It is the main church for the Porsanger parish which is part of the Indre Finnmark prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Nord-Hålogaland.

In August 1855, the parish priest Peter Valeur returned from a trip and discovered to his surprise that a carpenter from Tromsø had been hired to demolish the old church.

The priest contacted the leadership for the Tromsø diocese and he found out that the demolition of the church had not been approved by them either.

In the summer of 1883, a large renovation was started on the church to repair the damage from the storm and improve the building.

[1] During the war years of 1944–1945, the church was used as a German command center, quarters for Norwegian forces, and a makeshift accommodation for civilians.