My intention with writing this essay is to find out how and in what way the priests in the Allhelgona Church in Stockholm use or are influenced by the ideas of C. G. Jung. This could be in their theology, their sermons or in their private counselling with members of the church. I have gathered a few interviews for this essay with the priests Olle Carlsson and Mary Philipsson which I have then analyzed and drawn conclusions from. Finally I make an assessment of the information and also see what problems may arise out of incorporating Jungian themes into a Christian atmosphere.

The main purpose of this study is to find out how active clerics within the Church of Sweden experience working under the clerical vow of silence, which is mandatory for all clerical members practising individual pastoral care within the church organisation. Another purpose is to find out whether there are any occurring ethical or moral dilemmas related to the clerics’ experiences of their vow of silence. This study was conducted using semi-structured qualitative interviews with seven clerics from different parishes, mainly from the Stockholm region, with a minimum of five years of clerical work experience. The participants were asked how they regard the clerical vow of silence and if they ever considered breaking the vow during their careers. Furthermore, the participants were asked how the clerical vow of silence affects their everyday lives. The applied method for this study is the narrative analysis with a thematic approach, as described by Riessman (2008). This resulted in five recurrent main themes deriving from the interviewees answers to our main questions. Our result implies that the participants regard the clerical vow of silence as important, albeit being described as difficult to contain and cope with, thus giving rise to morally and ethically related dilemmas for some of the participants. / Huvudsyftet med denna studie är att ta reda på hur yrkesverksamma präster inom Svenska kyrkan upplever att arbeta med den absoluta tystnadsplikten, som omfattar Svenska kyrkans präster inom den enskilda själavården. Ytterligare ett syfte är att ta reda på huruvida det uppstår etiska eller moraliska dilemman i samband med deras erfarenheter av den absoluta tystnadsplikten. Genom semistrukturerade kvalitativa intervjuer har dessa utförts med sju präster från olika församlingar i Sverige, främst i Stockholmsregionen, under förutsättningen att de har varit yrkesverksamma i minst fem år. Informanterna har tillfrågats hur de betraktar den absoluta tystnadsplikten och om de någonsin har funderat kring att bryta den. Vidare har informanterna även frågats hur den absoluta tystnadsplikten påverkar dem i deras vardagsliv. Genom att använda Riessmans (2008) tematiska narrativa analys har fem huvudteman uppkommit. Dessa teman utgör resultat utifrån informanternas svar kopplade till studiens frågeställningar. Resultatet visar att informanterna upplever den absoluta tystnadsplikten som meningsfull, samtidigt som den beskrivs som svårhanterlig och således har givit upphov till etiska och moraliska dilemman för vissa av informanterna.

Contemporary pastoral care appears to both ignore queer theological advancements and to have lost its heritage in Luther`s pastoral care theology.This study aims to investigate which aspects of Lutheran theology can be denoted queer, and thereby of particular relevance for pastoral care undertaken by the Church of Sweden in today's rainbow-aware context. Thus, the study intends to contribute to deepening understanding of contemporary contextual pastoral care, by bringing together two theoretical areas, Lutheran theology and Queer theology, to inform and develop new approaches to pastoral care needs and interventions. A literature review provides the basis for theory-driven analysis that is qualitatively inductive.The main finding of this study identifies the social dimension of both approaches as being vital for contemporary pastoral care. Luther`s social theology for example emphases the social vulnerability of human beings and their experiences of oppressive social systems. This emphasis is also a driving force in Queer theology. Both perspectives also challenge us not only to actively counter experienced social inequality but also to undertake the care of those in need. The work reported in this thesis demonstrates the potential of such an approach for bringing forth certain aspects of Lutheran theology as queer, not only in a broader sense, but in particular for the development of theological and pastoral care encounters for a new era and a new societal situation involving individuals in existential crises. This study thus provides a foundation for a pastoral care that is queer-informed and importantly, thoroughly Luther.

Spiritual care in hospitals is a well-established practice in Sweden that is justified by religious freedom. Contemporary Sweden is a multicultural society with a culturally and religiously diverse population. Since 2006, a Muslim spiritual care organization has been established in co-operation with the Swedish state. This interview study with Muslim spiritual caregivers examines how Islam is being interpreted and how Muslim spiritual care in Swedish hospitals is apprehended by the informants. By approaching Islam as a discursive tradition and combining historical and ethnological methods, this study sheds light on what aspects of Islam are considered relevant in the hospital context and it examines why that is the case. The study shows that Muslim spiritual care is regarded to be a complement to other healthcare practices. To a large extent, the care is provided by supportive conversations, Islamic counseling, as well as help with religious practices and rituals. To manage a patient’s various wants and the denominational diversity, the Muslim representatives hold that they put the patient’s and the relatives’ needs and interpretations of Islam first. The study concludes that the representatives are spiritual care professionals that are loyal to the state and the secular institutions they serve. This involves staying true to ideals of cultural and religious pluralism and equality but also knowing that these principles are subordinated to the hospital’s rules. This constructs boundaries regarding how Islam is interpreted and has to be negotiated in the efforts of making Islam a natural part of the institution.