Many thanks to Tania Groth for translating this article from Fria Tider:

The church committee voted yes to Islam: “Great for more people to meet the love of Allah”

During the church meeting in November, the Swedish Democrats’ (SD) critical motion to vote on the Islamic call for prayer was voted down, according to the Christian newspaper Dagen (The Day). Among the arguments of the other participants was the opportunity for more people to meet the “love of Allah”.

The church committee is the highest decision-making body of the Swedish Church.

Prior to the November meeting, the Swedish Democrats, who had 24 mandates, had suggested that the Church of Sweden should take a critical stance towards the Islamic call to prayer.

However, the motion was voted down by a large majority. 206 voted against [the Sweden Democrats] and 26 for [the call to prayer].

Among those who argued against the motion there were Artemis Lumarker from the Open Church, a nomination group within the Swedish Church.

“Imagine how amazing that more people can meet the love of Allah and God, and what we get out of the meeting with each other,” he said, according to Dagen, and also claimed that SD is trying to “dehumanize” other people.

The open church is working towards the “vision of an open church where all people are welcome”, they write on their website.

A number of people engaged in the discussion during the meeting.

On the one hand there was Aron Emilsson of the Swedish Democrats, who said that the Church of Sweden was renouncing its own faith by supporting the Islamic call to prayer. To do this should not be the task of the church, was his opinion.

His party colleague Camilla Berard Granström argued that Islam has spread more quickly with the help of the Swedish Church.

On the other hand, the Social Democrat Isak Öhrlund explained to Dagen, the church should be “a progressive and open force” in society, and therefore one should not be critical of a call to prayer.