Pentecostal Public Theology in Sweden: From Prophetic Rejection to Political Reform and the Embrace of Catholic Social Teaching

This chapter investigates Pentecostal public theology in Sweden by charting the development of its leader Lewi Pethrus (1884–1974), and the party he founded: the Christian Democrats. In the 1910, Pethrus rejected conventional politics and was focused on forming counter-cultural congregations which embodied a different way of living. He was engaged in a prophetic critique of society, to use Amos Yong’s terminology. Later, political reform was accepted as a missionary means aimed at getting rid of obstacles such as alcohol which hindered people from reaching salvation. Eventually this developed into an advocacy for a state-sponsored cultural Christianity: a soft Constantinianism where true faith is voluntary but Christendom as a cultural identity is supported by the state. This included demands on limiting the entertainment industry and access to alcohol, promoting religious education in school, safeguarding the Sunday peace, and supporting the Swedish Lutheran Church. After the Second World War, rapid secularization propelled Pethrus into diligent work to influence politics. In 1945 he started the newspaper Dagen and in 1964 the Christian Democratic party. Early on, the party mirrored Pethrus agenda, but it had its breakthrough in the election of 1991 after adopting central aspects of the Catholic Social Teaching.