Lögberg-Heimskringla - 04.02.2000, Qupperneq 4

4 • Lögberg-Heimskringla * Millennium Edition • Friday 4 February 2000
A Celebration
of 1000 years of Christianity in Iceland
Sitting on that committee shall be the
individuals elected and appointed to the
highest offices of the State, that is, the
President of Iceland, the Prime Minister,
the President of Althing (Parliament), the
President of the Supreme Court of
Iceland, and the Bishop of Iceland.
The formation of this committee is a
historical event in itself. I think you
would have to search far and wide in the
whole world to find a committee of com-
parable composition charged with over-
seeing a church celebration.
Although most of the celebrations
naturally take place in Iceland, the church
in Iceland is mindful of the many
“descendants” of that thousand-year-old
church who are dispersed throughout
North America. It is in order to reach out
to us here in the West, that the Bishop of
Iceland, Herra Karl Sigurbjömsson, will
take time in a hectic year, to visit with us
for a few days in September this year.
Festive services, with public recep-
tions to follow, will be held at Ardal
Lutheran Church, Arborg, Manitoba, on
September 5, at First Lutheran Church,
Winnipeg, Manitoba, September 7, at
Mount Olive Lutheran Church, White
Rock, British Columbia on September 10
and in Victoria, British Columbia,
September 10 (venue to be decided).
Although these visits are all in Canada,
people from North Dakota, Minnesota,
and Washington state, and indeed from all
over North America, are invited to attend.
Meeting the Bishop is a wonderful
opportunity for us on this side of the
Atlantic to celebrate our rich heritage and
in particular the contribution of the
church to our culture.
Karl Sigurbjömsson, Bishop oflceland
Pastor Ingthór Isfeld
It is an indication of the deep sense
of identity the Icelandic People have
with the Christian Church, that in
1989 the Government of Iceland appoint-
ed the Christianization Commemorative
Committee to be charged with the super-
vision of the celebration of 1000 years of
Christianity in Iceland in the year 2000.
The best of
Iceland
Sigurdur Helgason
Chairman, Leifur Eiriksson Millennium
Commission of lceland
Reykjavík, Iceland
The Leifur Eiriksson Millennium
Commission of Iceland was established
by Prime Minister David Oddsson in
January 1998, to celebrate in 2000 the his-
toric discovery voyages of Icelanders to the
New World a thousand years earlier. A
wide range of cultural events will present
the best of Iceland today supporting our
commercial interests and introducing
Iceland as an attractive tourist destination.
Another aim of these activities is to further
strengthen the good ties with people of
Icelandic descent in Canada and the United
States.
The program of events includes the
sailing of a viking ship from Iceland to
Greenland, Newfoundland, and various
points along the coasts of Canada and the
United States to New York. The events will
feature the Iceland Symphony Orchestra
and choral music, theatre presentations,
film festivals, museum and art exhibits, lit-
erary publications, and productions of mul-
timedia material to mention but the high-
lights. These events cover twenty cities in
the United States with emphasis on
Washington, D.C., New York, Boston,
Minneapolis, Los Angeles, and Seattle. In
Canada, Winnipeg and Gimli will feature
prominently but important events will be in
Ottawa, Vancouver, Halifax, Toronto, and
elsewhere with the viking ship sailing as
the basis for cooperation with
Newfoundland-Labrador
With all best wishes in the new millen-
nium to Lögberg-Heimskringla\
Serving the country
and the community
Senator Janis Johnson continues thefamily tradition
S enator Janis Johnson’s involve-
ment with the Icelandic Canadian
community began the day she was
bom. Her parents, grandparents and great-
grandparents were all of Icelandic descent.
“They were proud Canadians who
were active in the Icelandic community in
Manitoba, and raised their children in a
home that treasured many of the Icelandic
tradifions,” says Janis, who grew up in
Gimli, where her family has summered
since the late 1920s.
“My Dad served the town as a doctor,
MLA, and cabinet minister and became the
first Lieutenant Governor of Icelandic ori-
gin appointed in the province. My partici-
pation continues in that tradition. I serve
my country, but stay involved in cultural
and other activities that benefit our
Icelandic Canadian community.”
Johnson was appointed Senator by
Mulroney in 1990 and serves on several
Senate committees, including Aboriginal
Peoples, Fisheries, and Transport and
Communications. She believes that the
relationship between Canada and Iceland
in the global village, which is the world
today, can be strengthened by concentrat-
ing on issues of mutual concem.
“To my mind the issues are fishing,
especially on the east coast of Canada, the
environment, tourism, culture, education,
and water—a resource which I think will
be the most valued in this century. We also
share an interest in research and develop-
ment” said Janis, and mentioned DeCode
Genetics in Iceland and Newfoundland’s
new work in genetic research as examples
of scientific initiatives that have much in
common.
“We should also encourage trade mis-
sions between the two countries, cultural
exchanges, and business and political vis-
its. Above all we should support programs
to send young people to both countries,
which would expose them to the realities
and wonder of life on an island in the north
Atlantic, and life in a multicultural society
in the largest country in the world.”
When it comes to more formal politi-
cal relations between Iceland and Canada,
Johnson considers the proposed Icelandic
Embassy in Canada a bold initiative.
“It builds upon the strength Iceland
already enjoys in Canada, with its small,
determined, and successful population of
Icelandic Canadians. A country that can
establish a 200-mile fishing limit and build
a successful intemational airline is the kind
of progressive, northern nation that
Canada would do well to develop a
stronger working relationship with.”
Strengthening the ties
Heather Alda
Ireland
Honourary Consul
for lceland in
British Columbia
^he millen-
nium cele-
brations in
Ganada, both the events sponsored by
Iceland and those sponsored by local
groups, afford us the opportunity to cele-
brate our ties to Iceland in special ways.
As Honourary Consul, I am privileged to
associate with the Icelandic communities
in Vancouver and Victoria, to witness the
enthusiasm and dedication of so many
Canadians of Icelandic descent at com-
munity events. I also have contact with
Icelanders visiting Vancouver and
Canadians planning to visit Iceland. I am
stmck with the strong ties that link the
two countries. For many of us, though
two or three generations away from the
motherland, the pride in our heritage is a
cornerstone of our lives.
We are tied to Iceland by culture: our
love of literature and music and our
adopted Icelandic customs. We look for-
ward to June 17, Iceland’s National Day.
It will be a special day in Vancouver this
year. Singing “Ó Guð vors lands” and
entertaining the large crowd at the annual
Scandinavian Festival will be
Snaelandskorinn, the fifty-voice choir
from east Iceland. This will be an occa-
sion to showcase the considerable talents
of Icelanders. Of equal importance will
be the conversations that we will have
with the visitors, many of whom may
well be relatives.
Canadian history begins with the his-
tory of Icelanders. The accomplishments
of Iceland’s hero of the millennium,
Leifur Eiriksson, will be commemorated
in Iceland and in North America. I am
drawn to be at L’Anse aux Meadows to
watch the arrival of the replica of Leifur’s
ship and the flotilla of viking ships that
will accompany it. The early explorers
were our ancestors. They led others to
Canada including our grandparents and
great grandparents who followed 875
years later.
The Icelandic immigrants brought to
Canada their bibles and other treasured
books. In September 2000, Bishop Karl
Sigurbjörnsson will bring to Canada
Iceland’s thousandth anniversary cele-
bration of the adoption of Christianity.
The Lutheran Church here is honoured by
his visit. It will host a luncheon for the
Bishop to which all the Lutheran clergy
and the city’s ecumenical leaders will be
invited. His participation in Sunday serv-
ices will be welcome opportunities for
Icelandic Canadians from the Vancouver
area, Washington state, and Vancouver
Island to gather in celebration of the reli-
gious history that they share.
Though separated by thousands of
kilometres from the first Icelandic settle-
ments in Canada, we on the west coast
will mark, on October 21, the 125th
anniversary of their founding. We, in the
twenty-first century, honour the pioneers
of the nineteenth century and celebrate
the strong ties that we have with the land
of their birth.
For more information, visit our website: www.iceland2000.org