Birgitta Trotzig och det katolska : att tro är att välja

Birgitta Trotzig (1929-2011), one of Sweden’s most influential modernist writers, characterized herself as a religious author. Investigating her autobiographical comments in interviews, essays, radio programmes etc., the article attempts to reconstruct her own fundamental theology. Swedish literary scholars usually define Trotzig’s religiosity as a kind of mysticism. This article argues, however, that her attitude towards faith was remarkably rational. As reflected in the analysed material, her personal creed evolved following a sequence of five intellectual choices. First, Trotzig dissociated herself from atheism and agnosticism, choosing to live as a believer. Secondly, she rejected all religions worshipping non-personal beings and chose Christianity and its faith in a personal God. She then repudiated Protestantism and the Church of Sweden and chose the old churches because of their rich theological and liturgical tradition. Fourth, she distanced herself from certain aspects of Orthodox spirituality and chose Roman Catholicism as her confession. In the fifth and final step, she renounced the official, conservative Catholic dogmatism and chose the progressive, left-leaning Catholic movements, closely connected to the new Catholic French theology, la nouvelle théologie. The article thoroughly elucidates the rational arguments formulated by Trotzig to justify her five religious choices.