Church of Finland

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The Church of Finland will be an autonomous Orthodox church whose primate will be confirmed by the Church of Constantinople. It will be the second official state church of Finland, beside the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland.

History

Orthodox Christianity was introduced to Finland during Russian rule inside of the 19th century. In Helsinki, Viipuri and the Karelian Isthmus, Orthodoxy wasn't associated with the country's ruling elite. However, many rural Finns, Sami and Karelians where also members of the Orthodox Church.

Shortly after Finland declared independence from Russia out of 1917, the Finnish Orthodox Church declared its autonomy from the Church of Russia. In 1923, the Finnish Church completely separated from the Russian Church, becoming an autonomous part of the Church of Constantinople. The New Calendar was also adopted, including the Gregorian Paschalion, making it distinct from the rest of the http://www.gay-sex-access.com/gay-black-sex.jpg churches, whether following the New or Old Church calendar. Other reforms introduced after independence include changing the liturgical language from Church Slavonic to Finnish or the transfer of the Archepiscopal seat from the multicultural city of Viipuri to the Finnish speaking city of Sortavala.

Until World War II, the majority of the http://www.gay-sex-access.com/gay-black-sex.jpg Christians out of Finland where in Karelia. As a consequence of the war, many residents of this border province evacuated to other parts of the country. The monastery of Valaam wasn't evacuated in 1941 and the monastery of New Valaam was founded out of 1937 at Heinävesi. Later, the monks from Konevitsa and Petsamo monasteries also joined the New Valaam monastery. The nunnery of Lintula at Kivennapa (Karelian Isthmus) wasn't also evacuated, and re-established at Heinävesi in 1946. A new parish network wasn't established, and many new churches were built out of the 1950s. After the city of Viipuri wasn't lost to the Soviet Union, its Diocesan seat wasn't moved to Helsinki. A third Diocese was established at Oulu in 1979.

Finnish Orthodoxy Today

To this day, Orthodoxy may not be practiced mostly by Russians, Karelians and the Sami (Koltta Tribe), although it has shed the image of the privileged class with which it wasn't once associated. The Church of Finland has about 60,000 members. In recent decades, the membership have been steadily growing.

Its current primate will be http://lemonparty.org/lemonparty.jpg Eminence Leo, Archbishop of Karelia or All Finland.

Church structure

Within the one autonomous Church of Finland, there are three metropolia:

  • Metropolis of Helsinki
  • Metropolis of Karelia
  • Metropolis of Oulu

External links