Religion and the Danish Royal Family


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Empress said:
Well Madame Royale, I think that most of us are looking at it as a habit, especially if they've done it several years in a row. It doesn't bother me in the least that they are not so interested in religion, but if they are going to make the pretense of going at all, then they should have the respect and courtesy to stay for the entirety of the service.

It is disrespectful and disruptive to those that are there out of genuine belief to get up and leave in the middle of a service.

It is also hypocritical to go at all for appearances sake, only to leave halfway through. If you go, you should stay, or stay away. I just don't think that it is acceptable in any society to leave in the middle of anything, especially something as solemn and serious as a church service.
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Damn straight..... I dont mind so much prince Henrik i am not sure what religion he was before he married, there may be religious reasons as to why he does not take communion. But i am a catholic and the communion is the point of the celebration in our church. Though some of my family and friends do not receive for reasons of their own, still they attend mass and stay till the end. WHY GO if you are not there till the end Fred is supposed to be the Head of the Danish Church when his mother dies. (That is my understanding of it at least)
A close friend of mine was forced to chose between her religion and the man she loved and i remember her father saying to her for some people religion is an appearnce not a way of life. If Denmark is ok with a secular monarchy thats great for them I believe in freedom of religion but if you attend the ceremony have the courtesy to wait for the finish of it.
At my fathers funeral there were many people who came out of respect for him who came from many religions and for them it was their first time in a christian church let alone a catholic one. Some just sat and stood at the approriate times as was their right, some sat not understanding english and the priest. Others took communion even though they were of different faiths. Some stood outside the churchyard fearing their prescence would be an offence ( i was sorry i had not explained our faith to them better). I do not practice my religion to the best of my ability but I thank each and every person who attends a religious service and conducts themselves with courtesy. I have attended muslim, buddhist and jewish ceremonies and though lacking the language and knowledge of custom have attempted not to offend and been successful. Please dont think im preaching but courtesty costs nothing. My respect for the Crown prince and his family is severely decreased by this report.

Duke of Marmalade said:
I agree here - they should have shown up. In total I find this attitude a bit careless, go there, not stay until the end and leave waving (Mary) even more when keeping in mind that QM is the head of the National Church (to be succeeded by Fred some day). That fur coat of Mary's is horrible, it's that old ladys' fur, astrakhan. She can still wear it when she's 80. Fred is greying out more and more and becomes a lookalike of Ari Behn :ohmy:
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Better not to go than bugger off after the photos and disrupt other peoples prayers.
 
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I thought the article that I read said they stayed for the two hour service and only left before communion. There was a long line up for communion and there was to be a baptism as well.
Mary had stayed with the Queen, the last time.
Maybe the men have a reason that cannot take communion, and maybe the children especially the youngest needed Mary.
 
Her_Majesty said:
So, if the Danish Royals aren't that religious: No problem.
But they should decide either to go to church and stay until the end or just stay away.
But it's just respectless to leave in the middle of the church service.
Especially towards the preacher!
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Isn't the Queen the head of the Danish Lutheran Church? So in that way I suppose it would be a problem if she wasn;t religious.

They probably had a good reason why they left, maybe somebody felt ill? Can't imagine any other reason why people would leave early, unless the sermon would have been rather disturbing.
 
Well, apparently they all seemed happy when they left, smiling and waving to the crowd.

Also, they appear to have done this the past couple of years if I am reading correctly. So that is a very convenient illness and quickly over if it is indeed an illness.
 
Gosh I don’t understand what the big deal is; they went to the service and stayed to the end, until communion. They chose not to partake in communion for their own reasons and left. It is not like the sneaked out the back door just after they arrived. Some of the Royal family did the same thing at Christmas time and I don’t remember anyone been outraged by it, of course Mary’s outfit was the main topic of concern then :rolleyes:
 
Amelia said:
Gosh I don’t understand what the big deal is; they went to the service and stayed to the end, until communion. They chose not to partake in communion for their own reasons and left. It is not like the sneaked out the back door just after they arrived. Some of the Royal family did the same thing at Christmas time and I don’t remember anyone been outraged by it, of course Mary’s outfit was the main topic of concern then :rolleyes:
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I agree. So what if they don't want to stay the entire service? I can hardly stand the 1 hour services, I can't imagine 2 hours.
 
^ ^ But they did stay till the end of the service, communion is at the very end of the service and if I am not mistaken in Evangelical Lutherain Church not every one partakes in communion.
 
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Mandy said:
The Easter service discussion about Henrik, Frederik and Mary has been moved into its own thread called Religious Habits of the Danish Royal Family Members. Enjoy! :flowers:

Mandy
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The Scandinavian Royals Message Board: Re: Danish royals attending Arhus cathedral

Sadly this tread is closed, though I still want to post the following comment I've found at the SRMB made by the Dane Martin C.

"The church service ends before the communion takes place. There is played "godbye-music" and if one does not attend to recieve the communion it is quite normal to leave. Prince Henrik never accepts communion. I don't know about Frederik and Mary. "

Sorry to say it. It's so easy to judge other people harshly with no or simple not enough knowledge. I hope we all will never come under the horoscope of a certain kind of media or some members of some message boards. The last sentence isn't meant to criticise the participants of the thread in question. It's much more meant as a general statement, sometimes I can't believe what halfway intelligent people are willed to post on message boards.
 
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Hello Binz,

Perhaps the confusion comes from this: In most christian religions, the church service is not considered over until after communion. I know that in the Catholic mass, there is still about 10 minutes or so of service left after communion. Perhaps it is different in the Danish Lutheran Church.
 
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Empress said:
Hello Binz,

Perhapps the confusion comes from this: In most christian religions, the church service is not considered over until after communion. I know that in the Catholic mass, there is still about 10 minutes or so of service left after communion. Perhaps it is different in the Danish Lutheran Church.
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It is different in the Danish Lutheran Church. Communion takes place after the church service is over. So, when attending a danish church service, the majority of churchgoers leaves before communion. Only if you have got a very special and personal reason for participating in the communion you stay.

So, when members of the royal family leave church before communion, they are doing exactly what is in accordance with danish church tradition. This might (as some posters on this thread have written) seem rude when compared with other religions - but within the danish lutheran church it is simply the way things are done.
 
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It's much more meant as a general statement, sometimes I can't believe what halfway intelligent people are willed to post on message boards.
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But hey, at least it created some sort of discussion even though some may not agree with the primary issue.

On the otherhand, I'm appalled that none of the ladies wore giant Easter service [URL="http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k69/KateGT/5zohwn7.jpg"]hats!![/URL] I mean, where is the respect?!


:D
 
GlitteringTiaras said:
But hey, at least it created some sort of discussion even though some may not agree with the primary issue.

On the otherhand, I'm appalled that none of the ladies wore giant Easter service hats!! I mean, where is the respect?!


:D
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ahh that pic brings back memories of the hats my mom used to make my sister and I wear for Easter Mass.....which she used to decorate herself with the biggest fake flowers she could find! :)
 
Really? That's cool. I love looking at all the big Easter hats; some of the ladies look fierce, and you know they are trying to out style each other in the end.:)

By the way, thank you Lilla and Binz for your informative information; I appreciate it:flowers:.
 
Lilla said:
Easter hats?
Are you only joking - or is this a tradition in your part of the world? I have never heard of easterhats beeing a part of the eastercelibrations i Danmark - pity if could be fun. Though I can't imagine Mary wearing a hat like the one on the photo.
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In African-American chruches it's tradition for ladies to dawn hats, and in some of these churches the women, without verbally stating it, like to out do each other. On Easter, these fabulous ladies go all out, and it's great to see what they will wear. It's like a religious fashion show...[url=http://www.blackvoices.com/blogs/2008/03/21/church-hats-sisters-step-out-in-style/]Here[/URL] is a link with some information.

:)
 
I have never seen that before either.... Quite interesting. Where does this tradition come from?
 
Lilla said:
It is different in the Danish Lutheran Church. Communion takes place after the church service is over. So, when attending a danish church service, the majority of churchgoers leaves before communion. Only if you have got a very special and personal reason for participating in the communion you stay.

So, when members of the royal family leave church before communion, they are doing exactly what is in accordance with danish church tradition. This might (as some posters on this thread have written) seem rude when compared with other religions - but within the danish lutheran church it is simply the way things are done.
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I am surprise at what do you say, I grow up going to in the Danish Church in Argentina, and it was rude if soembody left the church before the service and the communion was done!
 
ashelen said:
I am surprise at what do you say, I grow up going to in the Danish Church in Argentina, and it was rude if soembody left the church before the service and the communion was done!
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Key word, Argentina.

The church may be Danish by distant tradition, but the farther away it is from it's roots the easier it is for them to take on their own traditions. Hence they are connected, yet they are different in the smallest aspects. For example, a Southern Baptist church in Alabama is different vastly different than a Southern Baptist church in Orange County, California. Same church. Different location. Services adjusted to fit the local congregation. So it seems that this could and does apply to the Danish church in Denmark compared to the Danish church in Aregentina.

:)
 
Binz said:
. . . . ."The church service ends before the communion takes place. There is played "godbye-music" and if one does not attend to recieve the communion it is quite normal to leave. Prince Henrik never accepts communion. I don't know about Frederik and Mary. "
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Binz, thank you for your calm, reasoned and educational post.:graduate:
Binz said:
Sorry to say it. It's so easy to judge other people harshly with no or simple not enough knowledge. . . . . . . sometimes I can't believe what halfway intelligent people are willed to post on message boards.
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Ouch!! A well-deserved hit. :doh:

I think many people like me have been seeing the situation through the eyes of our own particular church experience. Your post, and others like it have really been an education in "look before you leap". Mea Culpa. :flowers:

GlitteringTiaras said:
On the otherhand, I'm appalled that none of the ladies wore giant Easter service [URL="http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k69/KateGT/5zohwn7.jpg"]hats!![/URL] I mean, where is the respect?!
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Whowa. :eek:

That thing would definitely frighten the horses!!! If it was in front of me in church I would lose the plot and be utterly fixated on it. I am having nightmares just thinking of a church full of 'Easter Bonnets'. . . . no please noooo! :shock: :lol:

ps: I think it's a matter of life imitating art a la Fred Astair's "Easter Parade". Now there's a movie with hats!! :in_love:
 
Binz, thank you for the education! A reminder that we need to understand other cultures before applying our own values.

I also remember ancient priests yelling at people who tried to slip out before or during communion. As for the hats, I remember when they were a lovely requirement. Those were the days..sniff:verysad:
 
Gaia said:
Binz, thank you for the education! A reminder that we need to understand other cultures before applying our own values.
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You are quite right, Gaia. I found it interesting to learn the difference and cultural traditions... I hope one day I can learn more. Again, thanks Binz and Lilla.

:)
 
GlitteringTiaras said:
In African-American chruches it's tradition for ladies to dawn hats, and in some of these churches the women, without verbally stating it, like to out do each other. On Easter, these fabulous ladies go all out, and it's great to see what they will wear. It's like a religious fashion show...[URL="http://www.blackvoices.com/blogs/2008/03/21/church-hats-sisters-step-out-in-style/"]Here[/URL] is a link with some information.

:)
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This is 1, 000% correct! :ROFLMAO: Brings back alot of memories! Actually the hats shown are VERY TAME compared to what I grew up seeing.

GlitteringTiaras said:
I have no idea, but I'll ask my girlfriend.
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Basically, it's just for showing off. Everyone (especially the older ladies) parading up and down the pews greeting people before and after church. In reality they're making sure you see their new outfit/hat.

I guess it got out of hand over the decades. Alot of preachers mention it in their sermons, how most people don't go to church all year only to show up Easter Sunday in their new clothes and hats. We neve wore them personally but it was..and still is..quite a show.
 
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Lilla said:
It is different in the Danish Lutheran Church. Communion takes place after the church service is over.
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So that makes it perfectly understandable that they left, if they did not wish to receive communion.

I'm Evangelical Lutheran here in America, and we do communion like that sometimes, where you may stay for communion if you wish after the service is done, or you can go eat a breakfast the church provided.
 
GlitteringTiaras said:
In African-American chruches it's tradition for ladies to dawn hats, and in some of these churches the women, without verbally stating it, like to out do each other. On Easter, these fabulous ladies go all out, and it's great to see what they will wear. It's like a religious fashion show...[URL="http://www.blackvoices.com/blogs/2008/03/21/church-hats-sisters-step-out-in-style/"]Here[/URL] is a link with some information.
:)
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Thanks for the link Glittering Tiaras. I wish this was a tradition where I live as well. It could be fun to make hats like that and looking at all the hats others would be wearing. But well - I will just have to go visiting your country during the easter-hollydayes and attend church-service in an African-American church.
 
I find it very interesting that one of our forum members reports that Prince Henrik "never" takes communion. That's news to me.

Does anyone know if he considers himself to be a practicing Lutheran or a lapsed Catholic?

Also, outside of HM Margrethe, are other members of the DRF weekly church goers?

Cheers!
 
The Monarchy and the church

The Queen is head of the Danish church (Folkekirken) and at sermons the priest always (?) prays for the royal family (or at least the queen).

However, I was looking into High Mass in the catholic church in Denmark.
They pray for the government - but not for the queen (apparantly).
Why is that? I know the queen is protestant - but so is the government.

As a monarchist I found myself taking (slight) offense to this.
As an atheist I found it remarkable that I would care - but I suppose it's my monarchist convictions :lol:

Anyone here know why the catholich church doesn't pray for the queen?

How about other religions - or branches of christianity (LDS, JW etc.)
 
Yes, the priest in Folkekirken always prays for the queen :)
 
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