In Sweden, a Christian couple is going through a nightmare that captures the growing bias and targeting of religious families in Europe. Daniel and Bianca Samson have been fighting to regain custody of their daughters since 2022 after the government cited their regular church attendance and faith as warranting their removal.
The parents, with the help of the Alliance Defending Freedom International, were delivered another blow after the European Court of Human Rights refused to accept their appeal as “inadmissible.”
This saga began when their eldest daughter had a fight with her parents over being denied a smartphone and makeup. She contacted police and made a false report of abuse.
However, Sara, quickly retracted the allegation and police found no evidence of abuse. Nevertheless, the state took both girls — aged 10 and 11 at the time –and refused to allow them to return home.
The government alleged that they found evidence of “religious extremism” and, according to ADF, cited the family’s habit of attending church three times a week. It also cited strict religious upbringing in the home. In the United States, the findings would be glaring violations of the free exercise clause of the First Amendment. In Sweden, it is a viable basis for taking away your children.
So these girls want to go home and the parents want to restore their family. The Swedish government and courts refuse to allow it.
They are still separated after the parents successfully completed state-mandated parenting courses. They also were denied requests to move the girls into foster homes in Romania, where they live. The Swedish Supreme Court refused to hear the case last year, but the European Court of Human Rights said that they had failed “to exhaust legal remedies in Sweden.”
Now, according to the ADF International, the government is moving to place the girls up for adoption.
The children have moved from foster home to foster home, including allegedly one placement that resulted in one of the girl’s suffering physical and mental health issues. She ultimately tried to commit suicide, according to the family.
I have only found articles attesting to the removal on the grounds of the family’s religious faith and practices. The implications are chilling if true. This family appears to have done everything demanded of them as their daughters begged to return home.
It is a case worthy of inquiry by the Administration in defense of religious liberty.
And Jesus was a sailor
When he walked upon the water
And he spent a long time watching
From his lonely wooden tower
And when he knew for certain
Only drowning men could see him
He said, “All men will be sailors then
Until the sea shall free them”
But he himself was broken
Long before the sky would open
Forsaken, almost human
He sank beneath your wisdom like a stone
And you want to travel with him
And you want to travel blind
And you think maybe you’ll trust him
For he’s touched your perfect body with his mind
leonard cohen
He sank beneath your wisdom like a stone
Funny. He has a way of doing that, especially inside those whose resistance howls like madness in the spring
And so it begins, here is a mentally unstable commenter spewing disgusting religious sickness on the readers.
Government must protect us from their kind.
And that which you’ve given me today
Is worth more than I could pay
And no matter what they say
I believe in you
bob dylan
“I’m very fond of Jesus Christ. He may be the most beautiful guy who walked the face of this earth. Any guy who says ‘Blessed are the poor. Blessed are the meek’ has got to be a figure of unparalleled generosity and insight and madness … A man who declared himself to stand among the thieves, the prostitutes and the homeless. His position cannot be comprehended. It is an inhuman generosity. A generosity that would overthrow the world if it was embraced because nothing would weather that compassion. the figure of the man has touched me.”
– Leonard Cohen (1999)
Cohen was a committed Jew all his life.
So was Jesus Christ who was killed for being known as “king of the Jews.”
You don’t see a contradiction?
No matter how much you hate Europe you don’t hate them enough.
Hate? So you’re saturated with hate eh? Just Europe, or the world in general?
Just for YOU!
Roman soldiers used a flagrum—a whip containing metal balls and sharp bone/glass—leading to severe injuries and tearing of flesh.
Jesus was beaten in the face, struck with rods, and had his beard ripped out, resulting in massive swelling, a dislocated nose, and a black eye.
Thorns was driven into his scalp, causing severe bleeding and facial disfigurement.
His visage was so severely marred that he was nearly unrecognizable, looking hardly human.
Hey crazy, today’s subject is a Swedish family’s problem.
It’s still relevant, stupid!
Then he shut the book, handed it back to the attendant and resumed his seat. Every eye in the synagogue was fixed upon him and he began to tell them, “This very day this scripture has been fulfilled, while you were listening to it!”
DEAR GOD–Who was this guy? Is it possible? Could it be true?
Then they spit in his face and struck him with their fists. Others slapped him and said, “Prophesy to us, Messiah. Who hit you?”
“And they that passed by reviled him, wagging their heads, And saying, Thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest it in three days, save thyself. If thou be the Son of God, come down from the cross”
Why? What’s up?
at the last day
that great day of the feast
Jesus stood and cried
Whoever believes in Me, as the Scripture has said: ‘Streams of living water will flow from within him.’”
Allah Akbar!
I have ceased to be surprised any more by what passes for the Law in Europe.
Hard to believe Sweden gave rise to Gustavus Adolphus at the time of the 30 years war. He originated the approach of combined arms in combat as well as being one of the most vital leaders of European Protestants in the same war. He was as much a force for reformation and religion as he was for combat. Actions like these are basically spitting on his grave.
Seems like a high price to pay because an 11 year old demanded a cel phone.
We can’t just be tsk, tsk about Sweden when we have states in our union who try the same thing. Massachusetts has also had some shady state court decisions about taking children away from families based on disagreements about medical treatment and religious objections.
Whoa there ole timer.
You think that such family problems are only indigenous to Europe? Seriously?
Then you are seriously senile.
You can’t read??
And its not just a single family in MA. The problem is rampant across the US. And it’s not just Christians being targeted.
Just look at what Trump has done to families… thousands!
Thousands? Millions …in that case they should hastily flee back to where they came from! America is not an open border market for the money changers to fatten themselves through their expansion of markets. It is the Christian citizenry that suffers the abuse.
“Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”
Sound familiar?
Come On Man! The Soviet State of Sweden is just trying to bring ‘justice’ to their decadent Western Lifestyle population. Religion is the root of extremism evidently when parents push a higher authority than the “STATE” which requires re-education and family intervention including termination of the family unit. Well, surely the state will give these girls full exposure to alternative lifestyles including minor attracted persons (aka pedo’s) so they are worldly before they reach 18! Stalin is smiling down on Sweden!
My understanding is that this suppression of religion is being specifically targeted at Christianity and not at Islam or Judaism, though Judaism is being subjected to its own different mode of hostility. I see it as a symptom of a peculiar place of self-loathing to which western civilization has come recently.
Robert, I think you’re onto something. The way our culture comes down hard on Christianity, comes at Judaism from a different angle, and then tiptoes around Islam looks like a society that’s been talked into hating its own roots.
What would the Founding Fathers say? All good, our bad.
I wonder is the Swedish government also considers the Muslim call to prayer five times each day to be religious extremism? Or the desire to establish Sharia law courts?
Why should they? Got a problem with Muslims?
Stupid replys DAILY from ANON!!
Just as there were many who were appalled at him — his appearance was so disfigured beyond that of any human being and his form marred beyond human likeness-
“Visage marred more than any man” is a prophecy from Isaiah 52:14 in the Bible, describing the extreme disfigurement of the “Servant” (traditionally understood as Jesus Christ) due to brutal scourging and torture. His appearance was so damaged, bruised, and swollen—”beyond human likeness”—that he was nearly unrecognizable, symbolizing the severity of his suffering.
beyond human likeness
he was pierced for our transgressions,
he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was on him,
and by his wounds we are healed.
Trump?
LOL!
The anti-religious bias is ONLY applied to Christians. It is NEVER applied to Muslims. I can’t even imagine a case in Europe where the Islamic beliefs of parents would be grounds to remove children from the household. The far left has made traditional Western values the enemy, and allied itself with Islamic supremacists, in its insatiable quest for power.
Never to Muslims? Seriously? Got proof?
Do you have any proof Ano?
If so post away.
Proof of what?
Rape gangs and honor killings of young women in England. Satisfied? I doubt it.
Article addresses a family in Sweden… BTW.
“You can’t prove a negative” , but if NMF is mistaken, YOU can easily proove HIM wrong by citing just one or two cases where Muslim children were taken from their families in Sweden merely for practicing Islam too frequently, if there are any. Will YOU?
The challenge was not about Muslims in Sweden but anywhere. So, 1,350 Muslim families were separated at the Mexican boarder between 2017 (Trump) and 2021, when Biden stopped the policy.
What are 1350 muslim families doing illegally crossing the US border ?
Yes, Biden “stopped the policy” by turning the border into a seive.
Regardless, if you wish to come to the US – do so legally, then you have no reason to fear ICE and no reason to be concerned about your children.
With respect to illegal immigrants with children – which is it that you expect should be done ?
If you enter the US illegally – you will be deported if caught.
We arrest people who violate our laws, – but we do not arrest children and put them into adult jails. So are you saying that if an illegal immigrant brings their children – that they can not be deported ? How about rapists, murderers banks robbers – whether illegals or citizens – do they too have carte blance to committ whatever crimes they wish – because we will not separate them from their children ?
There are 2.5M people in US prisons – many of them have children – By committing crimes they have separated themselves from their children.
Now it happened, as Jesus sat at the table in the house, that behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and sat down with Him and His disciples. And when the Pharisees saw it, they said to His disciples, “Why does your Teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?”
When Jesus heard that, He said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy and not sacrifice.’ For I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.”
Allah Akbar!
And you will be hated by all for My name’s sake. But he who endures to the end will be saved.
Amen I say, Amen
Who let the crazies out?
Government supported insanity.
Well, as Iran bombs Israel’s thermonulear weapons, we are assured that the ancient predictions of the upcoming destruction of earth has no relevance. Like goat herders from thousands of years ago had any idea what would happen in the future! They never predicted Christ’s appearance in Israel. Never promised He would return in the nick of time to prevent Armageddon.
“For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now—and never to be equaled again”
“But you, O Bethlehem of Ephrathah, who are one of the little clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to rule in Israel, whose origin is from of old, from ancient days”
Looks like just one crazy on the blog this morning and going full tilt crazy here.
Come on Turley, get rid of those christian nutjobs on the blog.
Christian nutjobs? Let me guess. . .you believe there is no God, and the Bible is fiction.
Allah Akbar!
Tehran’s strike on Dimona follows US bombing of Iranian nuclear facility and raises urgent questions about Israel’s air defences
hundreds injured
this it
the end off all things
IRAN HITS THERMONULEAR WEAPONS DEFEATING MULTPLE LAYERS OF ISRAELI DEFENSES
Few recall the Amendment two bluster and filibuster from experts in chaos. 50-1 bet the next gig is SEPERATION of CHURCH and STATE seen this coming years ago.
This is disgustingly stupid. This is the left and their hatred of religion. Or of Christian religion anyway. Ugh.
Yet another reason why parenting should be left to the parents, not self-appointed elites who believe they know how to best rear children. Yet there are many American citizens who think our government should model Sweden? Give us a break!
“there are many American citizens who think our government should model Sweden?”
Got a number or are you just lying.
If he’s wrong, can you prove he is?
Or just another dumb comment by you?
Can you? We didn’t make the claim… you get that part right? Sorta doubt it considering your stupid response.
So you stuck your bigmouth in this as usual. So, you prove it then.
No wait, you’re too stupid to handle that task.
Dustoff yoo truly are the dumbest SOB in the history of stupidity.