Norway is a country of great contradictions. Modern progressive liberal thinking and the deep centuries-old national and religious tradition are present at the same time. The national day, Independence Day, was on May 17, when the whole country dresses in ancient traditional national costumes, from children to adults, and everyone marches.

This is the day of the Constitution, which was signed in 1814. The national flag is hoisted in every house and on the balcony of every apartment. The schoolchildren dress up by class and march with flags, the adults cheer and watch them, the royal couple leaves their "palace", the TV channels broadcast the big event from morning to night. Everyone has the national flag in their hands. They celebrate the day when they became independent from the Danes and Swedes and created their own Constitution.

On this day, everyone eats and drinks the traditional national food: champagne, strawberries and world best. The latter is a delicious cake called: the best in the world. This day is followed by another day off, the feast of Jesus' ascension. In addition, there will be confirmation day (Protestant holiday), which affects all young people who have reached the age of 15, which is preceded by a year of preparation. On this day, the children receive their expensive national costumes, which they will wear throughout their lives on national holidays.

Not so long ago, the evangelical religion was still the state religion (until 2012), today it is possible to be baptized or not baptized, in this case, the child will have a civil confirmation. However, the Norwegian Constitution states that Norway's values ​​are based on the country's Christian and humanist values. Of the 5 million Norwegians, 4 million are evangelical. The vast majority of the 100,000 Catholics are immigrants. The state still supports the church today, the pastors are employed in public service. The Norwegian kingdom is the official form of government, the royal family can only be Lutheran. While the Szocdem Labor Party governs in coalition with the Socialist Left since 2021. Before that, the Conservative Party ruled for 8 years. The national tradition, the traditions of Christianity, and left-wing and liberal thinking are together.

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There are discussions about the kingdom, Christian traditions, and the traditions of "leaving" exams. For example, about the antlers before the big final exams, which is an age-old tradition. Before the big exams, it is customary for the kids to rent a bus and party there for a month, drink alcohol, dance, and who knows what else, after that they go to the exam. This is what national debates are raging about these days.

The Norwegian media and government, on the other hand, are united in their assessment of our country, which is the same as the distortions appearing in the Western press. No wonder, since our left-wing, liberal opposition tells the Western press why the Hungarian right-wing, Christian government must be condemned. We are well aware of the false accusations: there is no democracy here, there is dictatorship and corruption, the government only obstructs the functioning of the EU and is pro-Russian. The dispute between the Norwegian Civil Support Fund (NTCA) and the Hungarian government, which lasted for many years, is well-known, because the Norwegians only wanted to support anti-government, politicized, and progressive liberal domestic NGOs. Norway is not a member of the EU (NATO, yes) but enjoys the same economic benefits, which is why it pays catch-up money.

His thinking is in line with Brussels' liberal principles, including the acceptance of migrants. Pride, gender, LGBTQ are all welcome, in the center of Oslo, rainbow ties beckon. We cannot forget that the debate between the NCTA and our government was still under the power of the Conservative Party. The elimination of "hate speech" from the Norwegian press has been going on for more than a decade. Special people are employed for this. And we know what the developed West means by hate speech. Suffice it to say that marriage is the union of a man and a woman, this is the biggest offense.

Verdens beste, which could also be a symbol of national tradition? Or progressive liberalism? Which is the real face of Norway?

Perhaps it was the "best in the world" as long as it preserved its national and Christian traditions and its progressive liberal face did not exist.

The full article can be read here.

Author: Katalin Pók

(Header image: image: Shutterstock )