“Swedish debate on religious freedom is awkward”

Rudenstrand wrote a book on Sweden and its religious freedom. According to him, there is a lot to talk about religion in Swedish society. But at the moment, there is a lot of awkwardness too. "Some claim that it is about freedom from religion, others freedom from religious criticism. But I mean, there is a lack of a sensible conversation about what religious freedom means."

The book "The first right" discusses how the secular Swede often has difficulty dealing with issues related to religion and that there is some religious blindness. This is not least noticeable in Swedish foreign policy, says Rudenstrand to Christian Swedish daily Dagen.

Abortion

In Dagen, Rudenstrand exemplifies the Swedish lack of interest in religion with a debate in the Riksdag between Foreign Minister Ann Linde (Social Democrat) and Lars Adaktusson (Christian Democrat). Adaktusson wondered why religious freedom was completely lacking in the minister's foreign declaration. The answer, however, was a scolding about how Adaktusson had voted on abortion issues as an EU parliamentarian. "She chose to attack him in a completely different matter", says Rudenstrand, who thought it was symbolic of the lack of interest.

Recently, Dagen ran a story about several Riksdag members who questioned Swedish policy regarding the Open Door's report on persecuted Christians. Adaktusson said that persecution of Christians must be on the political agenda, given the conclusion in the report that every seventh Christian in the world is persecuted for his faith.

His right-wing colleague Staffan Eklöf (Swedish Democrats) believes that the Swedish government should strongly pressure regimes that persecute Christians. He asks for actions against the Taliban in Afghanistan.

However, according to Dagen, this is not the first time that Minister Linde has been asked these questions, and so far, she has never clearly spoken out about persecution of Christians. In her answers, she has stuck to a line where she emphasizes the importance of religious freedom on a broader level without highlighting a specific group. "Freedom of religion or belief is a human right. All people should be able to live and manifest their faith without fear of being threatened or persecuted because of their religion or belief."

Private

With his book, Rudenstrand wants to point out that many in Sweden do not understand the importance of religious freedom. "We regard religion as a private matter, which is why we find it difficult to understand when, for example, Christians are persecuted for their faith."