With hundreds of thousands more migrants set to pour into Sweden, a Bishop in Stockholm has proposed removing crosses from a Christian church and replacing them with Islamic symbols in order to cater for Muslims. Bishop Eva Brunne wants to remove Christian symbols from the Seamen’s Church to make the building “more inviting” for Muslims, reports SVT, Sweden’s national public TV broadcaster. “Leasing a room to people of other faiths, does not mean that we are not defenders of our own faith. Priests are called to proclaim Christ. We do that every day and in every meeting with people. But that does not mean that we are hostile toward people of other faiths,” wrote Brunne, attempting to justify the plan. [3] Brunne, who is the first openly lesbian bishop of a mainstream church in the world, wants the church to be treated more like a public airport, where prayer rooms are made available to Muslims, by removing Christian symbols and “marking the direction of Mecca.” [1] Calling Muslim guests to the church “angels“, the Bishop later took to her official blog to explain that removing Christian symbols from the church and preparing the building for Muslim prayer doesn’t make a priest any less a defender of the faith. Rather, to do any less would make one “stingy towards people of other faiths”. [4]
The proposal has drawn backlash, with Patrik Pettersson, priest of the Oscars parish in Stockholm, arguing, “The church chapel can not reasonably be equated with prayer rooms at airports and hospitals. The Christian church and chapels are not just any public areas.” [2] [3] “I should have thought a bishop would be able to tell the difference,” he added. [4] Calling the bishop’s words “theologically unthinking”, he asked what was to be done with crucifixes screwed to the walls, and heavy items such as baptismal fonts. [4] “The only argument Bishop Eva really put forward in support of her view is ‘hospitality.’ … How do you respond to that? Not much of a basis for discussion, as one colleague put it. The theological, ecclesiological, pastoral and working issues are left untouched,” Pettersson continued. [13] The Seamen’s Church Director, Kiki Wetterberg, also publicly opposed the idea. “I have no problem with Muslim or Hindu sailors coming here to pray. But I believe that we are a Christian church, so we should keep the symbols. If I visit a mosque I do not ask them to take down their symbols. It’s my choice to go in there,” said Wetterberg. [13] It’s also ironic to consider that while Brunne is insistent on being so welcoming to Muslims, she would be executed for being a lesbian in some Islamic countries. [1] Breitbart noted that Brunne became the world’s first openly lesbian bishop in the Lutheran Church in 2009, and has a young son with her wife and fellow priest, Gunilla Linden. [4] The upper echelons of the Church of Sweden, much like other national churches across Europe, seem to be fully invested in the diversity mission. Back in February, a parish church in multicultural paradise Malmö declared it would be holding a service in solidarity with the local Muslim community as a protest against a march by anti-Islamisation movement PEGIDA in the city. [14] The priest responsible told media: “During the protest, the Swedish Church is going to hold a service where we express joy for our city and our Muslim friends. “There is strong support for diverse cultures in Malmö and it is important that the church is there to support that”. Malmö is Sweden’s gateway to Europe, and is the main point of ingress to the Nordic nations for the thousands of migrants travelling through Europe from Africa and the East who have decided to make it home. [4] [14]
Robert Spencer
Sweden has been welcoming refugees not only from Syria, but also Eritreans who had initially traveled to Italy. In September, the EU agreed to a plan to relocate a further 120,000 refugees across Europe, despite the opposition of a number of Eastern states, like Hungary, who has said the crisis is stretching their borders and resources. Germany has vowed to take more refugees than any other nation, opening its borders to close to 800,000 people. [13] “This is what a society and culture in the midst of suicide looks like,” writes Robert Spencer. [12] “How wonderful and generous and ecumenical and multicultural this is,” Spencer wrote. Spencer suggested that imams in Stockholm and across Europe are likely laughing at the ease with which Christians there are willing to surrender to Islam. “Watch for mosques everywhere to remove their mihrabs and install crosses so that Christians will feel comfortable praying there,” Spencer said with biting sarcasm. [5]
Pamela Geller
Sweden has “surrendered without so much as firing a shot,” said Pamela Geller author of “Stop the Islamization of America.” “Sweden has lost it,” Geller told WND. “It is sacrificing its own heritage to accommodate immigrants who will not be as accommodating to native non-Muslim Swedes. The bishop is paving the way for the Islamization of Sweden.” [5] [7] If you think this story sounds too bizarre to be true, then you haven’t acquainted yourself with the progressive “utopia” that is Sweden. This is a country in which some politicians have called for giving free housing, jobs and welfare to returning ISIS jihadists – all at taxpayer expense. [1] [15] This is a country that is suffering a major housing shortage yet simultaneously has politicians telling its citizens that they may need to give up their garages in order to house third world immigrants. [1] [16] Sweden is also a country that hires ISIS-sympathizers to run its immigration boards. [1] [17] The country’s taxpayer-funded “expert” on Islamophobia, Michael Nikolai Skråmo, also went on to join ISIS. [1] [18] Besides, at some point people have to realize they need to stand up for what they believe in and not roll over to appease a minority. That’s not to mention, we dare anybody to go to a mosque and demand the mihrab be taken down and a cross put up in its place. Go ahead, see what happens. [6] This isn’t the process of modernization of the church. This is the process of obsolescence of the church. [7] Watch the interview below in which a Bosnian immigrant to Sweden explains the disastrous results of the country’s open door border policy.
