He grew up with his family in a free church. When David Liljedal from Lund met his boyfriend in a church in Malmö and when they became a couple, there were consequences.

"For example, you can't be in a leading position if you live openly as a homosexual," says David Liljedal.

Not allowed to lead the choir

David Liljedal lives an active life. He is politically active as a Center Party member of the regional council and the education committee in Lund municipality. Under the auspices of the Free Church, he became a choir director and held Bible studies.

"I'm not allowed to do that anymore, then I'm not an example to the church and they don't want others to emulate me, so to speak.

What do you think about that?

"I think it's discriminatory. In Sweden, it should not be allowed to happen like this, says David Liljedal.

SVT has reached out to the Free Church for comment.

Hear more about David Liljedal's story and why he still stays in the church in the feature above.

In a new study, Malmö University has investigated how LGBTQ people are treated in Christian free churches:

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"LGBTQ people have been treated very badly in many free church congregations," says Charlotta Carlström, researcher at Malmö University. Photo: Linda Ekström