International report The Church in Sweden By Mikael Rosén Historical perspective: (From the Catholic Encyclopedia). The first effort to convert the country now known as Sweden was made by the Frank, St. Ansgar, (Feast day February 2nd.) commissioned, at the request of Swedish nobles, by Empiror Louis the Pious in 830. The seeds of the Reformation were sewn in Sweden by Olavus Petri who had been a student of Luther in Wittenberg. As early as 1524 Gustavus Vasa, the first Protestant king of Sweden, broke off the official connection of the country with the Roman Curia, crusched the power of the bishops, executed several prelates who held strictly to the Faith, confiscated Church lands, permitted priests to marry, translated the Bible inte the vernacular, brought the Swedish Church into submission to the State, and took possession of twelve thousand peasant farms. In order to dupe the people the Mass, veneration of saints and pilgrimages were not discontinued att first, nor were ecclesistical vestments and ceremonies altered, initially. Soon however monks and nuns were driven from their monasteries, the entire membership of the Franciscan monastery at Raumo being killed under circumstances of great cruelty. By 1544 all feast days were surpressed and all Catholic customs excepting a few were done away with. The declaration was made that the country would "never again abandon the word of God and the pure Gospel". Today in a population of 9.2 million there are 180 000 "Catholics".

A Disaster For Sweden

The Catholic Church in Sweden is indeed a melting pot, meaning by that, not so much the effect of the immigrants on the Church but the many priests who come there from different countries. A purely native clergy would be a disaster for Sweden because most of the active priests are modernists. Especially those who translated the so called new mass into the Swedish language. They totally destroyed both its beauty and its sacrificial nature. Stockholm has one bishop, who is getting old and one auxiliary bishop. Seminarians study for three years in Stockholm, then they are sent to the Collegion Swedese in Rome. As editor and publisher of the newsletter Adoremus in aeternum, I experienced unique problems when making arrangements to be married. "First we had to talk to our parish priest at one of the most terrible churches in Sweden - Johannesgården (S:t John´s garden), totally new age, a kneeler-less building where the people show no reverence for the 'sacraments', stand for the 'consecration' and receive communion in the hand. When we met the parish priest, he was very interested in having a chat with us, but later when I was alone sith him, he asked if I was really serious about marriage or if it was just an immature feeling. He asked, "Do you really believe what you are doing?" In his defense, it appeared he was being a responsible pastor making sure we were being responsible as well. But it must be remembered that we are traditional catholics. You can be sure liberal catholics, divorcees, homosexuals are not grilled the same way regarding their 'commitments'. He tried to make me angry. He referred to his talk as 'therapy'. Later he repeated the same things to my wife to be. He was nervous for his job. he was afraid of marrying us because I was known by my newsletter. He of course, had to take advice from the bishop. The bishop ordered the 'pp' to go through the latest issues of Adoremus in Aeternum. I had to give him my opinion on the sacraments in the novus ordo Church. And make an official statement that I accepted the Novus Ordo Church sacraments as valid, otherwise I couldn´t get married. This was especially jarring due to the background goings-on in the Church in Sweden. Just one example: Bishop Hubertus Brandenburg who is a doctor of theology, made a speech in 1985 for Christian unity where he stated "I don´t know if there is any difference between the Roman Catholic Church and the Protestant Church in Sweden". It is comon knowledge that divorced Catholics are allowed to go to communion. The only restriction Brandenburg imposes are against traditional Catholicism. He is especially determined in his resistance to Adoremus in Aeternum. The newsletter is relentless in its defense of the Faith and its attacks on those who are daily abusing the Faith in Sweden. The official Catholic Diocesan newspaper "Katolskt Magasin", had an interview with bishop Brandenburg dealing with Adoremus in Aeternums where the Bishop stated that Adoremus, "has nothing to do with the traditions of the Roman Catholic Church". In other words articles about the scapular, Rosaries, sacraments, were not in line with Catholic tradition. The result of the Bishop´s tirade brought Adoremus in Aeternum a wealth of new subscribers.
The auxiliary Bishop William Kenney C.P. is known as a socialist and a member of the Swedish Social Democratic Party attracted to it, mainly, according to Kenney, because of his working class background. In truth he never was a worker himself having been accepted into the passionist order as a wery young man. When he was appointed auxiliary in 1987, he said in an interview: "I am socialist", and also, "the present pope doesn´t want any woman priests. That´s fine with me, but if the Pope changes his mind, that´s also fine with me". The demographics of Sweden are changing as elsewhere in Europe due to immigration of non-christian people to the country. The leader of Caritas Europe, bishop Kenney, acts as a spokesman for 'open borders' - "vår prost är fet som en ost", tellings his parishioners to 'open their doors ' to all kinds of immigration, especially muslims. With abortion in Sweden being costfree until the eighteenth week, and late abortions, even up to the 32nd week, able to be secured, the annual abortion rate is approximately 45 000. This does not appear to be in danger of increasing because so many of the immigrants are muslims who do not abort. The problem with Auxiliary Bishop Kenney and Bishop Brandenburg is that they have not taken the Cross upon themselves. Catholics objections to Kenney´s ideas has nothing to do with racism, it has to do with common sense. Swedes subjected to very high taxes might well look at the bishop´s taxfree palace and ask, "why doesn´t he take the immigrants into his palace".? The only restriction seems to be against traditional Catholicism.
A Legend In Her Own Mind

There are about 250 Carmelite and Bridgetine religious in Sweden. Ninety percent of them still wear their habits. Then there are, of course, the aggressivily feminist Dominican nuns with the usual reputation Dominicans manage to secure for themselves around the world. The most famous feminist writer, who recently wrote "The Pope doesn´t understand women", is the dominican nun, Sister Catharina Broomé, age 75, who as editor of Katolskt Magasin transformed the message of Catholicism into a mixed bag of democracy, liberalism and 'freedom'.
The Swedish Synodal Process:

According to the new code of Canon Law of 1983, (c. 460-68, and 833) the participants in a synod like that held in Sweden are required to make a profession of Faith before taking part. However, Bishop Brandenburg, said that because some diocese in Germany didn´t have to give a profession of faith, then they didn´t need it in Sweden either. Brandenburg says that he takes for granted the participants believe in the Church. At the same time he said he considers that to demand they make a profession of faith is not treating them as adults! According to Brandenburg, regarding c. 466, the bishop is the sole legislator in the synod. In other words, the participants don´t have to give a profession of faith and Brandenburg is the sole authority. In 1994 when they prepared for the synod they sent out a 60 page package containg scandalous defects and detractions from the Catholic Faith, regarding homosexuality, partnerships, religious freedom, and Catholic living. It´s easy to understand then why they didn´t want participants to make a profession of faith. As Cardinal Seper, predecessor of Ratzinger once said, 'the crisis in the Church is her bishops'.
Leviticus?

If anyone lie with a man as with a woman both have committed an abomination. Let them be put to death. Their blood be upon them. Lev.20:13. Brandenburg is on record as saying, Catholic moral teaching is praisworthy but the social reality is something totally different. In the forward to the synodal package the bishop wrote, 'What is contained here does not always mirror the opinion of the diocese". Regarding homosexuality, the bishop stated that those homosexuals who had made a commitment to lead that kind of life deserved to have an honored place in the diocese. Brandenburg celebrated a solems mass for the funeral of gay social worker who died of Aids which funeral became a manifestation of the gay lifestyle with banners and people wearing pink triangles, people who, of course, praised the Bishop for his "open mindedness".
Teacher/Student Relations

It is also well known that the leaders in the diocese are very worried about the seminarians because they don´t apparently, easily take in the teachings of the liberal educator from Germany, Fr. Pieter Knauer S.J. retreat leader and philosopy teacher. On the Feast of the Assumption at St. John´s Garden, Knauer responded to a semarian´s question, "It is necessary for me as a Catholic to believe in the Dogma of the Assumption"? With "We should only believe what we are capable of understanding". This makes the Bishops worry. The seminarians don´t want to accept Knauer´s words of wisdom. So the Bishops worry!
Finally...

Bishop Brandenburg states that the diocese of Stockholm, Sweden is one of the best run diocese in the world. But is it really Catholic?
Denna artikel skrevs för c:a två år sedan och publicerades i Adoremus in Aeternum 7-8/ 1996. Vi hoppas den har belyst situationen i Stockholms 'katolska' stift!?!