Hilde Raastad (born 1960)

Translator's Note: This is a machine-assisted translation completed on July 25, 2025. While care has been taken to maintain accuracy, this translation has not yet undergone human review or validation. Please note that specialized terms, historical references, and nuanced content may benefit from expert review. 

Former priest. Theologian and ski instructor. 

Raastad was born and raised in Oslo in a conservative religious family. After completing her education in the United States and Norway, she became, in 1995, the first openly lesbian priest to be ordained in Norway—an event that drew significant media attention.

In 1997, Raastad entered into a registered partnership with Julie Hass, although she was not serving in a priestly role at the time. This stood in contrast to her colleague Siri Sunde, who was employed as a priest when she entered into a partnership the same year and was subsequently suspended. Raastad was later employed by the Church City Mission (Kirkens Bymisjon), becoming the first ordained lesbian priest in a registered partnership to hold such a position.

She has been active in the Open Church Group (Åpen Kirkegruppe) since 1990 and is also involved in the European Forum of LGBT Christian Groups. In 2015, she published her autobiographical book Rosa skjerf og nyfallen snø (Pink Scarves and Freshly Fallen Snow).

In an excerpt from the interview, she recounts the 1995 Church Assembly debate on whether there was room in the Church for 'practicing' homosexuals. Members of the Open Church Group gathered to hear the outcome.

The full interview is available in our reading room. We met Hilde Raastad in Oslo, June 2018.