The Experience of sacrum. Some signs of the return to the realm of religion in the public sphere and in literature in Sweden. Anna Greta Wide, Ylva Eggehorn

Abstract

It is very difficult to pursue recognizing the examples of re-secularization in the multicultural Sweden (the country labelled as the most secularized one). The effects of the domination of logical positivism in the intellectual life and in the philosophy called the nihilistic theory of values, as well as the active rejection of metaphysics and the rich religious tradition seem to dominate. Ingemar Hedenius, whose arguments contributed to the reduction of religious content in the Swedish schools accomplished by the Social Democrats (from 1933 to 1977), played the most important role here. However, Sweden is far from being just an irreligious country. Religion still plays a cultural role and, moreover, because of immigrants, the religious landscape becomes more complex. In the today’s media as well as earlier in the literature, some signs of disappointment with the reductionist image of the world appear, resulting in spiritual emptiness and the loss of the illusion that the rejection of religion would provide a better understanding of the world. The article focuses on two testimonies of the Christian faith — popular lyrics or sung poetry by: Anne Grety Wide (1920–1965) and Ylvy Eggehorn (born 1950).