State Radio Registers Opinions of Bishops and Priests

Sveriges Radio reports in a series of features that it has collected and registered the opinions of Swedish bishops and priests regarding same-sex marriages. The features also convey a misleading picture of the Church of Sweden’s decisions and internal procedures on the issue.

In several features, SR reports on a questionnaire directed to the country’s 13 bishops, focusing on whether they accept or reject priest candidates who, with reference to God’s and the Bible’s clear stance, do not wish to perform same-sex marriages.

The results show that 9 out of 13 bishops accept such God- and Bible-believing candidates, while four require that the candidates instead follow the mandates of the HBTQI+ movement and perform same-sex marriages.

Ambiguities and Omissions

In the reporting, Bishop Mikael Mogren is highlighted as a role model for his clear stance in refusing to ordain candidates who say no to same-sex marriages. At the same time, it is not mentioned that he himself is homosexual and a well-known HBTQI+ activist.

SR repeatedly refers in the features to the bishops’ joint statement from 2022 regarding a “shared goal” that all priests should marry all couples regardless of gender. However, a central part of the same decision is omitted.

At the same time, the Church of Sweden established that individual priests have freedom of conscience and cannot be forced to marry same-sex couples. In such cases, the church should provide another priest.

This means that priests who refrain from same-sex marriages are not violating the church’s decision. However, bishops who refuse to ordain such candidates may be considered to violate the decision to guarantee priests’ freedom of conscience.

This crucial context is missing from SR’s reporting, which is thus highly misleading and deviates from Public Service’s requirements for impartiality and factuality.

Traditional Faith Viewed as ‘Very Strange View of the Bible’

The Bishop of Uppsala Diocese, Karin Johannesson, says in one of the features that it is “very strange” within the Church of Sweden to believe in the Bible as the word of God.

— Certain motivations that show one has a very, in our Church of Sweden opinion, strange view of the Bible, are excluded, she tells SR about how she determines who may or may not become a priest in her diocese.

What Johannesson describes as a “very strange view of the Bible” is to believe in and follow what the Bible prescribes for the sacrament of marriage — the traditional view of marriage that has historically been the norm in Christianity for two thousand years.

Progressive Approach Globally Uncommon

Archbishop Martin Modéus emphasizes in SR’s feature that the Church of Sweden is one of the world’s most progressive communities. In an international perspective, this is a peculiar stance that stands out strongly.

Archbishop Martin Modéus. Photo: Church of Sweden/Ikon

In large parts of :censored:6:cdd6bbaa89: Christianity — including Catholic, Orthodox, and many Protestant churches — a traditional view of marriage prevails. The Church of Sweden’s position is the exception rather than the norm.

One-Sided Focus on a Single Religion

SR’s features have only registered Christians’ views on same-sex marriage. No corresponding survey of other religious communities in Sweden has been conducted by the publicly funded radio.

For example, there are many Muslim communities in Sweden whose imams have the right to perform marriages and whose views on same-sex relationships are much more restrictive. The features also breach Public Service’s demands for impartiality here.

One-Sided Reporting on a Religious Conflict

The issue of same-sex marriages within the Church of Sweden has long been debated. Even though SR’s reporting includes several features, no priest is allowed to speak in defense of the traditional Christian view of marriage.

In Sweden, same-sex couples have the right to marry. However, this is a civil right. Those who object to the traditional religious view of marriage have the option to choose a civil ceremony instead.