This small book is a collection of lectures that Jákup Reinert Hansen gave after he was appointed as senior lecturer in ecclesiastical history at the University of the Faroe Islands.

Compared with the scientific article the lecture has its advantages and disadvantages. The lecture does not, for instance, contain references aside from the occasional ones mentioned in the lecture itself, and the audience rarely requests to see a bibliography when the lecture is over.

When giving a lecture, one might have to draw broader perspectives than an article would allow for in order to familiarize the audience with the topic and to fully utilize the story that is being told. However, the lecturer decides what information is included in the lecture and how it is conveyed to the audience.