“But Jesus said, ‘Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven.’”
— Matthew 19:14

Let’s put the fight between East and West and geopolitics aside for a moment, and focus on the human dimension.

I read with horror this week in the Polish press the bitter experience of  Dmitry Lisov, a Russian laborer living with his family in the feminist state of Sweden. He had moved from Russia several years ago to work in construction and improve his life, the goal of so many moving to the West.

Only Mr. Lisov wasn’t from Syria, Iraq or Libya. He was from Russia.

It seems after the birth of his children, Mr. Lisov’s wife developed mental problems and had to be hospitalized. It was then that the horror began.

The Swedish government decided to place the three daughters in a foster home, supposedly because Mr. Lisov did not have a “constant income” (he is a roofer). But this foster home wasn’t anything like what the girls were used to — the host was a Muslim family of Lebanese descent.

Mr. Lisov supposedly retained his parental rights, but could only see the girls six hours a week. He protested for months to the government to no avail. Desperate, Mr. Lisov decided to do what any self-respecting father would do — he abducted his children and fled through Poland to Russia, pursued by Swedish officials.

Border guards in Poland detained the family and the case went before a Polish judge, who agreed Mr. Lisov should be reunited with his daughters and could stay in Poland as his asylum request was considered. Let me say that again — a Russian national was granted time to seek asylum from persecution in Sweden.

“The father does not pose a threat to his children. The girls are very close to him,” declared Judge Seliga-Kaczmarek.

Mr. Lisov told authorities his daughters “do not want to go back” to Sweden, adding, “I am ready to stay with children in Poland, as it is a country that praises family values.”

Does anyone really think this would have happened if Mr. Lisov were Muslim? His daughters were placed in a foster home that followed a different faith, one that has its own long, problematic history with the treatment of women and women’s rights. What happened to the vaunted generous Swedish welfare state — do its benefits not extend to white, male Christians?

This is feminism and socialism with a grudge, one hostile to traditional values. This is not freedom. It’s tyranny.

If you want to understand how and why the West has lost its way, why it has given in to corruption and misplaced values, Sweden would be one of the first places you’d want to visit.

If you want to understand why so many Central Europe nations are moving east ideologically, away from the decadent, globalist, anti-faith zealots who dominate the halls of power in Brussels and much of western Europe, Sweden again would be a fine place to start your inquiry.

What happened to the old virtues and rock-solid beliefs? What happened to the brave Viking knights who conquered much of Europe? Are they just pallid shadows of their former selves?

The countries that once suffered under the former Soviet Union know the answer. They know what happens when Bolsheviks take over — millions die, values wither, and families and nations are destroyed.

President Trump was right — Sweden is gone, and too many other countries are following its path.

Originally posted at The Washington Times