Berge Furre

Berge Furre, 1978

Berge Ragnar Furre(13 April 1937 – 11 January 2016) was a Norwegian historian,theologianand politician for theSocialist Left Party.

Early life and career

Furre was born inSjernarøyin 1937, the son of engineer Berge Bergesen Furre (1887–1952) and secretary Else Otilie Tjomsaas (1906–1993). He took primary education in Sjernarøy,StavangerandOslo,and finished his secondary education in Oslo in 1955. Later that year he enrolled at theUniversity of Oslo.In 1959 he became the leader of theNorwegian Students' Society.He was a member of theLabour Party,but as the chairman ofSosialistisk Studentlag(1956–1957) he was central to the so-called "Easter Uprising" in 1958. He later left the Labour Party to found the Socialist People Party together with other prominent persons in the Easter Uprising, such asFinn Gustavsen.He was the party secretary from 1961 to 1964.

Furre finally graduated with acand.philol.degree in 1968. Already in 1967 he had been appointed as an editor of theNynorskperiodicalSyn og Segn;he was also a board member of the Nynorsk newspaperDag og Tid.In 1969 he became aresearch fellowat NAVF. He left both the editor and research fellow position in 1971 to become anassociate professorof history at theUniversity of Tromsø.He was also a member of the board ofNoregs Mållagfrom 1968 to 1969, and vice chairman from 1969 to 1970. From 1971 to 1972 he was a board member ofFolkebevegelsen mot EF.

Political career

National politics

Furre was a member of theNorwegian Parliamentfor the Socialist Left Party from 1973 to 1977, representing the countyRogaland.During this term he chaired the Standing Committee on Agriculture, and was a member of the Election Committee and the Enlarged Committee on Foreign Affairs. He was the party leader from 1976 to 1983, having formerly been a central committee member in 1961–1964 and 1969–1971 and then deputy leader from 1971 to 1976.

Academic career

Having left the University of Tromsø when elected to Parliament in 1973, he returned in 1975 as a lecturer. He held this position until 1985, when he was promoted to professor. However, he held this position for only one year. In 1986 he instead involved himself in Christian work. He held a number of positions: he was a member of theChurch of Norway General Synod,theDiocese Council of Osloand theChurch of Norway Council on Ecumenical and International Relations.Furre became a professor of church history at theUniversity of Osloin 1991. He was also a board member ofChurch City Missionfrom 1992 to 2000. He was ordained a priest in 1998 and retired in 2007.

He was also a member of theLund commissionfrom 1994 to 1996, which looked into the police intelligence services. During this period, Furre himself was secretly investigated by the same services. When this came to light, it prompted the previousMinister of Justice and the PoliceGrete Faremoto resign from her then post ofMinister of Energy.

Furre became a member of theNorwegian Academy of Science and Lettersin 1998, and was a member of the international committee of theNorwegian Agrarian Associationfrom 2000. From 2003 to 2009 he was a member of theNorwegian Nobel Committee.He was also the deputy chair ofDet Norske Teatretfrom 1986 to 1997 andchairfrom 1997 to 2004.

Publications

Furre wrote a number of books, particularly on historical and political topics. Furre's book:Norsk historie 1905-1990: vårt hundreår,is used as a general introduction to Norwegian history at severaluniversitiesanduniversity colleges.

• 1990Soga om Lars OftedalISBN82-521-3468-8- about the clergymanLars Oftedal
• 1992Norsk historie 1905-1990: vårt hundreår(History of Norway 1905-1990: our century)ISBN82-521-3487-4
• 2000Norsk historie 1914-2000 Industrisamfunnet - frå vokstervisse til framtidstvil(History of Norway 1914-2000)ISBN978-82-521-5187-9

External links

• Media related toBerge Furreat Wikimedia Commons