The tweet from last December said: "Announcement! Jesus of Nazareth has now appointed one of his successors, Greta Thunberg."
Lucka 1❄️
— Limhamns kyrka (@Limhamnskyrka) December 1, 2018
Kungörelse! Jesus från Nasaret har nu utsett en av sina efterträdare, nämligen Greta Thunberg.
The tweet has gained recent popularity since Thunberg has been in the spotlight this year with her fiery speeches warning against global warming.
In an impassioned speech at the UN climate action summit, the 16-year-old, who has inspired a global climate strike movement, told delegates they would never be forgiven if they failed to tackle rising temperatures.
"People are suffering, people are dying, entire ecosystems are collapsing, we are in the beginning of a mass extinction and all you can talk about is money and the fairy tale of endless economic growth. How dare you?"
The church's tweet was met with some sarcastic and humorous responses, while others bashed the Church.
Ska ni nu överge firandet av Jesu födelsedag och börja fira Greta Thunbergs födelsedag istället? Vi medlemmar måste ju veta vem som är frälsaren vi ska tillbe och hylla.
— Stephen Utterström (@StephenUtter) December 2, 2018
One person tweeted: "Time and time again I ask myself: when was the Swedish church kidnapped by left-wing extremists?"
Gång på gång frågar jag mig själv: när blev svenska kyrkan kidnappad av vänsterextremister?
— Anton Roos (@AntonRoos1) December 2, 2018
After being inactive for five days after the tweet, the Church apologised at the time for the statement and announced it would leave the social media platform.
It tweeted: "Dear Twitter, if we have hurt someone we apologise, it has never been our opinion. Our sense has been to talk about Jesus Christ in our own way. Now we leave the arena. Thank you for your commitment, joy and debate. God bless you! Jonas Persson, ward pastor."
The Church of Sweden Malmo has been known to be big supporters of climate change awareness. Most recently it announced it would ring their church bells in conjunction with the Global Climate Strike.
It also said on its website: "When the Amazon burns, we gather to fight for Mother Earth together."
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