The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Hosts Inter-Faith Panel at Almedalen in Visby, Gotland Island, Sweden.

“When it’s dark, continue to spread the light,” said Ingrid Nilsson, a Church out-reach panelist representing the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints at this year’s Almedalen Week on Visby Island, Gotland, Sweden. She echoed the sentiments of others also on the panel held 27 June 2024.

Panelists who joined Nilsson included Jan Eckerdal, Director of Theology at Sweden’s Christen Council, Erik Eckerdal, (brother to Jan) one of 13 Bishops in the Swedish Lutheran Church, and Alexandra Anstrell, a Swedish Member of the Parliament. The event was moderated by Rebecca Lindfors, Assistant Communication Director for the Church in Sweden.

The discussion included how to have and keep hope in challenging times and how there needs to be spiritual preparation as well as temporal.  Erik Eckerdal said, “man has a remarkable ability to survive after everything has collapsed.  Difficult things happen but we do not perish.” There was united agreement that we all need to love and trust God, love others, and have gratitude.

Jan Eckerdal commented, “being part of something bigger gives us security and confidence and provides inner strength to help us live according to our values.”  A local Swedish resident in attendance commented that, “faith-based communities, like those presented here, give crisis preparation one more dimension to society.  They provide a greater structure when a crisis arises.”

Almedalen is a five-day event that started in 1968 when Olof Palme, Minister of Education at the time, spoke from the back of a truck in a park named Almedalen located in the center of a town called Visby.  As a politician, he would introduce new bills and discuss social issues. Since 1996, together with politicians, different organizations and businesses have been allowed into the festival   The festival’s target group now is people interested in social issues and has grown to tens of thousands attending a week of over 2,000 presentations and seminars.

The Church Swedish Communication Council received permission to be involved at Almedalen in 2014 and has presented gospel based social issues every year since then.  “I have been busy in the past with preparations and implementation for Almedalen week through the years. Being a part of the panel, this year was a new experience for me, “said Nilsson.  She continued, “I was happy and grateful for the opportunity to give some thought about how the Church encourages us to be prepared.”   

Daniel Palm, National Communication Director for Sweden, and his team have been preparing for this year’s event for the last 6 months to be held in a local United Christian church. He said, “it has been wonderful to be a part of this Almedalen Week and be able to contribute to the promoting of the dialog needed today.  We need greater coordination and respect for all people, organizations and churches who are doing their best to improve the lives of others world-wide.”

That same evening following the seminar, Palm, Lindfors, Nilsson and Linda Stenberg (Assistant National Communication Director) held a live discussion on a YouTube broadcast to members of the Church and friends throughout Sweden.  “Having this discussion is important for the members here in Sweden.  We all need to understand where to find peace in these troubled times,” said Palm.