Abstract
Excerpt:
Finland placed an application for NATO in May of 2022, together with Sweden, with whom Finland’s foreign policy goals had been aligned for years.
Finnish Christianity and Finnish Churches have offered a variety of responses to the end of Finland’s non-military alignment. Of historical institutions in Finland, the Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Church (hereafter FELC) has a prominent social influence and is regarded as an institution that represents that country's values. This applies to Finnish defense policy as well. The church is a prominent player in the Finnish army and conscript service. On the FELC website, the Church states that: “The Church supports those who serve in the defense forces both mentally and spiritually. The Church sees that the defense forces have a vital role in securing the peace and independence of Finland.” At the opposite side of the organizational spectrum, the free-aligned and revivalist religious movements have very different kinds of views. This is especially the case within charismatic, pietistic movements and their variations.
Recommended Citation
Leporanta, Miro
(2023)
"Finnish Response to NATO - Views from the Evangelical Lutheran Church and Christians in Finnish Politics,"
Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe: Vol. 43
:
Iss.
2
, Article 5.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.55221/2693-2148.2407
Available at:
https://digitalcommons.georgefox.edu/ree/vol43/iss2/5
Included in
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