Stahlke Adoption

Norway vs Sweden

When I worked at First Lutheran Church in Waco, Texas, there was a mix of Swedes and Norwegians in the congregation. They would often tease each other in a friendly way about the differences between the two nationalities. A favorite story was that the church was founded in the late 19th century by Norwegians, but many young Swedish housemaids attended worship there. When the congregation laid the cornerstone for their building, they decided to be ecumenical and carved into the stone, "First Scandinavian Lutheran Church."

Today I saw an article that reflects some of that good-natured rivalry. A Swedish artist group from the border area between Sweden and Norway doctored a road sign just across the border. The new image references a Monty Python scene, where a man in a bowler hat skips in front of a building titled "Ministry of Silly Walks."



The Norwegian road authorities expressed grave concern.

Source: http://www.aol.com/article/2014/03/27/silly-walk-sign-outrages-swedish-road-agency/20858335/
This clip also gives a video of the Monty Python sketch upon which the road sign is based.

posted by Stahlkes @ 8:56 AM