of Växjö is one of 13 dioceses within the Lutheran Church of Sweden. It's episcopal see is located in the city of Växjö. The diocese was established in the 12th century as a Roman Catholic bishopric, but was taken over by the Church of Sweden as a result of the Protestant Reformation in Sweden.
The Archdiocese of Uppsala is one of the thirteen dioceses of the Church of Sweden and the only one having the status of an archdiocese.
A provost is a senior official in a number of Christian churches.
The Diocese of Kalmar was a division of the Church of Sweden between 1603 and 1915, when it was merged into the diocese of Växjö in order to allow the new diocese of Luleå to be formed. It was created as a subdivision to the diocese of Linköping, and was under the supervision of a superintendent. Only in 1678 was a bishop appointed, and Kalmar cathedral became an episcopal see in the term proper. Till this day, the cathedral of Kalmar retain its rank despite no longer being the seat of a bishopric.
The Diocese of Linköping is a diocese within the Church of Sweden administering the Östergötland County, the north eastern part of Jönköping County and the northern part of Kalmar County. It comprises nine deaneries subdivided into 176 parishes with a total of 443,000 members. The diocese's largest parish is Motala. The Diocese of Linköping has a rank directly below the Archdiocese of Uppsala of the Church of Sweden. The current bishop is Marika Markovits.
The Diocese of Stockholm is a division of the Church of Sweden. Its cathedral is Storkyrkan in Stockholm's Old Town. The diocese covers most of metropolitan Stockholm and was formed in 1942 from parts of the medieval dioceses of Strängnäs and Uppsala, both of which pre-dated the foundation of the city. Before 1942, the City of Stockholm itself and Greater Stockholm were divided more or less equally between the two medieval dioceses at Slussen just south of Stockholm's Old Town.
The Diocese of Västerås is a diocese within the Church of Sweden. Its Episcopal see is located in Västerås at Västerås Cathedral. The diocese was first established in the 12th century as part of the Roman Catholic church, but was made part of the Church of Sweden as a result of the Protestant Reformation in Sweden.
The Diocese of Visby is a division of the Church of Sweden consisting of the island of Gotland. Its seat is Visby Cathedral located in the largest town on Gotland, Visby.
The Diocese of Strängnäs is a part of the Lutheran Church of Sweden and has its seat in Strängnäs Cathedral in Strängnäs, south of Lake Mälaren. The diocese is made up of the two provinces Närke and Södermanland.
The Diocese of Stockholm is an exempt Latin Catholic ecclesiastical bishopric in Sweden and the only Catholic diocese established in Sweden since the Protestant Reformation. The diocese belongs to no ecclesiastical province but forms an episcopal conference with its Nordic neighbours. Its territory includes 44 parishes and covers the entire country of Sweden.
Gerd Eva Cecilia Brunne is a bishop in the Church of Sweden. She served as the Bishop of Stockholm from 2009 till 2019. She is the first openly lesbian bishop of a mainstream church in the world and the first bishop of the Church of Sweden to be in a registered same-sex partnership.
Visby Cathedral, formally Visby Saint Mary's Cathedral, is a cathedral within the Church of Sweden, seat of the Bishop of Visby. It lies in the centre of Visby, the main town on the Swedish island Gotland. It was built as the church of the German traders in the city during the 13th century. The very first church was probably a wooden church, which was later replaced by a stone building. Originally built as a basilica, it was successively expanded and rebuilt during the Middle Ages. At the end of this period it had been transformed to a hall church, which it still is. In 1361, Gotland and the church became part of Denmark. Following the Reformation, it was the only medieval church in the city left in use, and in 1572 raised to the status of cathedral. Since 1645 Gotland and the cathedral have been part of Sweden. A major renovation was carried out in 1899–1903 under the guidance of architect Axel Haig.
The Most Reverend David John Walkowiak, J.C.D. is a prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who has been serving as the twelfth bishop of the Diocese of Grand Rapids in Michigan since 2013.
Per Ragnar Theodor Persenius was the Bishop of Uppsala from 2000 till his retirement in 2019. He previously headed the Church of Sweden's Department of Theology and Ecumenism.
Hans Bertil Stiglund is a Swedish bishop and author who has been Bishop of the Diocese of Luleå since 2002.
Nils Martin Modéus is a Swedish theologian and bishop who is Archbishop of Uppsala and primate of the Church of Sweden. Prior to this, he was bishop of the Diocese of Linköping from 2011 until 2022, when he was installed as Archbishop.
Sven-Bernhard Fast is a Swedish prelate who served as Bishop of Visby from 2011 till 2018.
Åsa Gunilla Elisabet Nyström is a Swedish prelate and current bishop of the Diocese of Luleå.
