It is the church’s duty to speak

It has been a little over a month since Martin Modéus solemnly picked up the staff in Uppsala Cathedral which proclaimed him as the country’s new archbishop, the 71st in the order. When TT meets him in the archbishop’s yard next to the cathedral the week before Christmas, a minor renovation of the 18th-century house is still underway, which prevented him from moving into his new residence.

— It will be in a month, I hope it doesn’t take longer. We have a temporary apartment here in the city, but the furniture still lives in Linköping, says Martin Modéus.

In Uppsala Cathedral, Martin Modéus received the archbishop’s cassock from archpriest Annica Anderbrant. Archive image.

As the main representative of the Church of Sweden, with the message “Living together with Christ”, he is concerned that the church remains flesh and blood, as he calls it.

The local presence is the most important thing and must remain where people can gather regardless of the crowd to meet in both happy and sad contexts.

— There is a very clear surface where anyone can see that the church is needed here, a strong, viable and present church is needed here. And that’s why people want to be involved, he says.

Increased exposure

Last year, a total of 71,823 people left the religious community. Martin Modéus believes that attendance is a key to reducing the steady loss of membership – although our new archbishop is more keen to turn the numbers around and focus on the fact that 5.6 million people still remain in what he describes as the country’s by far the largest movement, not that 1.8 million have left since the turn of the millennium when church and state went their separate ways.

— In the media, it can sometimes sound like the church is threatened with closure, but if you look in the multitude of local contexts, you often see that the school is gone, the pharmacy is gone and the police are no longer there – but the church is still there. From a societal perspective, we are the institution that invests the least, not the most.

With the new assignment comes increased exposure and a different spotlight than during Martin Modéu’s time as bishop of the Linköping diocese.

There is still a genuine new-on-the-job feeling, admits Martin Modéus, with all that that entails. But from now on, he is the one who will lead the church’s case.

Martin Modéus takes over from Antje Jackelén, who held the office for eight years. Archive image.

His representative, Antje Jackelén, was during his eight years in office a frequent debater on Twitter. He has not quite figured out what level Martin Modéus himself should put himself on in his communication on social media. He has a Twitter account, notes Martin Modéus, but mostly to read what others write.

“I also have a Facebook account that has been active, and an Instagram account where I have been active like a slowly flowing river through a landscape,” he says.

— It’s about finding your tone and timbre, you have to try your hand at it.

Criticism of left leanings

From some quarters, the Church of Sweden has been criticized for taking a stand on sensitive political topics, such as migration policy and questions about climate and the environment. Some believe that there was a clear left side.

— I usually think like this; when the value and dignity of people, and the value and dignity of creation, is threatened then it is the church’s duty to speak. It will sometimes cause us to be perceived as left-wing, and sometimes right-wing, and we have to live with that, says Martin Modéus.

He himself will always see the world from Jesus’ eyes, and his agenda.

— That’s what I want to be held accountable for, not if I was left or right enough, but were you faithful to Jesus in what you did.

Martin Modéus poses with, among others, King Carl Gustaf and Queen Silvia and bishops, church leaders from various denominations. Archive image.

During the autumn, the proposals in the Tidö Agreement between the governing parties and the Sweden Democrats not only led to heated debates within politics, but caused civil society to react with concern on several issues.

Both Save the Children and the Red Cross have been strongly critical of the proposal to severely limit the right to family reunification. Also the proposal to remove financial special rules in dental care for asylum seekers and people without a residence permit, which according to Save the Children goes against the Convention on the Rights of the Child if it also applies to the younger ones.

— If such points are introduced, it is clear that more people are at risk of becoming more vulnerable. It will be investigated and often the church is involved as a referral body, then we get concrete questions to take a stand on, says Martin Modéus.

Aid work in the genes of the church

Another point that has received harsh criticism is the government’s decision to abandon the goal that one percent of Sweden’s GNI (gross national income) should go to aid, the so-called one percent goal. One of the most vocal critics of the proposal has been Act Swedish Church, the church’s international aid operation.

According to Martin Modéus, it is in the church’s genes to appreciate aid work, when a rich country helps poor people.

— Then it should be pure self-preservation in this world to help as many people as possible to have tolerable living conditions. It is a purely human task, to make sure that our fellow human beings are well. It reduces the refugee flows and it reduces the propensity for conflict in the world. By helping others, we help everyone, that is the basis of humane thinking but applied on a societal level, says Martin Modéus.