Home
Palmberg Greets Delegates of Swedish Mission Church
STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN (June 6, 2003) - Glenn R. Palmberg, president of the
Evangelical Covenant Church (ECC), and wife Sharon were honored guests
during the recent 125th annual meeting of the Swedish Mission Church (known
as Svenska Missionskyrkan) in Stockholm.
Palmberg attended the four-day meeting May 29 through June 1 and preached
at the well-known Immanuelskyrka in Stockholm during his visit. He gave a
greeting during the Swedish Mission Church annual meeting and presented the
denomination's president, Krister Andersson, with a stole identical to
those that will be given to ordinands at the Annual Meeting of the ECC
later this month. (Accompanying photo shows Palmberg, third from left,
among a group of honored international guests in Stockholm.)
There were numerous guests to the Swedish Mission Church annual meeting,
said Palmberg, including representatives from the International Federation
of Free Evangelical Churches (IFFEC) and from other denominations that are
prominent in Sweden, Finland and other regional countries. Palmberg added
that the meetings were held in a variety of
settings last weekend with the tenor of worship services as varied as each
site.
On Thursday, May 29, the annual meeting began with a youth-oriented worship
service in a large Pentecostal church. On May 30, an orchestra hall venue
was rented for a music-filled, three and a half hour 125th anniversary
(invitation only) celebration.
Palmberg says he was most moved by the Swedish denomination's ordination
service, which was held at the local Pentecostal church last Saturday
evening (May 31). The ordination preacher was the head of a Congo church
denomination that had been started by the Swedish Mission Church.
After preaching Sunday morning with the assistance of an interpreter,
Palmberg attended the Sunday afternoon closing worship service at a local
open-air band shell. Palmberg noted that the Sunday events included a fun
run that raised money for a mission in India and a rousing performance by a
gospel choir.
Palmberg said his discussions with Swedish church administrators often
turned to issues of church planting and discipleship as the Swedish
churches have struggled with low numbers. He learned that the Willow Creek
Association and pastor Bill Hybels have given the Swedish church materials
and insights that have been valuable and that some
Swedish congregations have tried to integrate the Alpha discipleship
program into their curricula, although it hasn't generated the interest
that it has in England and the United States.
A notable business session item during the conference centered around
changing the name of the church denomination, which had been previously
known as the Swedish Mission Covenant Church. Administrators explained that
the word "Covenant" has been used in so many non-church contexts in Sweden
that it was causing some confusion, leading the denomination to exclude the
word from its formal moniker.
Another discussion item concerned the ordination of active homosexual
pastors in the denomination. Delegates voted in 2002 not to ordain pastors
who are active homosexuals. Delegates overwhelmingly voted to uphold that
decision after the issue was debated during this year's business meeting.
"I was impressed with the congenial way they discussed the issue despite
the obvious differences of view," Palmberg said.
Palmberg says he also was impressed that the Swedish Mission Church knew
about what was happening in the ECC. He was invited into the pastor's study
at the Immanuelskyrka and the Immanuel pastor had the ECC web site,
www.covchurch.org, on his Internet favorites list. To learn more about the
Swedish Mission Church and its ministries, visit its web site at
www.missionskyrkan.se.
Copyright © 2008 The Evangelical Covenant Church. |
