American Bible-Thumper Travels To Scandinavia, Freaks Out After Discovering How Secular They Are

[Diclotican]

38. jwirr

jwirr

Norway and Sweden have still a "state sanctioned Church" - but the connection between State and the Church is a much more loose one than in the 1960s - and I think, in Sweden Svenska Kyrkan (the Swedish Church) have to pay for itself - and its upkeep of churches and buildings - even if they have the possibility of getting help from the Government if need arise and they have no economical ability to do it them self..

In Norway - we still have a State Churches - even if it officially is a less connection between State and Church - it is more intertwined beaten the two parts than in Sweden - and we still have to pay taxes - who to a degree goes also to the upkeep of churches, and buildings and other facilities. And by tradition many families decide to baptize their children - in the church - often after sunday mass - my nephew and his sisters is all baptized in the church - even if my sister belong to a different church than the state sanctioned church - and I'm not sure about her husband - I think it is mostly out of tradition from his part - but anyway - my nieces was baptized in a church who is from the 11 century - a nice, old church who is still active in the summer.. My nephew is baptized in a church who is from the 1800s - but whose foundations is old, going back to the first 1000 years AD...

I'm not sure about how it works in Denmark to be honest - as the Queen Margrethe II is still the defender of the faith and so one - but then again, Denmark have always, at least from the late 1800s had a rather easy going attitude to church things - and specially in the 20th and 21 century have made much progress about having a rather lay back attitude to church things... It is mostly, as in Norway, tradition who make people goes to church now and then - and if one have a belief, they keep it to them self - as it is a personal matter... A progress to be honest - from the time, back in the 1960s and 1970s - where the priest could force his personal belief onto others - and make life miserable for the ones he doesn't liked... My brother and me was not baptized in the Norwigian Church - becouse the minister there was not pleased my parents was not married - and had two kids - that was a bad things even in 1976.. But then again - when they finaly married, it ended a year after in a rather complicated divorse... Long story... My mom married a swede in the 1990s - and was happy married with him, as he was able to help and care for her in a way no other man had being doing. Sadly they got just 10 years togheter - and my mom was alone for the next 10 years - Now I do hope they both are in the heavens - doing whatever they want as both of them are healty if maybe little nude Anyway - If it is a after life - I do hope both my parents - and moms husband for a decade is in good hands - and is cared for...

But then - we also have a whole different organized country than in the US - I suspect most americans, even if they envoy our riches and our public founded health care and a lot of different other things that I take for granted - we have a lot more rules, officially as unofficial who have to be followed at all time - and we often have laws in place for things that is "freedom" in the US... But it works good in most cases as we know it - and we kind of accept it, even if we disagree with it..

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