Swedish royal wedding preparations fuel gossip and controversy FEATURE 05/26/2010

Swedish royal wedding preparations fuel gossip and controversy

FEATURE 05/26/2010 STOCKHOLM — Tensions with the archbishop, the future prince’s health problems and the soaring cost of the festivities are just some of the controversies surrounding the run-up to Swedish Crown Princess Victoria’s June 19 wedding. For her big day, the 32-year-old princess has expressed a wish that elsewhere might sound commonplace: She wants to be led to the altar by her father Carl XVI Gustaf and given away to her husband-to-be Daniel Westling. In Sweden, however, renowned for its gender-equality, the request has caused quite a stir, with Archbishop Anders Wejryd openly expressing his disapproval and calling on the couple to follow Swedish tradition and walk side-by-side to the altar. The drama, illustrated last week with front-page spreads in the Swedish press with pictures of a crestfallen princess and an imposing-looking archbishop, has made unlikely allies of traditionalists and feminists in a fight against what is widely viewed here as an American tradition exported by Hollywood. “Giving away the bride is a fairly new phenomenon that occasionally happens in the Swedish Church,” Wejryd, who will be performing the ceremony next month at Stockholm’s Saint Nicolaus Church, or Storkyrkan, told Swedish tabloid Aftonbladet. “I generally advise against it, since our wedding ritual is so clear when it comes to the equality of husband and wife,” he stressed..... MORE     Source:  The Daily Tribune URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/commentary/20100526com7.html

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