Year: 1876

Publisher and Proprietor.


The Life of a Pastor in LapIand.


The life Of a pastor in the North
is largely occupied with the cares
of this life. He has, during the
summer months, to attend to his
glebe, and to catch fish, and shoot
birds to serve as his winter sup
plies; and when winter comes he
has to drive wood from the forest
for fuel, and to travel twice year
to the two spring fairs, which are
held at the nearest village. The
pastor Of Quikkjokk only leaves
his post thrice a year, and then his
journeys extend no farther. than
Jokkmokk; once to spend Christ
mas, and on the other two occas-
ions to obtain the necessary sup
plies, which, if not then obtained,
can only be procured afterward at
great expense from the coast. Be
sides his glebe he has small salary
to enable him to exc out his living,
and though banished, as it were,
from the world, is not uninterested
in its concerns, and keeps up not
only that taste for botany which is
so common among educated Swedes,
but also pays some attention to
archaeology. His spiritual duties
are light, and in summer confined
to the preaching Of a sermon on
Sunday to the few inhabitants of
Quikkjokk. On the day after our
arrival we went to the little church,
and increased his congregation to
twenty-five for that day.


The whole service was in Swed-
ish, and did not differ from that in
other Swedish churches. He wore
the usual dress of a Swedish pastor,
viz, a tight-ftting black coat, with
a thickly-plaited silk train depend
ing from his shoulders. He also
had small bands, and carried in his
hand the white handkerchief with
out which a pastor never appears
in the pulpit, and which is twisted
round two fingers and allowed to
hang over the side of the nulnit
After reading prayers at the altar,
over which hung an oil painting
representing the infant Christ, the
gift of a Swedish traveller, the pas
tor left the church, and, returning
shortly with bible and psalm
book wrapped in the white hand
kerchief, assembled the pulpit and
preached an excellent sermon to an
inattentive audience, After service
he showed us the few treasures of
the church, VIZ, q few yestments
and a beautiful gold communion
cup for use on high days, a pewter
cup being used on other occasions.
A coffee-pot to contain the com
munion wine, and a silver platter
for the bread, were also shown us.
In the church, besides the picture
over the altar, there were on the
walls a coarse colored print of st.
Joseph and an engraving of the
late king. Above the door, in a
glass case, was an epitaph of the
child of a former pastor, written
on paper, and other ornament there
was none.


Spring and autumn, or rather
the two extremes of winter which
correspond to these seasons, form the
busy time Of Herr Berlin's year.
At these periods of the year the
Laps, to the number of three hun
dred and more, are in the neighbor-
ing fields and forests, and the
church service is partly in Lap and
always includes a Lap sermon.
Formerly on these occasions the
Laps were much given to religious
excitement, dancing, singing and
jumping wildly about in the
church, but now for a long time
their religion has been of a quieter
type, as well as more potent, in
Auencing their ordinary life. This
is in great part due to Tho exertions
of the successive pastors, who in
autumn and spring hold regular
cateohetioal classes for the instruc-
ton Of young and old in the doc
trines Of Christianity. The pastors
winter duties alsoinclude the teach
ing Of a Lap school, which is main
tanned at the expense Of the State,
and in which six Lap boys and girls
received a good education for three
years gratis. Food and clothing
y