Bjorn From ABBA Says There is No God

I don’t know if you remember the group ABBA from the 70’s and 80’s. Dancing Queen anyone?

I sure do, having a Swedish dad and all. I’ve heard it over and over:

*ABBA has sold more albums than the Beatles.

*ABBA recorded all their albums in Swedish, English, Spanish, and Jive (I made that last one up).

There’s more, but I’ll stop there.

Anyway, Bjorn from ABBA has recently come out and said:

“Freedom from indoctrination ought to be a basic human right for all children,” argues ABBA star Björn Ulvaeus in a passionate plea for Sweden to rethink its policy on faith-based schools. -quoted from The Local The Local

His problem (shared by many others in Sweden) is that he does want any Swedish schools to be able to have a specific religious emphasis in their purpose, mission, and some of their classes, not even private schools that receive no public funding. So he has joined the effort to stand against them all and pass legislation to prevent this.

Bjorn is a Humanist. Not that I am trying to take a stand against Humanists or have anything against them. I just want to point out what has unfolded in this situation.

He (Bjorn) feels that it should be a basic human right for children not to be indoctrinated by any ideology or religion. The view is that this breeds intolerance and an “us-and-them” mentality. If there is religious teaching, let schools must teach all religions as equal and not emphasize one being true over another. Say, for instance, like a Christian private school built on the statement Jesus said when he emphasized, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.”-Gospel of John 14:6

It’s humorous because isn’t this indoctrination as well? Sure, it is not religious in nature. But it is certainly an ideology–an ideology supposedly built on tolerance.

Tolerance?

Doesn’t this seem strange. Whenever I hear that word in social/political discourse a red flag goes up in my mind. Most of the time people claim to be so enlightened and intellectual while manifesting the very same characteristics they supposedly stand against.

What do I mean?

This whole premise of promoting human rights under the guise of tolerance and freedom (from stuff) is done so through promoting intolerance of certain views and ideologies. You know, for the ‘greater good’ and all. By mandating through law, they wish to bar certain viewpoints and actually limit freedom.

It is so blatantly contradictory. It shocks me that it goes relatively unnoticed in these arguments.

Here’s what I say. Mamma mia, let’s ALL mind our own business and stop telling other people how to live! Live and let live. Yes, I teach my children about God. THAT is actually my human right and THE human right that I should be able to exercise as I see fit, even if someone doesn’t like it.

Get out of my home and my business…MYOB. Everyone is happier that way!

*On a side note, I also think this is funny for another reason. ABBA means father in Hebrew. It is a
reference and reverence for God. It’s what Jesus called God..