Historical survey
Beginnings of Christianity
Christian influences from both East and West reached Finland around the year 1000. Missionary efforts on the part of the Western church were, however, stronger, and by the beginning of the 14th (...)
The Reformation
The Protestant reformation reached Sweden and Finland (as a part of Swedish kingdom) in the 1520s. Sweden accepted the Confession of Augsburg at Uppsala in 1593. Lutheranism became the state (...)
Under the Russian rule
Russia ended Swedish rule over Finland by conquering it in 1809, so Finland became a Grand Duchy of the Russian Empire. Although the ruler was then the Orthodox Tsar rather than a Lutheran king, (...)
Pietism
Pietism, with its emphasis on individual conversion and personal spirituality, and its appeal to the emotions, gained foothold at the beginning of the 18th century. From this background, the (...)
Independent Finland
In 1917, Russia plunged into the chaos of the Revolution: Finland seized the opportunity on December 6, 1917, and Parliament approved the declaration of independence.
Freedom of religion was (...)