February 13, 2012
The following articles have been tagged with "Church":
Society: 13 Feb 12
A 27-year-old German man has been living at the Gothenburg Landvetter airport for two months having no wish to return to Germany and nowhere to go in Sweden.
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National: 31 Jan 12
A violent fire erupted at a refugee housing facility in central Sweden early Tuesday morning, forcing the evacuation of 80 residents and sending at least three people to hospital.
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Analysis & Opinion: 16 Jan 12
Following the unofficial closure of the Christmas holiday season in Sweden, contributor Ruben Brunsveld reflects on the transformation of religious traditions into cultural ones.
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National: 11 Jan 12
Hundreds of Malmö residents turned out on Wednesday to follow the casket of 15-year-old Ardiwan Samir, who died after being shot on New Year's Eve, in a march arranged by the boy's family as a protest against violence.
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National: 9 Jan 12
The 25-year-old man who was abducted and held in an abandoned school in northern Sweden was in love with the 23-year-old woman suspected of kidnapping him, according to the suspect's father.
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Science & Technology: 5 Jan 12
Zealous file-sharing enthusiasts in Sweden can now take their beliefs to the next level and join the Church of Kopimism, as the widespread practice has now officially been recognized as a religion.
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National: 4 Jan 12
Strip club owner Dragan Bratic, due to open up a club near ski resort Åre in the north of Sweden, has reported the local politician who said his new club would “attract criminal elements” to the police for defamation.
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Lifestyle: 22 Dec 11
No Swedish-style Christmas is complete without a julbord buffet. Food blogger Maia Brindley Nilsson takes a look at what goes into making the perfect Swedish Christmas meal.
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Analysis & Opinion: 19 Dec 11
Rampant holiday consumerism is hard to avoid, writes US-native and parent Rebecca Ahlfeldt, as she struggles to reconcile competing Swedish and American Christmas traditions in finding gifts for her children.
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Society: 15 Dec 11
A small village near the ski resort Åre, in northern Sweden, is in two camps over plans to convert a traditional country inn, located between the church and the cemetery, into a strip club.
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Society: 14 Dec 11
Sara Svensson, the nanny convicted of killing the wife of a pastor with whom she was having an affair, in the village of Knutby, eastern Sweden, in 2004, has been ordered released from institutional psychiatric care.
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Science & Technology: 9 Dec 11
Scientists who exhumed bodies from a tomb believed to contain Magnus Ladulås, who reigned as Swedish king from 1275 until 1290, were surprised to learn that the bodies are at least 200 years too young to be those of the fabled king and his family.
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Society: 6 Dec 11
A 40-year-old man in southern Sweden, known locally as the "Saviour" because he likes to bless people by laying his hands on them, has recently got into trouble due to his habit of striking those who resist.
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Business & Money: 2 Dec 11
Residents in one of Stockholm's wealthiest districts are up in arms over proposals for a bijou exclusive hotel, planned by one of the country’s most well known venture capitalists.
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National: 21 Nov 11
A Church of Sweden pastor has been sacked after having returned from a military base on Sicily following a drunken binge.
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National: 11 Nov 11
Eleven Swedish couples are set to be married in a church in Gothenburg in western Sweden at 11.11am on the eleventh day of the eleventh month of 2011.
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Society: 5 Nov 11
A special pastry available in Sweden only on the All Saint's Day weekend has hit the shelves. The cake honors the death of the nation's warrior king, Gustav Adolf II.
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Lifestyle: 26 Oct 11
For those planning a grand wedding in Sweden and searching for a suitable location to host a reception, The Local has put together a list of top spots, from fairytale castles to 19th century homes, as well as some more modest options.
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National: 21 Oct 11
Police arrested a 36-year-old man on Friday afternoon for his suspected role in the execution-style murder of a couple on a farm in western Sweden. Two other suspects were arrested on Thursday evening.
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Lifestyle: 20 Oct 11
With a massive garden complete with play areas, woods and other parkland, Haga Palace isn’t a bad playground for the upcoming addition to the Swedish royal family, The Local's Geoff Mortimore explains.
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National: 20 Oct 11
A man and a woman were found brutally murdered on a farm in western Sweden on Wednesday afternoon after the couple failed to turn up for choir practice.
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Society: 19 Oct 11
The highly popular church built near the Ice Hotel in Jukkasjärvi in Northern Sweden might soon be joined by an ice mosque, if all goes according to plan.
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National: 18 Oct 11
As police continue their search of the area where the 4-year-old boy was found dead on Sunday evening, the local community is trying to get to grips with what has happened.
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National: 2 Oct 11
As the number of churchgoers in Sweden dwindles ever further, a former dean in the Church of Sweden has suggested the best thing to do with the almost unused buildings is demolish them.
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National: 25 Sep 11
After the memorial held on Saturday for the two murdered boys in Sigtuna near Stockholm, pastor Ann-Marie Johansson called for society to listen.
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Travel: 22 Sep 11
From lakeside castles to elk safaris in the north, a holiday in Sweden has lots to offer. Here are some ideas of what to do.
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Analysis & Opinion: 19 Sep 11
Sweden Democrat leader Jimmy Åkesson's complaint that an imam 'politicised' the religious service that opened the Riksdag last week, raises an interesting point about the place of religion and in Swedish politics, argues contributor Ruben Brunsveld.
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Politics: 15 Sep 11
The Sweden Democrats have reacted in anger to the participation of a rabbi and an imam at the church service which is the traditional start of the customary pomp and ceremony before the opening of the Riksdag.
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Analysis & Opinion: 9 Sep 11
On the tenth anniversary of the September 11th, 2001 terror attacks, The Local reaches out to a few Swedes and Americans for their thoughts about the attacks and their impact.
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Lifestyle: 2 Sep 11
Behind the Stockholm council's draconian "zero tolerance" policy on graffiti is hidden a rich but underground Swedish graffiti culture, inspired by the scene in New York City, contributor Katherine Dunn discovers.
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Politics: 26 Aug 11
The Moderate Party has announced that it will not stand in the next church elections which take place in 2013, signalling an intention to cut political ties with the Church of Sweden.
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Lifestyle: 18 Aug 11
As Sweden's southern metropolis of Malmö gears up for this year's Malmö Festivalen, contributor Caroline Bursell previews some of the event's main attractions.
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Society: 17 Aug 11
House hunters with a penchant for the macabre may be interested in a new listing on the Baltic island of Gotland, which includes a bony medieval tenant at no extra charge.
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National: 7 Aug 11
Fredrik Reinfeldt refused to respond to the criticism of his actions in the wake of the atrocities in Norway during his speech at the World Scout Jamboree on Saturday.
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Lifestyle: 4 Aug 11
If you want to see Scandinavia at its best, there’s no more exciting way to do it than to hop on a bike and explore the region’s excellent network of hostels.
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Society: 2 Aug 11
More Swedish lesbians than gay men have taken advantage of rules allowing same-sex couple's to get married, new statistics show.
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Society: 1 Aug 11
A number of Sweden's faith communities that refuse to accept homosexuals as members continue to receive state support despite regulations requiring them to uphold the country's “social values”.
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National: 29 Jul 11
Swedish prime minister Fredrik Reinfeldt tried on Friday to respond to criticism that he has been missing-in-action following last week's terror attacks in Norway.
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Society: 21 Jul 11
The Church of Sweden wants to be able to recycle the 22 tonnes of precious metallic waste left after human cremations and which is currently buried each year in graveyards across the country.
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Society: 18 Jul 11
A surge of copper thefts have left Sweden's churches reeling, as 26 thefts have already been reported in 2011, costing churches a hefty 1.8 million kronor ($274,000).
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Society: 15 Jul 11
What experts believe to be the world’s oldest shipwreck has been found in the waters between the Baltic islands of Gotland and Öland off the east coast of Sweden.
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Travel: 14 Jul 11
While the Stockholm archipelago has its undeniable charms, venturing a little further east means a great leap in terms of the culture and history offered by the much-underestimated Baltic countries.
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Society: 7 Jul 11
Copying, remixing and spreading information cannot be considered an act of worship, even if participants fall into a meditative trance during the act, ruled Swedish authorities, thus rejecting The Missionary Church of Kopimism as a religious faith.
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National: 23 Jun 11
Most Swedes think that the church should look out for the vulnerable in society and join in the societal debate but not get involved politically, according to a new Swedish study.
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Lifestyle: 22 Jun 11
Midsummer is approaching - but what are we celebrating and why do Swedes celebrate the way they do? The Local explains.
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Society: 20 Jun 11
The female principal of a middle school in Stockholm has reported a 15-year-old boy to the police for sexual molestation after he grabbed her behind.
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National: 16 Jun 11
The grave of murdered Swedish prime minister Olof Palme, gunned down on a Stockholm sidewalk 25 years ago, has been vandalised with graffiti, it was discovered on Thursday.
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Society: 15 Jun 11
Only 15 percent of members of the Church of Sweden say they believe in Jesus, and an equal number claim to be atheists according to the results of a recent survey.
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Travel: 10 Jun 11
Ancient walled cities, storm-tossed islands and a dose of Bergmanesque atmospherics. The islands of Gotland and Öland make for a spectacular summer visit.
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Lifestyle: 10 Jun 11
Las Vegas it isn’t, and chances are Elvis won't be anywhere in sight, but this weekend's mass 'drop-in' wedding at Stockholm's Skansen wildlife park is expected to draw hundreds ready to say "I do", The Local's Geoff Mortimore discovers.
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Travel: 9 Jun 11
As the warm summer weather beckons, contributor Alec Forss offers up a list of some of Sweden's best hiking trails.
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National: 3 Jun 11
Over 25 percent of young Swedes think that it would be “good or very good” for Sweden to be ruled by a strong and dictatorial leader, and one in five would be willing to sell their vote, according to a new study.
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Lifestyle: 3 Jun 11
The Yale Glee Club chose Sweden to kick off a reprise the US singing group's 1928 international tour undertaken to celebrate its 150th anniversary. Contributor Lina Sennevall finds out why.
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Society: 25 May 11
A 23-year-old man who had relationships with several confirmation candidates and has been convicted of a sex offence has been assigned a new job within the Church of Sweden.
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Society: 23 May 11
Following several complaints about sexual abuse committed by its pastors, the Church of Sweden has announced plans to launch an investigation into how widespread the problem is.
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National: 16 May 11
The diocese of Lund is in contravention of official church policy by investing in companies that make money through distributing porn, despite very clear guidelines from the Church of Sweden on the issue.
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National: 10 May 11
A Muslim group plans to turn a church into a mosque after Swedish pentecostalists decided to sell a superfluous property in a display of "Christian love".
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Society: 7 May 11
Sweden's King Carl XVI Gustaf became the first Swedish monarch to visit the world's largest wooden church in Poland, a UNESCO site funded by the King's ancestors more than 300 years ago.
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Education: 27 Apr 11
A family in Stockholm were surprised to find out that their daughter had been assigned a place at a preschool with a teaching method created by L Ron Hubbard, the father of Scientology.
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Society: 27 Apr 11
The Church of Sweden has ruled that pastors are not allowed to man machine gun turrets while serving in the field with Swedish troops in Afghanistan.
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Lifestyle: 21 Apr 11
What do you associate with Easter: eggs, lambs and church? Sweden has these too, but it also features bonfires and witches on broomsticks off to dance with the devil at Blåkulla. Elizabeth Dacey-Fondelius investigates.
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Lifestyle: 20 Apr 11
Known as the ‘Laughing Dalai Lama,’ His Holiness bedazzled southern Sweden with witty quips, magnetic smiles and his contagious giggle while doling out pearls of wisdom and a few personal stories, The Local's Karen Holst reports.
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Lifestyle: 13 Apr 11
A posthumous bath in liquid nitrogen pioneered by an eco-minded Swedish entrepreneur may help bring the deceased closer to life after death, the Local’s Karen Holst discovers.
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Society: 12 Apr 11
In the middle of Sunday service a man jumped up on the altar in a Hässleholm church in southern Sweden and began preaching his own faith in English.
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Science & Technology: 12 Apr 11
Researchers have begun exhuming the remains of Magnus III Ladulås, who reigned as Swedish king from 1275 until 1290, in order to perform DNA tests to ascertain the identity of those with whom he is buried.
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Society: 6 Apr 11
The Stockholm Cemetery Administration wanted to broadcast funerals online, but have run in to unexpected trouble – mounting a camera would be in breach of Swedish surveillance law.
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National: 5 Apr 11
A woman who had lived with her partner for over 40 years has been denied a place in his family grave, as the local authority did not consider her to be part of the family.
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Business & Money: 4 Apr 11
A Stockholm-based foundation providing apartments for the less well-off, is under investigation after having allowed a number of wealthy politicians, church officials and members of the aristocracy to benefit.
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National: 3 Apr 11
The Church of Sweden has advised pastors to avoid christening asylum seekers that have converted to Christianity due to the risk of reprisals in the case of repatriation.
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Society: 21 Mar 11
Pallbearers transporting coffins to Maria church in Båstad in southern Sweden have complained that they risk life and limb when crossing the road as speeding car drivers display disregard for the dead.
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Society: 15 Mar 11
Swedish security service Säpo have expressed concerns about the safety of a Swedish imam who was recently hired by the Church of Sweden to work with teenagers at a Stockholm youth centre.
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Analysis & Opinion: 2 Mar 11
As religious tensions continue to cause friction in Sweden and elsewhere, Lutherans, Catholics, and Muslims near Stockholm have come together to present a new model for religious tolerance, The Local's Geoff Mortimore discovers.
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Politics: 28 Feb 11
Ordinary Swedes and political luminaries piled roses on the grave of Olof Palme on Monday, marking 25 years since the former prime minister was gunned down by an unknown assassin in central Stockholm.
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Society: 27 Feb 11
The Catholic Church of Sweden confirms three priests are believed to have sexually abused children over the span of 30 years.
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National: 22 Feb 11
The Swedish foreign ministry believes that around 100 Swedes were in Christchurch, New Zealand at the time of a major earthquake, but confirmed that there are currently no reports of any injuries.
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Society: 8 Feb 11
Jon Spendrup, of the Spendrup brewing dynasty and personal friend of Sweden's Crown Princess Victoria, died last week of a cocaine overdose, his father has confirmed.
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Lifestyle: 3 Feb 11
As Stockholm Fashion Week draws to a close, the Swedish capital's design-savvy crowd gets ready to turn its attention to a different showcase of Scandinavian creativity, explains contributor Charlotte West.
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National: 30 Jan 11
Badelunda parish in Västerås in eastern Sweden is celebrating its 40th birthday by unveiling a sculpture of Jesus, made entirely from one block of ice by Ice Hotel artist Tjåsa Gusfors.
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Science & Technology: 25 Jan 11
Heat produced by hard-working WikiLeaks servers housed underground in Stockholm may be used to help warm up a local church, according to a proposal from the head internet service provider Bahnhof.
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Politics: 23 Jan 11
Sweden has not had an ambassador in Spain, the country's largest charter holiday destination, for nearly five months, but the Swedish foreign ministry insists it is not uncommon for delayed appointments.
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National: 5 Jan 11
Police in Värmland in western Sweden have launched a preliminary murder investigation regarding the case of a 78-year-old retired female pastor who disappeared on December 14th.
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Society: 30 Dec 10
Tibetan Buddhism's highest leader, the Dalai Lama, is set to visit Sweden in April and has been booked in to take part in a service in Lund Cathedral in southern Sweden.
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Lifestyle: 27 Dec 10
As almost round-the-clock night descends on their country in December, AFP's Rita Devlin Marier discovers that Swedes turn on their own informal celebration of light, in keeping with long-held traditions and to help cope with the darkest time of the year.
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Society: 27 Dec 10
Parishioners at a packed Luleå Cathedral were treated to something of an improvised Christmas Day church service when the pastor overslept and only made it in time for the coffee.
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Lifestyle: 23 Dec 10
Jellied pigs’ feet, Donald Duck and a goat-riding gnome may not be your typical global Christmas symbols, but for Swedes they’re all part of the fun, writes Jennifer Heape.
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National: 22 Dec 10
Following recent criticism of the Sweden's decision to deport Christian Iraqis to Iraq, the government is set to demand that the Migration Board expand its knowledge of the conditions faced by religious minorities.
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National: 19 Dec 10
The United Nations and Council of Europe have expressed concerns about Sweden’s decision to resume the deportation of Iraqis.
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Lifestyle: 17 Dec 10
American-born Swedish opera singer Barbara Hendricks is set to spread the spirit of her “favourite time of year” in a novel Christmas concert simulcast across the country, contributor San Malmström explains.
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Society: 14 Dec 10
A Stockholm-area pastor has been reported for misconduct after posting pictures of himself on Facebook wearing a t-shirt referencing a famed Swedish porn film while he was supervising a group of Swedish teens.
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Lifestyle: 13 Dec 10
For anyone unable to make it to a Lucia concert this year, contributor Fern Scott Olsson sets the scene and offers some serene video footage from a Stockholm youth choir taking part in one of Sweden's most cherished holiday traditions.
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Education: 25 Nov 10
The Swedish Schools Inspectorate has criticised Borås municipality in western Sweden for breaching regulations banning religious services at end of term celebrations.
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National: 24 Nov 10
A Swedish appeals court has increased the penalty for the 24-year-old man convicted of manslaughter in death of a 78-year-old woman who was assaulted during a parking lot dispute in southern Sweden in March.
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Analysis & Opinion: 18 Nov 10
The Local's Peter Vinthagen Simpson exposes the orthodoxy and self-serving folksy truisms of far-right PC in a lexicon of populist platitudes.
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National: 11 Nov 10
The Gothenburg police are facing more criticism following revelations that they locked eight men in a mosque when responding to a terror threat on October 30th.
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National: 7 Nov 10
Police have confirmed that a 38-year-old man was arrested on Saturday on suspicion of murder and attempted murder in Malmö in connection with the recent shootings in southern Sweden.
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Society: 5 Nov 10
A Church of Sweden pastor in Gothenburg has lost his pastor's licence after admitting to buying sex from a prostitute.
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Lifestyle: 5 Nov 10
This weekend is All Saints, Allhelgonahelg, when every graveyard in Sweden bathes in the glow of hundreds of flickering candles lit by Swedes coming to remember their dead.
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Society: 4 Nov 10
A Church of Sweden pastor could lose his job over comments regarding the suitability of women priests to spread the word of God, including the assertion that there were worse "grades of punishment in hell" for female bishops.
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Lifestyle: 4 Nov 10
What’s on in Sweden: Elite swimmers make a splash in Stockholm, a London style design market in Gothenburg and The Tallest Man On Earth looms large in Malmö.
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Lifestyle: 29 Oct 10
Contributor David Stavrou checks out some of the highlights awaiting Stockholm music lovers in October.
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As diverse as Sweden is, there are a few societal norms that are distinctly Swedish. Understanding a handful of them will hopefully prepare you culturally before you relocate. When you're invited home to a Swede, you better be on time and take your shoes off, writes expat Lola Akinmade-Åkerström. Read more »
Sweden is a country where almost everyone can speak English. So why bother to learn Swedish? Edina Varnagy from Hungary managed with English for a whole year but then found that Swedish could open doors – to a job, a social life and greater understanding. Read more »
"The ice dripped in the winter sun. It was the first day when the light had been intense enough to cause dripping in the sunlight. To hear it was an extraordinary wakeup call. The cycle was happening again as it always does, always will (or so we think). I imagined that on my summer island, the bees..." READ »
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fin
adjective
Fin means anyhting from sweet to proper. When someone says, Du är så fin it's quite a compliment.
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