Welcome to Bykirken
We’re church every day of the week. On Sundays up to 150 of us gather for the week’s highlight, the service, for children, young people and adults. Bykirken has theological and historical roots in the Danish Pentecostal movement.
We’re part of the church networks Mosaik and FrikirkeNet. Learn what a free church means.
Need translation? We offer English translation at Sunday services.
Our vision
There’s room for you too.
Growing together, one-to-one and in groups.
We share our faith in word and in life.
Locally, regionally and globally.
What we believe
Our beliefs are rooted in the Bible and the Apostles’ Creed, and have grown out of the Pentecostal-charismatic tradition.
We believe in one true God, eternally existing in three persons: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. We come to the Father through Christ, and we come to know who God is through the Holy Spirit.
We believe in Jesus Christ as the only Saviour and Lord. We believe in his birth to the Virgin Mary, his sinless life, his miraculous works and healings, his death in our place, which reconciles us to God, his bodily resurrection and ascension. We believe that he lives by the Holy Spirit in everyone who believes, and that he will come again.
We believe that the whole Bible is the inspired word of God. It continues to speak through the Holy Spirit, gives life to our faith and is a guide for how we live.
We believe that man and woman were created pure and perfect in God’s image, but gave in to temptation and sinned, and that all people therefore need restoration and salvation.
We believe in salvation by God’s grace through faith in, and confession of, Jesus. Believers are born again by the Holy Spirit and led into a renewed life of holiness, service and mission for Jesus.
We believe in baptism in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Baptism is for believers, by full immersion in water, and is the start of a new life of following Jesus. Communion is our continuing confession of, and participation in, life in Christ.
We believe in baptism in the Holy Spirit, who gives us power to share the gospel. The Spirit’s fullness can be sought throughout life and opens up tongues as a prayer language and gifts such as prophecy, healing and knowledge.
We believe Jesus’ death and resurrection are God’s intervention in the world, bringing salvation, healing and fulfilment of people’s spiritual, mental, physical and social needs. This calls us to be good stewards of creation in everyday life.
We believe that all Christians are part of the body of Christ, God’s church on earth, and are therefore called to belong to a local church. The local church gathers to worship and serve God together, and to share God’s love with the world alongside the whole body of Christ.
We believe in the bodily resurrection of all people; in eternal separation from God for all who knowingly reject fellowship with him; and in eternal life with God for all who, by his grace, have received Jesus Christ.
Pastors and church council
The church is led by a day-to-day leadership team of pastors, trainee pastors, the church council and volunteer area leaders. Together we keep our focus on the church’s vision, values and daily life. Two external advisers from the MOSAIK denomination support the church.
Pastor
Pastor
Diaconal pastor
Children’s pastor
Trainee pastor
Trainee pastor
Church council
Church council
Church council
Church council
Church council
Our history
The Danish Pentecostal churches trace their origins to the Azusa Street revival in Los Angeles in 1901 and the Welsh revival of 1904–05. These revivals rediscovered the charismatic gifts and were marked from the start by mission and social engagement. The Norwegian T. B. Barratt established the Pentecostal movement in Scandinavia with the Swede Lewi Pethrus. In Denmark, the actress Anna Larssen Bjørner became one of its leading figures.
Two female Pentecostal preachers held open-air meetings, and Vejle was also visited by the Norwegian Pentecostal pioneer Thomas Barratt.
Pentecostal pastor P.A. Hagemann held meetings in town, moving to Vejle a year later.
On 6 February 1924, P.A. Hagemann officially founded the Pentecostal Church in Vejle.
From March 1925 the church had its meeting place in a building in Staldgårdsgade.
Over the decade, a major ministry among the town’s children developed, with hundreds taking part in a variety of activities.
Under Pastor Karl Kühn, construction of the current church building at Grejsdalsvej 16 begins.
The current church building at Grejsdalsvej 16 was dedicated on 24 November 1963.
The Christian school Lukasskolen started in the church’s premises and later moved to Nørremarken.
The church was most recently extended with a new entrance.
The church is renamed Bykirken — an open, inclusive church with a heart for the town.
Bykirken celebrated 60 years in the building at Grejsdalsvej 16.
Bykirken’s centenary as a church community in Vejle was celebrated with a jubilee service in April.
Structurally, Bykirken in Vejle is an independent free church, part of FrikirkeNet and the Mosaik network.
Finances
Bykirken is a free church, and its finances depend on voluntary gifts and contributions. The money is used to run the church, including staffing, premises, social work, mission and aid work, and children’s and youth activities.
Next steps
Our doors are open to everyone — whether it’s your first Sunday or your fifth.
