History
It’s thought the first organized groups of people to settle Denmark arrived around the sixth century A.D. Later, Vikings struck out from the Danish and Norwegian lands and conquered a large part of England they called the Danelaw Eventually, Danish kings completed the conquest of England.
Canute II, a powerful Danish king, completed the Christianization of Denmark several years after the conquest of England. Denmark was a powerful political and economic force in the Baltic Sea for several centuries and played a large part in the Thirty Years’ War during the Reformation period. As a result, Denmark became an official Lutheran state and remains so today.
Denmark was neutral in World War I but was invaded and conquered by the Nazis in World War II. However, in 1943 it became one of the first European nations to be liberated by the Allies. Danish courage and compassion during the Nazi occupation is well-known. The king of Denmark ordered the Danish fleet to be burned rather than fall into Nazi hands. Also, the Danes evacuated thousands of Jews to Sweden just before Nazis could exterminate them. After the war Denmark was a founding nation of NATO and the United Nations.
Church History
Denmark is one of the most secular countries in the world, but the roots of Pentecostalism have survived. The Pentecostal message came to Denmark in 1907 under the ministry of a Norwegian pastor, T. B. Barratt. In 1947 an Assemblies of God minister, Victor G. Greisen, visited Denmark and preached in several churches. Many received the baptism in the Holy Spirit. From these events, Pentecostal churches joined together in founding a Christian school in the city of Mariager in 1955, eventually named the Danish Pentecostal Bible College.
The Movement Today
The largest Pentecostal church in Denmark today is Copenhagen Christian Cultural Center, which draws people by hosting a wide variety of cultural and educational events. The church also actively sponsors church planting, literature distribution, and gospel television programming in the city. Though Denmark has never experienced a major spiritual renewal, the Fellowship there has faith that it will come soon. The Pentecostal movement in Denmark reports the following statistics: 43 churches and preaching points and 5350 members and adherents.
Additional Facts About Denmark
Capital: Copenhagen
Area: 16,639 square miles
Population: 5.7 million
Religion: 76 percent Lutheran, 4 percent Muslim, and 20 percent others
Urbanization: 87.9 percent
Agriculture: barley, wheat, potatoes, sugar beets, pork, dairy products, and fish
Industry: wind turbines, pharmaceuticals, medical equipment, shipbuilding and refurbishment, iron, steel, nonferrous metals, chemicals, food processing, machinery and transportation equipment, textiles and clothing, electronics, construction, furniture, and other wood products