4 Dissertationen und Habilita- tionen / Dissertations and Ha- bilitations

REZENSIONEN BOOK REVIEW
had more applicants than could be accepted. Oslo
University and the Islamic Council Norway are also
discussing how to develop BA and MA programs in
Islamic studies, suitable for imams but open for all
students (utrop.no, 4 mars 2009).
In Sweden, the transition from a mono-cultural society
with a dominating Lutheran state church to a
multi-cultural and multi-religious society led to the
separation between church and state in 2000. Before
2000, the Lutheran priests were educated at theology-
and religious studies programs designed and provided
by the state universities, and complemented by a oneyear
pastoral and confessional training provided by
the church. Since 2000, the state can no longer make
requirements concerning training of priests, and in
2007 the university priest exam was abolished. However,
state universities continue to offer courses in
theology, and currently the bulk of the one-year ‘confessional’
training that used to be provided by the
church has been taken over by the university departments
of theology and religious studies. Paradoxically,
the universities today thus provide more of the
‘confessional’ pastoral training than before 2000. This
has generated a sharply polarised debate about the desirability
of the church’s involvement in university
programs (DN.se, 2 June 2009).
Onto this scene entered the Swedish Muslim organisations
with a request to the government that education
programs for imams be introduced at university
or intermediate levels, but excluding the theological
and confessional parts of the training, which they
want to be provided by Muslim teachers or institutions.
One of the organisations’ arguments was that
since priests are educated at state universities, imams
should have the same opportunity. The Swedish ministry
of education responded by requesting a public
investigation in May 2008, to be finished by June
2009.
The results are published in the report – The State
and the Imams: Religion, integration, autonomy. The
principal investigator is Erik Amnå, professor of political
science at Örebro University with special expertise
in democracy and civil society, in cooperation
with the two investigation secretaries Dr. Göran Larsson,
religious studies at Gothenburg University, and
Dr. Pia Brundin, political science at Örebro University.
Larsson in particular has broad expertise in researching
Islamic institutions in Sweden. These qualifications
on the part of the investigating team are
clearly manifested in the report, which is commendably
accessible and informative.
The report consists of six chapters, with appendices
(the government directive; questionnaires; list of
meetings and organisations involved in the investigation;
and material concerning imam education in
Europe). Chapter 1 presents the background, main
questions, delimitations, and methodology of the investigation.
The government directive defines the investigation’s
three objectives:
(1) to survey the needs for national education programs
for imams as expressed by Muslim organisations;
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(2) to survey and analyse the needs of currently
practising and future imams for various educational
efforts concerning Swedish language and society as
well as theological education within the systems of
higher and intermediate education;
(3) to assess if the already existing educational opportunities
could meet the needs for imam education
(pp. 111; 115).
121 imams of different national backgrounds and Islamic
traditions and schools have been involved in the
investigation. These are estimated to constitute around
one third of the active imams in Sweden.
Chapter 2 provides a historical outline of Sweden’s
development from the sixteenth century’s national
unification on the religious basis of the Lutheran state
church, through the emergence of the free churches in
the nineteenth century, the acceptance of Jewish citizens
in 1870, and the religious freedom act of 1951,
to an increasingly multi-religious and multi-cultural
society. Today Sweden’s religious ‘market’ consists
of a range of Christian churches and denominations,
Jewish, Hindu, Buddhist, Sikh, Zoroastrian and Islamic
communities, as well as several new religious
movements.
Chapter 3 presents the Swedish imams, against a
historical background of Muslim immigration and the
establishment of Swedish Muslim organisations from
the 1970’s onwards. This is followed by another trajectory
of how the expectations on imams are changing
in Europe, from the traditional role as prayer
leader and moral-spiritual-‘legal’ guide towards that
of a modern priest and chaplain, whose numerous social
responsibilities require knowledge about the law
and the values, regulations and functions of public institutions.
Against this background the data gathered
from the imams is presented. The vast majority are
trained in Turkey (47 of 102 answering), followed by
Bosnia (10), Saudi Arabia (9), Iraq (7) and Jordan (7)
(p. 42). The main results of the questionnaires are that
imams (even those with long educations from Islamic
countries) are strongly in favour of national education
programs (94 of 116), and perceive a need for further
education in Swedish law (81 of 90); Islamic theology
(31 of 90); Swedish history and society (68 of 90);
conflict management and family counselling (61 of
90); management and leadership (38 of 90); Swedish
language (75 of 90); spiritual counselling (31 of 90);
and religious dialogue (43 of 90) (pp. 46–47). According
to the report, the results of meetings with the
Muslim organisations complicate the imams’ responses,
because there is considerable disagreement
over how best to provide the education they all agree
is needed, and the majority want Islamic theology to
be provided by Muslim organisations or through studies
abroad.
Chapter 4 surveys the existing educational opportunities.
Swedish language for immigrants is provided
by Swedish municipalities, and sometimes combined
with professional training courses. A course for newly
immigrated religious leaders could be designed, including
both language and the other requested subjects.
Sweden also provides a wide variety of relevant