Sweden discusses ban on father-husband handing over bride

The “bride handover” has become a political issue in Sweden. The father accompanying his daughter in white to the altar is an American tradition that is often celebrated in Hollywood films. In Sweden, more and more people are imitating it, which the Swedish Social Democrats and some pastors of the Lutheran Church now want to ban.

After all, the Swedish church, like Swedish society, is committed to equality. “And it just didn’t fit that a dark, patriarchal tradition was being maintained, where women were handed over from one man to another,” said Pastor Nina Konnebäck, the mouthpiece of many of the opponents.

A corresponding request for a ban was sent by social democratic opposition politicians to the “Swedish Church”, to which more than half of Swedes belong and which was the state church until 24 years ago. An important institution which, at the upcoming synod in October, is expected to impose a ban on the custom, which dates back to the times when marriage was actually controlled by parents.

Supporters see it only as a “romantic gesture”

However, Sweden has a long tradition of equality – women were given the right to vote in 1921, equality laws were passed in the 1970s, feminism has been internalized in the ministries for years and traded as a Swedish export. Those who oppose the ban are therefore cautious. Politics should not spoil the best day of young people’s lives, it is just a “romantic gesture,” says a regional newspaper, and supporters of the small conservative governing party “Christian Democrats” in the church want to leave this decision to the bride and groom.

Those opposed to the handover of the bride not only argue with equality, but also with their understanding of conservatism – it is “against Swedish tradition”. However, there is another Swedish tradition – that of adopting trends. And since most of the impulses come from the United States, what the USA dictates is quickly and happily adopted. “The Swedish identity has a short shelf life,” says the well-known Swedish author Elisabeth Asgard, who likes to hold a mirror up to her fellow countrymen.

The Swedish royal family is also leading the way

The Swedish royal family is also making the matter complicated. In 2010, Crown Princess Victoria was led to the altar of Stockholm’s St. Nicholas Church by her father, King Carl XVI Gustaf, which sparked criticism and imitators. It remains unclear whether the current heir to the throne was inspired by Hollywood or old aristocratic customs. If the church issues a ban in the autumn, the royal family’s future heirs would also have to comply. However, the royals prefer to remain silent on this debate at the moment.

There are no figures on the growing enthusiasm of Swedes for the American form of marriage, but the provost of St. Nicholas Church, Jonas Eek, confirms the trend that is so challenging for Swedes. After all, it is feminist tradition versus patriarchal trend.