Christian Politician Snubs Iceland’s Gay Prime Minister

This is something I’ve noticed in my own travel outside the US: it isn’t just that there are more non-believers in other developed countries (though there certainly is that)– religious attitudes are also very different from those in the US.

During my three month stay in New Zealand in 2007, the big controversy at the time was a bill being discussed that essentially would’ve banned the “smacking” (spanking) of children. There were people out protesting against it and some people demonstrating in favor of it.

I remember following this issue in the local paper in Christchurch and there was a news story on a group of Christians from various churches who were also demonstrating. Naturally, my thought, as a US American was to think, “Well, here come the “It’s-my-gawd-given-right-to-beat-my-kid” crowd. I had to re-read the article because I was totally confused– it turns out these Christians were in FAVOR of the bill.

I’ve seen other instances of differences between US Christians and others (in developed countries). When more fundamentalist churches do pop up, it is often referred to derisively as “American-style Christianity.”

New Zealand, by the way, had an MP, the first elected transsexual official in the world IIRC– Georgina Byers. And she was a former prostitute. And wrote a book about it. Could you imagine THAT happening in the US?

Would Jenis av Rana refused to attend a state banquet where the foreign head of state was divorced (Reagan or Newt), affiliated with terrorism (Saudi), or a dictator (Korea)? The very selective application of Xtain moral standards……
Entropist – I have not figured out how & why the most extreme strain of American Xtianity became so closely welded to the fascist strain of the right-wing ideas – pro war, the death penalty, rascism, heck, even spanking!
I think the Reagan Repubs decision to actively pursue their votes is largely responsible for making the Xtain Right more active & vocal in the past 30 years but not why they are more extreme in their political views then the average Repub was at that time. (Now, of course, the Repubs have drifted farther in that direction due to their influence.)

I can say two positive things about Mr av Rana from this story:
1) By providing a mutual target for disgust and derision, he probably helped the PM’s goal of bringing the Faroese people and the Icelanders closer together.
2) He probably made that banquet more enjoyable by not being there – I certainly wouldn’t want his bigoted ass anywhere near my dinner table.

Don, actually the Christians were there just not the bigoted ones (two declined to attend on that ground).

I do wonder what would happen in the US if the Icelandic Prime Minister and her wife visited and the White House had a dinner (would they dare to have a dinner?).

(Officially I don’t think it was a state dinner as (a) that is reserved for heads of state not heads of government and (b) the Faroe Islands are not a state).

Also a Faroese atheist here.
Have been following your site for quite a while and rather surprised to see my country mentioned.

Mr. av Rana, has long argued that he has the backing of the public on this matter. Indeed, according to online polls and Facebook pages, the opposite seems to hold true.
As in the other Scandinavian countries, bigotry of this nature is being ridiculed and resisted.

The actions and words of simple-minded nutjobs, radicals and charlatans, are seldom transferable to the majority of any society. Mr. av Rana has an agenda and an image to live up to – and saw a possibility to further that agenda. Nothing more, nothing less.

Oh, Erp. Don’t rub it in. The non-statehood of the Faroe Islands can get many Faroe Islanders quite wound up 😛

Martin, so Heini and I aren’t the only Faroese atheists reading this blog? Yay for us. We must be the cool kids.

I think the Reagan Repubs decision to actively pursue their votes is largely responsible for making the Xtain Right more active & vocal in the past 30 years but not why they are more extreme in their political views then the average Repub was at that time. (Now, of course, the Repubs have drifted farther in that direction due to their influence.)

Yes, I do think its a vicious circle that should have never gotten started. The teabaggers are a natural result of the Southern Strategy: a monster of their own making.

Erp, Jenis av Rana neither Pentecostal nor Lutheren but Plymouth Brethren.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plymouth_brethren

Hemant, thanks for writing about this! 🙂

I must confess I wasn’t able to read that link in its entirety either.

Yes, I’m no longer a Zachariassen, but that is another story.

I am proud of what my brethren have done….
And continue to do.

Bergur:

I just want to note that Jenis av Rana was never invited to the dinner, thus his statement was a hypothetical one.

Excuse me??

May I please ask for your source? This contradicts what Jenis has said in the media as well as the reaction of the person who supposedly invited him (Prime Minister Kaj Leo Johannesen – no relation).

Erp, don’t worry about it. I don’t really care 😛 I like the queen, but you’ll find lots of people on the Faroes don’t like the fact that she’s the head of state… on the Faroe Islands 🙂

A guy from somewhere, “head of state” is just a generic term for a chief public representative of a state. As such Queen Margrethe II is the current head of state of Denmark, Greenland, and the Faroe Islands regardless of her lack of political influence simply by virtue of providing public representation. I think you might be working under the assumption that “head of state” means something entirely different.

Icelander here – takk fyri, føroyingar!