Jón Arason was born in Gryta, educated at Munkaþverá, the Benedictine abbey of Iceland, and was ordained a Catholic priest about 1504. Having attracted the notice of Gottskálk Nikulássonbishop of Hólar, he was sent on two missions to Norway. In 1522, he succeeded Gottskálk in the episcopal see of Hólar, but he was soon driven out by the other Icelandic bishop, Ögmundur Pálsson of Skálholt. Bishop Ögmundur later opposed the imposition of Lutheranism to Iceland, but being old and blind by that time his opposition proved effectively meaningless. By this point Jón Arason had become known for his great talents if somewhat erratic faith. He fathered numerous children who fought for his causes figuratively and later literally. This was despite the canonical obligation that Catholic bishops are to be celibate, but Iceland was distant enough from Rome for clerical discipline in that age to be very lax.
Bishop Jón became involved in a dispute with his sovereign, King Christian III, because of the bishop's refusal to promote Lutheranism on the island. Although initially he took a defensive rather than an offensive position on the matter, this changed radically in 1548. At that point he and Bishop Ögmundur joined their forces to attack the Lutherans. Bishop Ögmundur's contribution did not last, however, because of his infirmities, and he quickly faced exile to Denmark. Jón's continued resistance is thought to have come from a kind of primitive nationalism and simple ambition as much as religion. He resented the Danes' changing the religious landscape of Iceland and felt their culture would be less disrupted by staying Catholic. Hence he took encouragement from a letter of support from Pope Paul III in continuing his efforts against the Lutheran cause. Jón knew no bounds in his zeal toward that cause, as he fought for what he deemed to be a Catholic Iceland, in a personal struggle against the Danes. In this struggle he had the help of his illegitimate children, who fought with him in various battles. However his attempt to capture his greatest adversary, Daði Guðmundsson at the Battle of Sauðafell led to him being taken prisoner and handed over to the king's bailiff. Legend states that, on hearing this, one of his daughters rallied her forces to save him, but even if this is so her efforts proved unsuccessful. In 1550, Jón and two of his sons, Ari and Björn, were captured and beheaded. Christian Skriver, the king's bailiff who had pronounced the bishop's death sentence, was later killed by fishermen who favored Jón's cause; they were persuaded to assassinate him by Þjórunn Jónsdóttir, a wealthy female chieftain and the illegitimate daughter of Jón, and by Helga Sigurðardóttir, Jón's mistress of many years. Skriver's death was thus every bit as much very personal revenge for Jón's death as it was born of any sectarian strife between Catholics and Lutherans.
Legacy
Legends claim that as he was about to be beheaded, a priest called Sveinn was by his side to offer him comfort. Sveinn told Jón: Líf er eftir þetta, herra! Jón turned to Sveinn and said: Veit ég það, Sveinki! Ever since veit ég það, Sveinki has been a part of the Icelandic treasury of sayings, in this case meaning that something totally obvious has been stated. Gunnar Gunnarsson wrote Jón Arason, a fictionalized account of the life of Jón. Originally written in Danish, the book has been translated into other languages, including English.
