Orthodox Church of Finland

The Orthodox Church of Finland or Finnish Orthodox

Church (Finnish: Suomen ortodoksinen kirkko, lit. 'Finnish
Orthodox Church';[2] Swedish: Ortodoxa kyrkan i Finland,
[3] Orthodox Church of
lit. 'Orthodox Church in Finland' ) is an autonomous Eastern
Orthodox archdiocese of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Finland
Constantinople. The church has a legal position as a national
church in the country, along with the Evangelical Lutheran Church
of Finland.[4]

With its roots in the medieval Novgorodian missionary work in

Karelia, the Orthodox Church of Finland was a part of the Russian
Orthodox Church until 1923. Today the church has three dioceses
and 54,895 members in Finland, accounting for almost one percent
of the native population of Finland. The parish of Helsinki has the
most adherents. There are also 2,700 members living abroad.[5]

Structure and organization

Along with the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland, the Uspenski Cathedral in Helsinki
Orthodox Church of Finland has a special position in Finnish
Type National church
law.[6] The church is considered to be a Finnish entity of public
nature. The external form of the church is regulated by an Act of Classification Eastern Orthodox
Parliament, while the spiritual and doctrinal matters of the church Polity Episcopal
are legislated by the central synod of the church. The church has
Primate Leo of Helsinki
the right to tax its members and corporations owned by its
and all Finland
members. Previously under the Russian Orthodox Church, it has
been an autonomous Orthodox archdiocese of the Patriarchate of Bishops 5
Constantinople since 1923.[7] Priests c. 140

The Orthodox Church of Finland is divided into three dioceses Dioceses 3

(hiippakunta), each with a subdivision of parishes (seurakunta). Parishes 12
There are 21 parishes with 140 priests and 57,613 members in
Monasteries 2
total, of whom 54,895 are in Finland.[8] The number of church
members has been steadily growing for several years.[9][10] A Language Finnish, Swedish,
convent and a monastery also operate within the church. Skolt Sami,
Church Slavonic,
The central legislative organ of the church is the central synod Greek
which is formed of:
Headquarters Helsinki, Finland
the bishops and coadjutor bishops, Territory Finland
eleven priests Possessions Finnish Orthodox
three cantors Parish in Sweden
eighteen laymen and laywomen
Independence 1921
(Autonomy granted
The priests and cantors elect their representatives on a diocesan from Moscow
basis, using the plurality election method. The lay representatives Patriarchate)
are elected indirectly. The nominations for representatives are 1923
made by the parish councils which also elect the electors who then (Autonomy granted
elect the lay representatives to the central synod. The central synod
from Ecumenical
elects the bishops and is responsible for the economy and the
general doctrine of the church. Patriarchate)

Recognition Autonomy
The two executive bodies of the church central administration are
granted and
the synod of bishops, responsible for the doctrinal and foreign
recognised in
affairs of the church, and the church administrative council
1923 by the
(kirkollishallitus), responsible for day-to-day management of the
church. Ecumenical
Patriarchate of
The parishes are governed by the rector and the parish council, Constantinople
which is elected in a secret election. All full-age members of the and in 1957 by
parish are eligible to vote and to be elected to the parish council. the Russian
The members of the parish have the right to refrain from being Orthodox
elected to a position of trust of the parish only if they are over 60
Church.
years of age, or have served at least eight years in a position of
trust. The parish council elects the parish board, which is Members 57,613[1]
responsible for the day-to-day affairs of the parish. Official website ort.fi (http://www.
ort.fi/)
Financially, the church is independent of the state budget. The
(in Finnish)
parishes are financed by the taxes paid by their members. The
central administration is financed through the contributions of the
parishes. The central synod decides yearly the amount of
contributions the parishes are required to make.

The special status of the Orthodox church is most visible in the

administrative processes. The church is required to conform with
the general administrative law and the decisions of its bodies may
be appealed against in the regional administrative courts. However,
the court is limited to reviewing the formal legality of the decision.
It may not overturn an ecclesiastical decision on the basis of its
unreasonableness. The decisions of the synod of bishops and the The wooden church of Sts. Peter and
central synod are not subject to the oversight of the administrative Paul in Tornio, built in 1884.
courts. In contrast, similar legal oversight of private religious
communities is pursued by the district courts.

Finnish law protects the absolute priest–penitent privilege. A

bishop, priest or deacon of the church may not divulge information
he has heard during confession or spiritual care. The identity of the
sinner may not be revealed for any purpose. However, if the priest

A contemporary St. Herman of

Alaska church in Tapiola, Espoo
(1998)
hears about a crime that is about to be committed, he is responsible for informing the authorities in such
manner that privilege is not endangered.

Dioceses and bishops

Diocese of Helsinki

The Diocese of Helsinki

Dioceses and parishes of the Finnish
Orthodox Church
has the most members, over
28,000. The Diocese of
Helsinki is the seat of the
archbishop. The diocese is
divided into three parishes,
with 50 priests. The main
church of the diocese is
Uspenski Cathedral in
Helsinki. Characteristic to
the diocese is the large
Holy Trinity Cathedral in Oulu,
number of members who
completed in 1957
have recently immigrated to
Finland, especially in the
Helsinki parish where several churches also officiate at the service
in foreign languages, including Russian, English, Greek and
Romanian.
The current bishop is Archbishop Leo (Makkonen). He was
appointed in 2018.[11]

Diocese of Kuopio and Karelia

The seat of the Bishop of Kuopio and Karelia is in Kuopio. The current bishop is Metropolitan Arseni
(Heikkinen).

The Diocese of Karelia has 19,000 church members in 5 parishes. The number of priests in the diocese is
about 45, and churches and chapels total over 80. The diocese also includes the only Orthodox monasteries
in Finland.

The Orthodox Church Museum of Finland also operates in Kuopio.[12]

Diocese of Oulu

The small Diocese of Oulu has four parishes, the largest of which is Oulu. The head of the diocese since
2015 is Metropolitan Elia (Wallgrén).

The diocese was established in 1980 and it has 6,000 members. The cathedral of the diocese is the Holy
Trinity Cathedral of Oulu. Traditionally, the Skolts, now a small minority of only 300 speakers, have been
the earliest Orthodox Christians in the Finnish Lapland. Today, they live predominantly in the Inari
parish.[13]
The Diocese of Oulu was founded as part of Archbishop Paul's (Olmari) plan to make the Finnish
Orthodox Church autocephalous. However, the autocephaly plan has now been abandoned.

Monasteries
The only Orthodox Christian monastery in Finland, New Valamo
(Valamon luostari), is situated in Heinävesi.[14] The only Orthodox
Christian convent Lintula Holy Trinity Convent (Lintulan Pyhän
Kolminaisuuden luostari) is in Palokki,[15] some 10 kilometers
away from the monastery. Both were established during World War
II when residents of the Karelian and Petsamo monasteries were
evacuated from areas ceded to the Soviet Union. With friendly
support from the Finnish Orthodox Church, a private Orthodox
Brotherhood of Protection of the Mother of God (Pokrovan veljestö
The Lintula Holy Trinity Convent
ry) has operated in Kirkkonummi since 2000, with two permanent
church
members.[16][17]

Additional organizations
The following organizations operate within or on behalf of the Orthodox Church in Finland:

Fellowship of St. Sergius and St. Herman (Pyhien Sergein ja Hermanin Veljeskunta)
Orthodox Youth Association (Ortodoksisten nuorten liitto)
Orthodox Student Association (Ortodoksinen opiskelijaliitto)
Finnish Association of Orthodox Teachers (Suomen ortodoksisten opettajien liitto ry)[18]
Orthodox Priests' Association (Ortodoksisten pappien liitto)
Orthodox Cantors' Association (Ortodoksisten kanttorien liitto)
Finnish Society of Icon Painters (Suomen ikonimaalarit ry)[19]
Filantropia ry– Orthodox Church Aid and Foreign Mission society

Orthodox missions

The Finnish Orthodox Church established its own missionary organization in 1977 known as the
Ortodoksinen Lähetys ry (Orthodox Missions). It has mainly been active in eastern Africa.[20] It later
merged with OrtAid and formed Filantropia.

Feasts
The Finnish Orthodox Church is the only Orthodox church that, to comply with national legislation,
celebrates Easter according to the Gregorian calendar. (Formerly, also the autonomous Estonian church
followed this calendar.[21][22]) Easter is the greatest feast of church year as it is with other Orthodox
churches. Also the Twelve Great Feasts are observed. Other highly observed feasts are:

Circumcision of Christ and St. Basil the Great, 1 January

Holy Martyr and Confessor John of Sonkajanranta, 8 March
St. John of Valaam, 5 June
Sts. Sergius and Herman of Valaam, 28 June
 Feast of Saints Peter and Paul, 29 June
Intercession of the Theotokos, 1 October
Holy Enlighteners of Karelia, Saturday between 31 October – 6 November
St. Nicholas the Wonderworker, 6 December, which is celebrated as same day as
Independence Day of Finland

Church architecture
Many Orthodox churches in Finland are small. The few more impressive shrines were built in the 19th
century, when Finland was an autonomous Grand Duchy in the Russian Empire, with the Orthodox
Christian Emperor as the Grand Duke of Finland. Notable churches in Helsinki from that era are the
Uspenski Cathedral (1864) and the Holy Trinity church (1826). The oldest Orthodox church in Finland is
the church of Protection of the Theotokos in Lappeenranta from 1782 to 1785.[23]

The Orthodox Church of St. Peter and St. Paul in Hamina was completed in 1837. Built in the architectural
style of Neoclassicism with some Byzantine-style elements, the exterior was designed in the form of a
round-domed temple, while the interior is cruciform. The belfry was built in 1862 in the Neo-Byzantine
style. The Orthodox church of Tampere was built in Russian romantic style, with onion style cupolas, and
was ready in 1896. The architect of the Russian army, T.U. Jasikov, drew the floor plan. The church was
consecrated in 1899 to Saint Alexander Nevsky, a Novgorodian who in 1240 fought against the Catholic
Swedes and two years later the Catholic Teutonic Knights with equal success. Emperor Nicholas II donated
the bells to this church. The church suffered heavily during the Finnish civil war in 1918; its reconstruction
took many years.[24] After Finland declared its independence, it was re-consecrated to St. Nicholas.

19th-century The St. Nicholas Church of Alexander Holy Trinity church in

Cathedral of Dormition Church in Vaasa Nevsky and Saint Helsinki, built 1826
of Theotokos (1862) Nicholas in Tampere,
(Uspenski Cathedral) built late 19th-century
in Helsinki

Church of Holy St. Nicholas Church in Church of Prophet Cathedral of St.

Apostles Peter and Joensuu (1887), Elijah in Ilomantsi, built Nicholas the
Paul in Hamina, built perhaps the most in 1892 Wonderworker in
1837 notable wooden Kuopio, built in 1904
Orthodox church in
Finland
 Church of Our Lady of Church of St. John the
Tikhvin in Viinijärvi, Baptist in Polvijärvi,
Liperi built in 1906 built in 1914

After Second World War

After the Second World War, Finland had to cede land to the Soviet Union under Paris Peace Treaties.
Almost all Orthodox churches and chapels remained on the Soviet side in Karelia and Petsamo. The
Finnish state enacted a special reconstruction law, in which it financed the construction of 14 churches and
44 chapels for the Orthodox church. The churches and chapels were modern in architecture, lacking domes
and other features typical to the Orthodox church architecture. This was mandated by the Finnish state
which strictly selected the architects. Most reconstruction era churches and chapels are designed by Ilmari
Ahonen and Toivo Paatela.
 Church of Chapel of Sts. Peter Church of sts. Church of St. Nicholas
Resurrection of Christ, and Paul, Sukeva, Aleksander Nevsky the Wonderworker in
Jyväskylä, built in Sonkajärvi, built in and John Chrysostom Rautalampi, built in
1954 and designed by 1960 and designed by in Hämeenlinna, built 1960 and designed by
Toivo Paatela Ilmari Ahonen in 1962 and designed Ilmari Ahonen
by Mika Erno

Church of Church of Chapel of Holy Church of St. Nicholas

Enlighteners of Karelia Transfiguration of apostles Peter and in Hoilola, Joensuu,
in Maaninka, Kuopio, Christ in Suonenjoki, Paul and St. Arseny of built as a chapel in
built as a chapel 1960 designed by Ilmari Konevsky in 1957 and consecrated
and designed by Ilmari Ahonen, built as a Haukipudas, Oulu, as a church in 1993
Ahonen, later chapel 1958 and designed by Ilmari
consecrated as a designed by Ilmari Ahonen, built in 1962
church Ahonen, later and demolished in
consecrated as a 2019
church

Church of St. John the

Baptist in Kemi,
designed by Ilmari
Ahonen, built as a
chapel 1962 and
designed by Ilmari
Ahonen, later
consecrated as a
church

From the 1970s to the 1990s, Karelian-type log churches and chapels were built were built in Finland with
some modern exceptions.
 Church of St. Church of Our Lady of Chapel of Chapel of St. Andrew
Nektarios of Aegina, in Kazan in Järvenpää, Transfiguration of the Apostle in Liperi,
Klaukkala, built in built in 1980 Christ in Viitasaari, built in 1973, designed
1997 and designed by built in 1989 by Vilho Suonmaa
Ritva Westermark

Chapel of the Holy Chapel of All Saints in Church of Holy Trinity

Cross in Joensuu Lohja, built in 1995 and St. Tryphon of
Orthodox cemetery, and designed by Pechenga in Nellim,
built 1986 Sakari Siitonen Inari, built as a chapel
in 1987 and
consecrated as a
church in 1988

From the 1990s, some contemporary churches have been built in large cities and towns.

Church of St. John the Chapel of Birth of Church of Ascencion

Teologian in Pori, built Theotokos in of Christ in Tikkurila,
2002 Nummela, built in Vantaa, built in 1997
1997

History
Christianity started to spread to Finland from the east in the Orthodox form and from the west in the
Catholic form at the latest in the beginning of the 12th century. Some of the earliest excavated crosses in
Finland, dating from the 12th century onward, are similar to a type found in Novgorod and Kyiv.[25]
Orthodox parishes are believed to have existed as far to the west as Tavastia, the area inhabited by
Tavastians in Central Finland.
 Some core concepts of the Christian vocabulary in the Finnish
language are supposed to be loans from early Russian, which in
turn has borrowed them from Mediaeval Greek. These include the
words for priest (pappi), cross (risti) and Bible (raamattu). This
hypothesis is, however, not unchallenged.[26]

Clash between Catholicism and E. Orthodoxy

Early Christian art in a territory
inhabited by Karelians: fresco
painted in 1167 in St. George's
church in Staraya Ladoga.
In the middle of the 13th century the inevitable clash between the
two expanding countries, Sweden and Novgorod, and the two
forms of Christianity they represented, took place. The final border
between western and eastern rulership was drawn in the Peace
Treaty of Nöteborg, in 1323. Karelia was definitely ceded to
Novgorod and E. Orthodoxy.[27]
Karelian monasteries

The main missionary work fell to the monasteries that cropped up

in the wilderness of Karelia. Two monasteries were founded on
islands in Lake Ladoga, which became famous some centuries
later: the monasteries of Valaam (Finnish: Valamo) and Konevsky
(Finnish: Konevitsa).

Karelian and Finnish forests were also populated by spiritually

advanced hermits. Often around the hermit's hut or skete, there
settled other fighters of the good fight of faith, and so a new
monastery was founded. One of the most important examples of
this process was St. Alexander of Svir (Finnish: Aleksanteri
Syväriläinen) 1449–1533. He was a Karelian who fought the fight
of faith for 13 years in Valaam monastery, but finally left it, and in
the end founded a monastery at the river of Svir.[28]
Icon from the 19th century depicting
St. Sergius and St. Herman and the
Swedish oppression old cathedral of Valaam Monastery

The 17th century was a

period of religious fanaticism and many religious wars as the newly
emerged Protestant countries fought against countries that remained
Catholic or Orthodox. At this time Sweden became a great force,
expanding both southward and eastward. In Karelia the Swedish
forces destroyed and burnt to the ground the monasteries of Valaam
and Konevsky. Monks that did not flee, were killed. Many peasants
met the same fate.

The Lutheran state church of Sweden tried to convert the Orthodox

A small chapel, tsasouna, built in the
population. They were not allowed to obtain priests from Russia,
traditional Karelian style at the New
which meant, in the long run, that they did not have priests at all.
Valamo Monastery.
As Lutheranism was the only legal religion in Sweden, to be an
Orthodox was a handicap in many ways. About two-thirds of the
Orthodox population fled to Central Russia from under the oppression. They formed the population of Tver
Karelia.[29] The Swedish state encouraged Lutheran Finns to occupy the deserted farms in Karelia. This
massive flight of Orthodox Finns away from Finland meant that Eastern Orthodoxy was never again the
main religion of any part of Finland. However, in the remoter areas of Eastern Finland and Karelia, like
Ilomantsi, the Eastern Orthodox Christianity survived.[30]

Reunion with the Russian Orthodox Church

The period of the grandiose expansion of Sweden met its limits in two wars: the Great Northern War which
ended in the Treaty of Nystad in 1721 and the Hat's War (1741–43) with the Treaty of Turku in 1743.
Sweden lost all its provinces in the Baltic region, and a portion of eastern Finland to Russia.[31]

The Valaam Monastery was re-established in Lake Ladoga, and a new main church was consecrated in
1719. Monks returned to Konevsky Monastery before 1716.[32] The Russian government favoured the
activities of the religion they had professed for many centuries. The Emperors and Empresses paid for the
reconstruction of burnt or otherwise demolished churches. The Orthodox population of Eastern Finland
again had access to making pilgrimages to the monasteries of Solovetsk and Alexander-Svirsky.[33]

The Old Believers, a schismatic group of Russians who did not accept the religious reforms of patriarch
Nikon in 1666–67, were excommunicated from the Orthodox Church and fled to the outskirts of Russia.
They also moved into the remote areas of Finland building three small monasteries there. However, the
activity of these monasteries stopped during the following century.[32]

Autonomous Grand Duchy of Finland

When all of Finland became an autonomous Grand Duchy within

the Russian Empire in 1809, it already had an established Lutheran
Church. Eastern Orthodox Christianity also gained a recognized
status in Finland. The old Swedish constitution which Finns
generally regarded as the constitution of the Grand Duchy,
specifically required that the sovereign was Protestant, but this was
overlooked regarding the Orthodox Emperors.

In areas where Orthodox faith was not indigenous as in the towns

Interior of the Uspenski Cathedral.
of Helsinki, Tampere and Viipuri and the Karelian Isthmus,
Orthodoxy was especially associated with the Russians, most of
whom were Russian troops permanently stationed in Finland. The
birth of Helsinki's Orthodox Church is generally associated with
the construction of the Holy Trinity Church, Helsinki in
1827.[34][35] Generally most ecclesiastical activity outside Karelia
centered on the garrison churches. There were also a growing
number of Russian emigrants, most of whom were merchants or
craftsmen. These started to identify themselves with the Swedish-
speaking bourgeoisie, and so a Swedish-speaking branch of the
Finnish Orthodox Church was born.
Uspenski Cathedral iconostasis.
The 19th century was also a period of active building of new
churches, the Uspenski Cathedral being the most important of
them. The garrisons needed Orthodox churches and so did the new
emigrants to the towns. A good examples are the Orthodox church of Tampere and Turku.
In the rural countryside of Karelia, the local form of Orthodox faith
remained somewhat primitive, incorporating many features of older
religious praxis. Literacy among the Orthodox population was low.
In 1900 it was estimated that of all persons over the age of 15 in
East Finland, 32 percent were illiterate.[36] The Orthodox
population knew very little of their faith except the outer forms.
The priests were generally Russians who seldom knew Finnish. As
Karelia and its arable land was poor, it did not attract first class
priests. The language of the services was Church Slavonic, a form
of old Bulgarian. A Russian could understand some parts of the Church of the Holy Martyr Empress
services, a Finnish-speaking person nothing.[37] Alexandra in Turku, consecrated 9
September 1845.
A separate Finnish episcopate with a leading archbishop was
established in 1892 under the Russian Orthodox Church. It was
stationed in Vyborg, with the Russian Antoniy as its first bishop.

When Russia at the end of the 19th century tried to retract the autonomy of Finland, the Lutheran Finns
started to associate the Orthodox Church with the imperial Russian rule, labeled as the ryssän kirkko.[38]
The cultural gap between the two churches remained significant.

Independent Republic of Finland

Shortly after Finland declared independence from Russia in 1917, the Orthodox Church of Finland
declared its autonomy from the Russian Church. Finland's first constitution (1919) granted the Orthodox
Church an equal status with the (Lutheran) Church of Finland.[39]

In 1923, the Orthodox Church of Finland completely separated

from the Russian Church, becoming an autonomous church
affiliated with the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople. At
the same time the Gregorian Calendar was adopted. Other reforms
introduced after independence include changing the language of the
liturgy from Church Slavonic to Finnish and the transfer of the
Archiepiscopal seat from Viipuri to Sortavala.

Until World War II, the majority of Orthodox Christians in Finland

were located in Karelia. As a consequence of the war, residents of
Formerly an Orthodox church, the
the areas ceded to the Soviet Union were evacuated to other parts
Suomenlinna Church was turned to
of the country. The monastery of Valamo was evacuated in 1940
Lutheran in 1918.[40]
and the monastery of New Valamo was founded in 1941 at
Heinävesi, on the Finnish side of the new border. Later, the monks
from Konevsky and Petsamo monasteries also joined the New Valamo monastery. The nunnery of Lintula
(now Ogonki) near Kivennapa (Karelian Isthmus) was also evacuated, and re-established at Heinävesi in
1946.

A new parish network was established, and many new churches were built in the 1950s. After the cities of
Sortavala and Viipuri were lost to the Soviet Union (Viipuri is now Vyborg, Russia), the archiepiscopal seat
was moved to Kuopio and the diocesan seat of Viipuri was moved to Helsinki. A third diocese was
established in Oulu in 1979.

After the Second World War the membership of the Orthodox Church in Finland decreased slowly, as the
Karelian evacuees were settled far from their roots among the Lutheran majority of Finland. Mixed
marriages became common and the children were often baptized into the religion of the majority. But quite
 unexpectedly a "romantic" movement arose in Finland beginning in
the 1970s onward glorifying Orthodoxy, its "mystical" and visually
beautiful services and icons (religious paintings) and its deeper
view of Christianity than that of the Lutheran Church. For these
reasons, similar to Catholicism in England, conversion to the
Orthodox Church became almost a fad, and its membership started
to grow.

At the same time Archbishop Paavali of Karelia and All Finland

(1960–1987) made liturgical changes to the services, that gave the
New Valamo Monastery of
laity a more active role in the church services, and made the
Transfiguration of Christ in 2006.
services more open (earlier the clergy stayed behind a curtain for
part of the services) and intelligible. Archbishop Paavali also
stressed the importance of partaking in the Eucharist as often as possible.

In the 2010s, church membership has begun to decrease due to membership resignations and the declining
number of baptisms. Compared to the membership trends of the Finnish Lutheran Church, members who
resign from the Orthodox Church are on average slightly older and more likely to be female than those
resigning from the Lutheran Church.[41]

Russian Orthodox Church in Finland

About 3,000 Orthodox Christians in Finland belong to the Russian Orthodox Church (Moscow
Patriarchate). They are organized into two parishes.[42][43] There have also been plans to establish a
separate Russian diocese in Finland.[44] Parishes maintain five churches and chapels.

St. Nicholas Orthodox Parish (Finnish: Ortodoksinen Pyhän Nikolauksen Seurakunta; Russian: Свято-
Никольский приход в Хельсинки, Svjato-Nikol'skij prihod v Hel'sinki) in Helsinki is the largest with
2,600 members.[43] The parish was established in 1927, and a large part of its members are Finnish
citizens. Recently, the parish has been growing fast due to a new wave of repatriates and immigrants from
Russia.[45]

Rooted in the 1920s' Private Orthodox Society in Viipuri (Finnish: Yksityinen kreikkalais-katolinen
yhdyskunta Viipurissa), the Intercession Orthodox Parish (Finnish: Ortodoksinen Pokrovan seurakunta;
Russian: приход Покрова Пресвятой Богородицы в Хельсинки, prihod Pokrova Presvjatoj
Bogorodicy v Hel'sinki) was officially formed in 2004,[46] also in Helsinki, and has some 350 members
today. Both have registered themselves as separate religious organizations.[47]

Unlike the Orthodox Church of Finland, the Russian Orthodox Church in Finland follows the Julian
calendar.

List of archbishops
Under Patriarchate of Moscow:[48]

Antoniy (1892–1898)
Nikolay (1899–1905)
Sergiy (1905–1917)
Serafim (1918–1923), Bishop of Finland from 1918 and archbishop from 1921
Under Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople:

Herman (1923–1960)
Paavali ("Paul") (1960–1987)
Johannes ("John") (1987–2001)
Leo (2001–present)

See also
Religion in Finland
Christianity in Finland
Catholic Church in Finland
Russian Orthodox Church in Finland

References
1. "Church membership in 2021" (https://ort.fi/uutishuone/2022-01-10/kirkon-vaestotilastot-vuo
delta-2021-ovat-valmistuneet) (in Finnish).
2. "Etusivu | Suomen ortodoksinen kirkko" (https://ort.fi/). ort.fi (in Finnish). Retrieved 4 January
2020.
3. "Ortodoxa kyrkan i Finland | Ortodoxa kyrkan i Finland" (https://ort.fi/sv). ort.fi (in Swedish).
Retrieved 4 January 2020.
4. Official site of the Finnish Orthodox Church (http://www.ort.fi/fi/index.php) Archived (https://w
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delta-2021-ovat-valmistuneet) (in Finnish).
6. The whole section is based on Law on the Finnish Orthodox Church (http://www.finlex.fi/fi/la
ki/alkup/2006/20060985).
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8. "Kirkon jäsenmäärään tuntuva lasku" (https://ort.fi/uutishuone/2020-01-10/luvut-miinuksella-t
oiminta-ja-potentiaali-plussalla). Suomen ortodoksinen kirkko. Retrieved 16 January 2020.
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-01.shtml) Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20070217012316/http://www.evl.fi/kkh/ktk/k
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11. Metropolitan Ambrosius' home page (http://www.ort.fi/fi/kirkko_palvelee/hpk/helsingin_hpk/pi
ispa/index.php) Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20070927000256/http://www.ort.fi/fi/kir
kko_palvelee/hpk/helsingin_hpk/piispa/index.php) 27 September 2007 at the Wayback
Machine.
12. "Ortodoksinen kirkkomuseo" (https://web.archive.org/web/20150403172810/http://www.ort.fi/
kirkkomuseo). Suomen ortodoksinen kirkko. Archived from the original (http://www.ort.fi/kirkk
omuseo/) on 3 April 2015. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
13. Hämynen, Tapio: Ryssänkirkkolaisia vai aitoja suomalaisia? Ortodoksit itsenäisessä
Suomessa (http://www.lahdenmuseot.fi/images/histpaiv/luennot/Hamynen_Tapio_11_2_06.
pdf) Cited 24 November 2006 (in Finnish).
14. New Valamo home page (http://www.valamo.fi/index.php) Archived (https://web.archive.org/
web/20041229005554/http://www.valamo.fi/index.php) 29 December 2004 at the Wayback
Machine.
15. Lintula Holy Trinity Convent (http://www.ort.fi/fi/kirkko_palvelee/luostarit/lintula/index.php)
Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20071024131852/http://www.ort.fi/fi/kirkko_palvelee/lu
ostarit/lintula/index.php) 24 October 2007 at the Wayback Machine.
16. Official site of Pokrova (http://www.pokrova.fi).
17. "Ortodoksi.net – Pokrovan yhteisö" (https://web.archive.org/web/20150924062518/http://ww
w.ortodoksi.net/tietopankki/luostarit/pokrovan_yhteiso.htm). Archived from the original (http://
www.ortodoksi.net/tietopankki/luostarit/pokrovan_yhteiso.htm) on 24 September 2015.
Retrieved 5 March 2015.
18. Finnish Association of Orthodox Teachers' official site (http://www.sooli.fi/).
19. Finnish Society of Icon Painters' official site (http://www.ort.fi/ikonimaalarit/index.htm)
Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20071024131757/http://www.ort.fi/ikonimaalarit/index.
htm) 24 October 2007 at the Wayback Machine.
20. Orthodox Missions (http://www.ort.fi/fi/ortodoksisuus/lahetystyo/lahetystyo_2.php) Archived
(https://web.archive.org/web/20071024131645/http://www.ort.fi/fi/ortodoksisuus/lahetystyo/la
hetystyo_2.php) 24 October 2007 at the Wayback Machine.
21. Sanidopoulos, J. (12 June 2013) The Date of Orthodox Easter in Finland (https://www.johns
anidopoulos.com/2013/06/the-date-of-orthodox-easter-in-finland.html), Mystagogy Resource
Center, Retrieved 29 August 2018.
22. Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick (31 March 2015) No, Pascha does not have to be after
Passover (and other Orthodox urban legends) (https://blogs.ancientfaith.com/roadsfromemm
aus/2015/03/31/no-pascha-does-not-have-to-be-after-passover-and-other-orthodox-urban-le
gends/), Ancient Faith Ministries, Retrieved 29 August 2018.
23. "Rakennukset" (https://web.archive.org/web/20181120055128/http://www3.lappeenranta.fi/li
nnoitus/linnoitusmultimedia/english/rakennukset/ortodoksikirkko.htm).
www3.lappeenranta.fi. Archived from the original (http://www3.lappeenranta.fi/linnoitus/linno
itusmultimedia/english/rakennukset/ortodoksikirkko.htm) on 20 November 2018. Retrieved
18 December 2018.
24. Fr. Ambrosius and Markku Haapio: Ortodoksinen kirkko Suomessa (1979) pp. 496–497
25. "*Holdings: Ikkunoita Bysanttiin" (http://herkules.oulu.fi/isbn9514270606/html/a3.html).
Retrieved 5 March 2015.
26. Virrankoski, P.: "Suomen historia I" (2002) p. 58
27. "Orthodoxy in Finland, past and present", edited by V. Purmonen (1984) pp. 14–15
28. E.Piiroinen: "Karjalan pyhät kilvoittelijat"("The holy fighters of faith in Karelia") (1979) pp.
25–31
29. The Karelian language and customs were preserved there until the beginning of the 20th
century. Many Finnish anthropologists in the 19th century visited Tver Karelia to collect
samples of old Karelian traditions and language.
30. "Ortodoksinen Kirkko Suomessa", ed. by Fr. Ambrosius and M. Haapio (1979), pp. 107–13.
31. Virrankoski, Pentti: "Suomen historia I" (2002), pp. 286, 295.
32. Virrankoski, P.: "Suomen historia I" (2002), p. 356.
33. "Ortodoksinen kirkko Suomessa" ed. by Fr. Ambrosius and M. Haapio (1979), p. 116.
34. "Tietoa seurakunnasta" (https://www.hos.fi/yhteystiedot/tietoa-seurakunnasta/historia/).
Helsingin Ortodoksinen Seurakunta. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
35. Lehtola, Jorma (14 August 2018). "Uspenskin katedraali on hallinnut Helsingin horisonttia
tasan 150 vuotta. Kultaa ja koreutta uhkuva kirkko on seissyt koko tuon ajan idän ja lännen
rajalla" (https://www.apu.fi/artikkelit/uspenskin-katedraali-150-vuotta-jumalansynnyttajan-me
rkki-kalliolla). Apu. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
36. "Ortodoksinen kirkko Suomessa" ed. by Fr. Ambrosius and M. Haapio (1979) pp. 122–124
37. Hämynen, T.:"Suomalaistajat, venäläistäjät ja rajakarjalaiset" (1995) p. 49.
38. "Ryssä" is a pejorative name for Russians in Finnish.
39. "Archived copy" (https://web.archive.org/web/20060625120307/http://www.minedu.fi/julkaisu
t/hallinto/2004/tr32/tr32.pdf) (PDF). Archived from the original (http://www.minedu.fi/julkaisut/
hallinto/2004/tr32/tr32.pdf) (PDF) on 25 June 2006. Retrieved 17 January 2006.
40. History of the Suomenlinna church (http://www.suomenlinna.fi/index.php?menuid=81&lang=
fin&id=C43) by the Governing Body of Suomenlinna.
41. Eroakirkosta.fi – Ortodoksisesta kirkosta erottiin vilkkaasti (http://eroakirkosta.fi/media/none/ti
edote_01_2016.html?year=2016)
42. Official site of the Russian Orthodox Church in Finland (http://www.finland.orthodoxy.ru/).
43. Ortodoksinen Pyhän Nikolauksen Seurakunta (http://www.uskonnot.fi/yhteisot/view?orgId=4
59) Uskonnot Suomessa (combined statistics of two parishes for 2013)
44. Räntilä, Kari, M: Uusia linjauksia kirkkomme idänsuhteissa?Analogi 5/2004., 2004. See also
Helsingin Sanomat, 15 December 2006.
45. Official site of the St. Nicholas Orthodox Parish in Helsinki (http://www.svt-nikolai.org/en/).
46. "FINLEX ® – Säädökset alkuperäisinä: 820/2004" (http://www.finlex.fi/fi/laki/alkup/2004/200
40820). Retrieved 5 March 2015.
47. "Etusivu – Väestörekisterikeskus" (https://vrk.fi/etusivu). vrk.fi. Retrieved 18 December 2018.
48. Russian archbishops (http://www.ortodoksi.net/tietopankki/henkilot/patriarkat_ja_piispat/ven
alaiset_arkkipiispat.htm) Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20071013171822/http://www.
ortodoksi.net/tietopankki/henkilot/patriarkat_ja_piispat/venalaiset_arkkipiispat.htm) 13
October 2007 at the Wayback Machine.

Further reading
Arvola, Pekka; Kallonen, Tuomas, eds. (2010). 12 ikkunaa ortodoksisuuteen Suomessa [12
windows on orthodoxy in Finland]. Translated by Hicks, Malcolm. Helsinki: Maahenki &
Ortodoksisen kirjallisuuden julkaisuneuvosto. ISBN 978-952-5870-16-9.
Purmonen, Veikko, ed. (1984). Orthodoxy in Finland : past and present (2. rev. and enl. ed.).
Kuopio: Orthodox Clergy Association. ISBN 951-95582-2-5.

External links
Media related to Finnish Orthodox Church at Wikimedia Commons
Official website (http://www.ort.fi/) (in Finnish, Swedish, and Russian)
New Valamo Monastery in Finland (https://web.archive.org/web/20041229005554/http://ww
w.valamo.fi/index.php)
OrtoWeb (http://www.ortoweb.fi/) (Learning Environment for R.E)
Ortodoksi.net (https://web.archive.org/web/20070712223602/http://www.ortodoksi.net/ortodo
ksi_net/ortodoksit/briefly_in_english.htm) (in English)
 Article on Finnish Orthodox Church by Ronald Roberson on the CNEWA website (https://cne
wa.org/eastern-christian-churches/toc/orthodox-church/autonomous-churches/autonomous-c
hurches-of-finland/)

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