Lesjaverk Church

Lesjaverk got its own church as early as the 17th century. It was built in 1695 near the ironworks, which had started up in the years after 1660. The ironworks were closed in 1812 and the church was moved to Lesjaskog in 1848. The cemetery still remained in Lesjaverk, but gradually it fell into disrepair. From 1933, a service was held here on 17 May and that was probably the start of the work to get a new church to Lesjaverk. The cemetery was put back into use and inaugurated in 1941. In 1950, a bell tower, a foundry, was erected with two church bells and in 1962 they started the construction of the new Lesjaverk Church. The church was consecrated in 1964.

The interior of the new church was made by local craftsmen. The woodcarver Otto Sveen carved the altarpiece, pulpit and reliefs. The altarpiece is a large Christ figure, probably inspired by B. Thorvaldsen's famous Christ figure from 1821, which can be seen in the Church of Our Lady in Copenhagen. Thorvaldsen depicted Christ with nails in his hands and feet and with a wound in his side. It is the risen Christ he wants to convey, and under the sculpture there is a short text: "Come to me". The words together with the open arms carry within them a welcome to all who approach the church, faith and Christ.