Erik Varden

Erik Varden (born 13 May 1974) is a Norwegian Catholic prelate, writer, and Trappist monk who has served as Bishop of Trondheim since 2020.

Early life and education Varden was born in a non-practising Lutheran family in South Norway and grew up in the village of Degernes. After concluding his school education in Norway, he continued to study at the Atlantic College, Wales (until 1992) and then at Magdalene College, Cambridge (1992–1995) with Master of Arts degree in Theology and Religious Studies through the Faculty of Divinity. On 16 April 2015, he became the eleventh abbot of Mount St Bernard Abbey, following a further election, also becoming the first abbot to have been born outside Britain or Ireland to govern this abbey. He is the author of books and articles in the field of Christian spirituality and monasticism. In 2019 he was featured in the critically acclaimed feature documentary Outside the city (2019) by Nick Hamer, which was broadcast on BBC, and distributed by Verve Pictures. It won the 2022 Sandford St Martin Award and was nominated for an RTS Award for best documentary in the UK.

Bishop-prelacy of Trondheim On 1 October 2019, he was appointed by Pope Francis prelate of the Territorial Prelature of Trondheim in his native Norway, which had been vacant for the previous ten years. His episcopal consecration was scheduled for 4 January 2020, but was postponed on account of the short sabbatical period that was granted him at his request and on account also of the restrictions that were later imposed by the spread of COVID-19. Varden's episcopal consecration took place on 3 October 2020 in Nidaros Cathedral. He is the first native Norwegian Catholic bishop in Trondheim in modern times: his five predecessors were all German missionaries. In February 2026, Pope Leo XIV selected Varden to preach at a week-long Lenten spiritual retreat for Leo and the Roman Curia.