Church_of_sweden

The following articles have been tagged with "Church_of_sweden":

Swedish church group offers choice of three genders

Society: 24 Feb 10
Sensus, a Swedish church-backed study association, has adopted a new policy to allow prospective employees to classify their gender in three ways: Female, Male or Other. READ »

Swedish bishop quits after office bashing

Society: 16 Feb 10
Sven Thidevall, the Swedish bishop at the heart of a period of ecclesiastical turbulence which left the diocese of Växjö in southern Sweden reeling, has resigned. READ »

Sharp increase in asylum seeker deportations

National: 9 Feb 10
The number of asylum seekers deported from Sweden rose by 1,300 during 2009, according to new figures from the Swedish Migration Agency. READ »

Swedish bishop off sick after office bashing

Society: 5 Feb 10
Sven Thidevall, a Church of Sweden bishop in Växjö in southern Sweden, has been obliged to seek the solace of sick leave after an office quarrel ended in a bout of clerical fisticuffs. READ »

Swedish church losing 1 million members by 2020

National: 10 Jan 10
The Church of Sweden says it will lose 1 million members within 10 years. READ »

Epiphany reignites Sweden's public holiday debate

Business & Money: 5 Jan 10
Workers in Sweden have only had two days to return to life on the job following their Christmas vacations before gearing up for yet another paid holiday on Wednesday. READ »

No remand of accused Church of Sweden pastor

National: 19 Dec 09
On Friday, a court in western Sweden elected not to remand the 60-year-old Church of Sweden pastor accused sexually abusing two minor boys during an overseas trip with a group of candidates for confirmation. READ »

Church of Sweden pastor accused of rape

National: 17 Dec 09
A 60-year-old Church of Sweden pastor faces a remand hearing this Friday for the alleged sexual abuse of two children during an overseas trip with a group of candidates for confirmation. READ »

Bishop blasts pastor over anal sex outburst

Society: 9 Dec 09
Church of Sweden pastor and gay marriage opponent Dag Sandahl has drawn the ire of senior clergy after launching a foul-mouthed attack on gay sex at an October church summit. READ »

Members flee Church of Sweden in droves

Society: 1 Dec 09
The Church of Sweden is bleeding members at an increasingly rapid pace, at the same time as membership rolls in Islamic, Roman Catholic, and Orthodox Christian assemblies are on the rise. READ »

Sweden's first lesbian bishop consecrated in Uppsala

Society: 9 Nov 09
The Church of Sweden on Sunday ordained a female pastor as the country's first openly homosexual bishop, just weeks after approving gay marriages. READ »

One in five priests refuse to wed same-sex couples

National: 7 Nov 09
A week has passed since homosexual couples were given the right to tie the knot in church. Yet, 18 percent of priests in the Gothenburg region say they refuse to preside over gay weddings. READ »

Anglicans snub Swedish lesbian bishop

Society: 4 Nov 09
Anglican bishops from England and Northern Ireland have rebuffed invitations to attend the ordination of the openly gay Eva Brunne to be the next Bishop of Stockholm. READ »

Church of Sweden says yes to gay marriage

National: 22 Oct 09
The Synod of the Lutheran Church of Sweden has come down in favour of church weddings for homosexuals in a vote held on Thursday morning. READ »

Swedish pastor fined for fingering figs

Society: 16 Oct 09
A Church of Sweden pastor has been convicted of shoplifting and ordered to pay a 5,100 kronor ($734) for stealing, among other things, a jar of figs marinated in cognac. READ »

'Divine intervention' gives Swedish town gas

Society: 8 Oct 09
Drivers in eastern Sweden can soon fill their tanks at a village petrol station operated by the Church of Sweden. READ »

Outrage over drunken Swedish pastor's funeral service

Society: 2 Oct 09
A family from Skåne in southern Sweden has demanded compensation from the Church of Sweden claiming that the pastor employed to conduct a funeral had consumed a glass too many in the vestry. READ »

Parish councillor jailed for raping grandchildren

National: 1 Oct 09
A Church of Sweden parish councillor from Stockholm has been sentenced to four years imprisonment for the repeated rape of his grandchildren. READ »

Gains for gay marriage foes in church elections

Society: 21 Sep 09
Opponents of same-sex marriage made significant gains in Sweden’s church elections on Sunday, on a voter turnout of barely 12 percent. READ »

Swedes set to ignore church elections

National: 20 Sep 09
Polling booths are opening across Sweden on Sunday morning to welcome voters in the national church elections. The election is however expected to be given the cold shoulder by 90 percent of registered voters. READ »

Swedish pastor cited after family burial

Society: 12 Sep 09
A pensioned Church of Sweden pastor has landed himself in hot holy water after performing a burial service for a person who was not a member of the flock. READ »

Swedish politician mulls Thai bows to counter swine flu

Politics: 8 Sep 09
A Swedish politician is proposing a novel measure to prevent the spread of swine flu - the introduction of traditional Thai greetings in an effort to reduce direct contact. READ »

Fortified wine to prevent spread of swine flu: Church of Sweden

National: 7 Sep 09
A number of Swedish churches have decided to serve fortified wine during communion in hopes of reducing the risk of spreading swine flu. READ »

Swedish church launches online prayer service

Society: 18 Aug 09
Say prayers over the internet, and link to your friends on Twitter or Facebook. This is the Swedish Church's plan to raise the historically low turnout for upcoming church elections. READ »

Defrocked pastor sues Christian dating site

Society: 4 Aug 09
A Church of Sweden minister has demanded compensation from a Christian dating site after he was stripped of his clerical collar for insulting a number of the site's female users. READ »

Pride march a 'game changer' for Stockholm football clubs

Analysis & Opinion: 31 Jul 09
As Stockholm gears up for the weekend’s Pride Parade, The Local’s Gabriel Stein takes a look at the difficulties facing two Stockholm-area football clubs as they attempt to show their solidarity with the city’s gay community. READ »

Church of Sweden in Brüno advert uproar

Society: 28 Jul 09
The official Church of Sweden newspaper is at the centre of a storm of controversy after advertisers reacted to the depiction of scenes from UK comic Sacha Baron Cohen's new blockbuster movie Brüno. READ »

Anglo-Swedish rift over church gay marriage

Society: 16 Jul 09
The Church of England has condemned a proposal by the Church of Sweden to grant same-sex couples the right to religious wedding ceremonies. READ »

Church of Sweden rocked by sex scandals

National: 15 Jun 09
The Church of Sweden has already been shaken by several sex scandals this year. Archbishop Anders Wejryd regrets the incidents, and maintains that transparency is the best policy. READ »

Church nuptials closer for gays in Sweden

National: 13 Jun 09
The board of the Church of Sweden has proposed that same sex-couples be granted the right to religious wedding ceremonies. A final decision is expected in October. READ »

Swedish auto town cannot imagine life without Saab

Analysis & Opinion: 8 Jun 09
For the 55,000 residents of Trollhättan in southwestern Sweden, the idea of life without Saab is unthinkable, writes AFP's James Franey. READ »

Fried potato with 'face of Jesus Christ' for sale on eBay

Society: 14 May 09
A restaurant in southern Sweden has put a potato up for auction after staff discovered what they believed to be the face of Jesus Christ in a spud that "hopped out of the frying pan" earlier this week. READ »

Swedish pastor accused in sex chat scandal

Society: 21 Apr 09
A Swedish pastor has been reported to church authorities for harassing a young man on a internet chat and dating site. The pastor is alleged to have sent graphic pictures of his sexual organ. READ »

Wild boar attacks woman in Gothenburg cemetery

National: 14 Apr 09
A wild boar attacked a woman out walking her dog in a graveyard in Gothenburg on Tuesday morning. READ »

Drunk Swedish pastor in net dating outrage

Society: 4 Apr 09
A pensioned Church of Sweden pastor has been reported for offensive comments to women while chatting on a Christian online dating website. READ »

Married pastor on probation after sex with grieving mother

Society: 3 Apr 09
A married Church of Sweden pastor in Skurup in southern Sweden has been put on probation after having sex with a woman in his congregation who was grieving her deceased son. READ »

Church delays decision on pastor's teen love affair

Society: 1 Apr 09
The future of a female Church of Sweden pastor is in the balance following revelations that she had a love affair with a 15-year-old confirmation candidate. READ »

Victoria and Daniel name the day

National: 23 Mar 09
Crown Princess Victoria will marry fiancé Daniel Westling in Stockholm on 19th June 2010, the Royal Court has announced. READ »

Conservative group apologizes to Pope over Holocaust remarks

Society: 28 Jan 09
Remarks questioning the facts of the Holocaust made by a member of the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) and broadcast on Swedish television have prompted the group to apologize to the Pope. READ »

Most Swedish pastors willing to wed gay couples

Society: 23 Jan 09
Nearly seven in ten pastors in the Church of Sweden are open to performing marriage ceremonies for gay couples in churches. READ »

Threesome assault pastor defrocked

Society: 22 Jan 09
A pastor convicted of assaulting his ex-wife following sex games involving another man has been relieved of his duties by his employer, the Church of Sweden. READ »

Church furor over 'racist' religious group

Society: 22 Jan 09
The Church of Sweden on Thursday cited lax oversight as the reason why a conservative religious group aiming to convert Sweden to Catholicism and with leaders who deny the Holocaust was given permission to hold meetings in Swedish churches. READ »

Swedish Church-funded clinic hit in Gaza

National: 12 Jan 09
One of three Gaza health clinics financed in part by the Church of Sweden was destroyed in an Israeli air attack Saturday evening. READ »

High court rejects gay priest marriage case

Society: 16 Dec 08
A homosexual couple have lost their case in the Supreme Administrative Court against the Swedish tax authority for registering their marriage in Canada as a partnership. READ »

Charitable Swedes defy credit crunch

National: 16 Dec 08
Swedish charities are predicting a record year for fundraising despite the ongoing financial crisis. Private donations have continued to increase despite credit crunch concerns although some companies are cutting back. READ »

Threesome pastor convicted over sex game assault

National: 7 Nov 08
A Stockholm-area pastor charged with beating his wife during a threesome has been sentenced to probation and counseling. READ »

Sweden sets date for gay church weddings

Dating: 6 Nov 08
Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt has said Sweden may allow homosexuals to marry in the Church of Sweden from May 2009 pending the adoption of a new law. READ »

Porn-surfing clergyman downs church network

Society: 20 Oct 08
A church minister from Strängnäs in central Sweden has resigned from his post after his porn-surfing habits led to the spread of a virus that knocked out the local church network. READ »

Pastor charged over threesome assault

Society: 1 Sep 08
A church minister from Stockholm has been charged with assaulting his wife after an amorous threesome spiralled out of control. READ »

Swedish car show to feature drive-thru weddings

Dating: 25 Jun 08
Swedes looking for a drive-thru wedding need not catch a flight to Las Vegas. They can simply hop in their car and head to Västerås instead. READ »

Swedish town celebrates Church Cock victory

National: 19 Mar 08
The four-day Easter weekend isn’t the only cause for excitement among the residents of Alnö. READ »

Triple murderer released

National: 25 Feb 08
A man who killed three people in a village in northern Sweden in 1988 has been released from jail in Finland. READ »

Parents’ crime costs man prison warden job

National: 19 Feb 08
A man was forced to leave his job as a prison warden after the conviction of his parents. READ »

Gothenburg sex scandal dean replaced by woman

Society: 9 Feb 08
Gothenburg has got its first female dean. Karin Burstrand has been appointed following a church sex scandal. READ »

Dean resigns in church sex scandal

Society: 5 Feb 08
The Dean of Gothenburg has resigned following revelations of sexual harassment. The Bishop has admitted knowledge of the revelations for years. READ »

Women priests overtake men

National: 28 Jan 08
Elisabeth Djurle and Margit Sahlin were the first women to be ordained as priests in the Church of Sweden. Now more than one in three parish priests is female. READ »

Church of Sweden approves gay marriage law

Politics: 12 Dec 07
The Church of Sweden has said it approves of moves towards gay marriage, but wants to reserve the word 'marriage' for straight couples. READ »

Church of Sweden split over gay marriage

National: 25 Oct 07
Church of Sweden delegates have voted to retain the right to carry out legally binding weddings. But not everybody is happy with the prospect of a new gender-neutral marriage law. READ »

Brides' fathers banned from giving away daughters

Society: 21 Sep 07
A priest in Stockholm has come under fire for not allowing a bride to be walked down the aisle by her father. But church authorities have defended the decision, saying that the tradition is foreign and sexist. READ »

Churches row over 'paedophilia' interview

Society: 10 Sep 07
The Pentecostalist Church in Sweden has called on its members to leave the Church of Sweden after a priest gave an interpretation of the Bible which it claims is a defence of paedophilia. READ »

Church bans broadband over porn fears

Science & Technology: 16 Aug 07
A church in southern Sweden has refused to allow a broadband antenna to be installed on its tower, after fears were raised that parishoners would surf for porn instead of attending services. READ »

50,000 join Stockholm Pride parade

Society: 4 Aug 07
Some 50,000 people have marched through Stockholm on Saturday in the 2007 Stockholm Pride parade, while half a million people lined the streets. Drag queens and muscle men were joined by police, priests and politicians. READ »

Moderate board comes out for gay marriage

Politics: 16 Jun 07
The Moderate Party, the largest party in Sweden's coalition government, has thrown its support behind same-sex marriage. The party's board voted in favour of a gender-neutral marriage law on Friday. READ »

Church lands garner record profits

Business & Money: 31 May 07
The Church of Sweden's forests, agricultural lands and funds are providing greater profits for the organization than ever before. READ »

Priest fined after taking amphetamines in coffee

Society: 22 May 07
More tea, vicar? Sometimes the best answer is no, as a priest in Malmö found out after his beverage was spiked with speed and he was convicted of driving under the influence. READ »

Sweden could allow freeze-dried corpses

Society: 16 May 07
Sweden is considering allowing an alternative to burying the dead, in which corpses are freeze dried, after which they can be used as an alternative to compost. READ »

Fewer Swedish youngsters get confirmed

Society: 12 May 07
Sweden might be seen by the rest of the world as a secular country, but still 40 percent of 15-year-olds get confirmed into the Church of Sweden, although this is down from 80 percent 35 years ago. READ »

Scandic backs down over Bible

Society: 3 May 07
Scandic Hotels has backed down after Christians protested at a decision to remove copies of the Bible from its rooms. But bishops might still boycott the chain for offering pornographic films. READ »

Church of Sweden barred from Ethiopian summit

Society: 27 Apr 07
The Church of Sweden's decision to give its blessing to gay couples has led to a large Ethiopian Church retracting its invitation to a major summer congress. READ »

Inquiry gives green light to gay marriage

Society: 21 Mar 07
An official inquiry has proposed that Sweden allow same-sex couples to marry on the same terms as heterosexuals. As well as protests from religious groups, gay campaigners are angry that priests would still be allowed to refuse to officiate at gay weddings. READ »

Swedish bishops say yes to gay church weddings

National: 16 Mar 07
The Church of Sweden's leaders have said that they are ready to become the first major world denomination to allow gay people to marry in church on the same basis as heterosexual couples. READ »

Gay turned away by YMCA

Society: 15 Mar 07
A lesbian was denied employment by the YMCA-YWCA scouts in southern Sweden because her partner also worked for them. Heterosexual couples were given jobs, however. READ »

Swedish church 'discriminates against women'

Society: 8 Mar 07
The Church of Sweden is to be investigated by equality chiefs, who suspect it of sex discrimination, despite it having ordained women since 1958. READ »

Hägglund defends abortion plans

Society: 26 Feb 07
Allowing foreign women to travel to Sweden for abortions could lead to fewer illegal abortions, Social Affairs minister Göran Hägglund has said following criticism from church leaders. READ »

Bishop slams end of term church services

Society: 11 Jan 07
End of term church services are outdated, says bishop Ragnar Persenius, who calls for the practice to be ditched. READ »

Church tries to win return of stolen treasure from Spain

National: 5 Jan 07
The Church of Sweden is going on the offensive to try to secure the return of a precious casket stolen from a parish in northern Sweden, and currently on display in a museum in Madrid. READ »

Church of Sweden sanctions burial of aborted foetuses

Society: 13 Dec 06
The Church of Sweden is to allow burial ceremonies for aborted foetuses. The procedure is to be called a 'pastoral ceremony' and will not be accompanied by a church service. READ »

Swedish artist commits cardinal sin in Rome

National: 7 Dec 06
Italian police brought Swedish artist Elisabeth Ohlson Wallin’s photo shoot to a hasty end in Rome last Saturday. It seems cardinals with erections are frowned upon in the Catholic country. READ »

Church of Sweden gives gay couples church blessing

National: 6 Dec 06
After much pondering the Church of Sweden has finally decided to give its blessing in church to homosexual couples. READ »

Gays could be granted church weddings

National: 25 Aug 06
Churches will be allowed to marry gay couples if the government follows proposals contained in a report due to be presented next year. Priests themselves will be able to choose whether to preside over gay marriages. READ »

Say a little prayer for Sweden

Lifestyle: 11 Aug 06
Christianity in Sweden has a long history, but you won't find many Swedes in the pews on a Sunday. But that doesn't mean Swedish religious groups don't have the capacity to cause a stir, as Christine Demsteader reports. READ »

Priest jailed for fondling woman

Society: 30 Jun 06
A Church of Sweden priest sexually assaulted a woman he met on a Christian website. When the woman invited him home for tea the priest lay on top of her and made sex-like movements, a court finds. READ »

Church withdraws funds for 'insulting' Jesus photos

Lifestyle: 5 May 06
An exhibition that shows photos of Jesus naked on the cross has had its funding withdrawn by the Church of Sweden. The show will go on, insists the gallery due to host it. READ »

Children 'still exploited by chocolate industry'

National: 20 Apr 06
A Swedish report says that little has changed for children and young people working in cacao plantations in West Africa, despite years of pressure for improved conditions. READ »

Graffiti artist film wins top award

Smörgåsbord: 9 Feb 06
READ »

Sibling rivalry in fight for Swedish Church

National: 26 Jan 06
The brother and sister of the leader of the Church of Sweden, Archbishop K.G. Hammar, are competing to succeed him. The time is not ripe for a woman Archbishop, says the brother. READ »

Silvia: give to earthquake victims

National: 6 Nov 05
Queen Silvia has asked the Swedish people to give money to help victims of the Pakistan earthquake, where 3.5 million people have no shelter as winter approaches. "The situation is desperate", the Queen says. READ »

Equal in the eyes of the law

Analysis & Opinion: 28 Oct 05
People licensed to carry out marriages will be sacked if they refuse to also carry out civil partnership ceremonies for homosexuals. Quite right too. READ »

Swedish church says yes to gay blessings

Society: 6 Oct 05
Gay church weddings come one step closer, as an influential church organ says that same-sex couples can have their partnerships blessed in churches. A step in the right direction, say gay campaigners. READ »

Royals and Persson at Pope?s funeral

National: 8 Apr 05
As John Paul II is buried in Rome, Swedish leaders are on hand to pay their respects. Göran Persson said that, despite their differences, he saw the late pontiff as a “great religious leader”. READ »

King leads Sweden?s tributes to Pope

National: 3 Apr 05
Sweden’s politicians and church leaders react to the death of John Paul II. The government extends its sympathy to “the millions of people throughout the world who have lost their spiritual leader," as Swedish Catholics gather in Stockholm to mark the Pope's passing. READ »

Why are so many Swedes members of the Church of Sweden?

: 19 Jan 05
Supporting the home team in a global ecumenical power struggle - or planning to audition for the choir next year? Closet believers - or hedging their bets? Answers please. READ »

Brides and Bishops

Society: 6 Aug 04
Proud Pride organisers criticise Stockholm Council, while the Swedish Church gets the party going. READ »

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