Why are there requirements for priests to have the “right” opinions but not for imams and other Muslim representatives? That is the question posed by civil engineer, writer, and social commentator Josefin Utas, who is also an elected representative in the Church of Sweden for Frimodig kyrka.
In 2009, the Church Assembly, the Church of Sweden’s highest authority, decided that same-sex couples could be married. If an individual priest did not want to perform a same-sex wedding, another priest could step in. The Social Democrats, the largest power group within the Church of Sweden, want to go further and pursue a line where priests who believe that marriage is something between a man and a woman should not be able to become priests at all.
“So it’s no longer just about allowing same-sex weddings in the church, but about certain theological opinions no longer being tolerated. Every individual priest must think ‘the right way'”, writes Josefin Utas in an opinion piece.
At the same time, Utas notes that the Social Democrats’ church ambitions have less and less to do with Christianity. Ahead of last year’s church elections, neither God nor Jesus was included in the party’s election manifesto; instead, the focus was on things like progressiveness, equality, and social justice.
The message is clear. The Social Democrats believe that politics has both the right and the duty to influence religious communities so that they adapt to the values that politics deems should prevail. This raises the question: Why are the Social Democrats only pressuring the Church of Sweden?
If they were really serious about religious communities conforming to their political agenda and views on LGBTQ issues, they would reasonably apply the same pressure to, for example, Islamic congregations.
Currently, there are no Islamic congregations with the legal authority to marry same-sex couples. Moreover, these often have a much more “conservative” view on issues like homosexuality, gender, and gender roles than the Church of Sweden. Nor do they have female religious leaders. But this is apparently a field the Social Democrats do not want or dare to address.
Need to Make Up Their Minds
Speaking to Samnytt, Utas says she has many guesses about the reasons behind these double standards, but she would like to hear the Social Democrats’ own answer to the question.
– The Social Democrats are currently trying to balance on several fronts, pretending to do or believe several different things at once. But that won’t work forever. They need to make up their minds and show where they stand, but they’re probably afraid to because they risk losing voters and power.
What consequences might demands like these have?
– Quite a few people have already left the Church of Sweden because they perceive a political bias. This doesn’t help matters.
– The pressure from the Social Democrats on the church has a direct impact on priests who don’t know if they have a future as clergy in the church. Of course, the church needs to keep up with the times, but to completely sever ties with classical Christian theology, by rejecting priests with that view, is going too far.
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In the long run, she believes these requirements could lead the church to fall apart.
– There is a limit somewhere even for classically-minded Christians, and they will leave. But the Social Democrats wouldn’t mourn that; rather, it suits their long-term goal of “disarming” the church and weakening Christianity.
Uniformity and Conformity
Utas also notes that the Social Democrats usually present themselves as champions of diversity, but in this case stand for uniformity and conformity.
– It reminds us that it’s not enough to look at what political parties or other powerholders say to evaluate them; you have to see how they actually act.
– And I’d like to add that just because politicians try to pressure the Church of Sweden from above, it doesn’t mean there’s anything wrong with all the work being done within the church. All over the country, people active in the Church of Sweden do a lot of good and important work. It’s very unfortunate that they should have to pay the price for these kinds of high-level political power struggles within the church.
Facts: Josefin Utas
Josefin Utas is a civil engineer and holds a PhD in chemistry from KTH. She has worked in research, the pharmaceutical industry, and as an investigator, and in recent years has become known as a writer and social commentator.
She was previously politically active in both the Green Party and the Left Party. Between 2010 and 2016, she served as a local politician for the Green Party in Sollentuna but later left the party and became involved in Medborgerlig Samling.
Between 2020 and 2022 she was the Waste Ombudsman at the Swedish Taxpayers’ Association. In that role, she reviewed the use of tax funds and drew attention to what she considered waste in public operations. Since then, she has continued to work as a columnist, influencer, and debater on issues such as democracy, public administration, freedom, and EU policy.
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