7 Things to Know About Bishop Varden, Pope Leo’s Lenten Retreat Master

February 25, 2026 by Kateri

Pope Leo XIV with Bishop Erik Varden of Trondheim, Norway, at the Vatican on Feb. 22, 2024.

The Norwegian Trappist monk chosen to preach the Vatican’s Lenten retreat once called himself an atheist — and today is one of Europe’s most respected Catholic thinkers.

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