Religion in Finland - Freedom of Religion

Freedom of Religion

Until the end of the 19th century every Finn had to belong to either the Lutheran or the Orthodox Church. It was not until the Nonconformity Act of 1889 was passed that the position of other Protestant churches was made official and membership of them permitted. The Baptists and the Methodists were the first religious denominations to gain official recognition.

Freedom of religion was guaranteed in 1923. The Freedom of Religion Act granted citizens the right to found religious denominations freely and belong to them, or to remain entirely without religious affiliation. The state no longer affirmed the Lutheran faith, thereby assuming a neutral attitude to religion. The rights and duties of citizens did not depend on the religious denomination to which they belonged or whether they belonged to any religious community at all.

The new Freedom of Religion Act came into effect in August 2003. It replaced the previous Act of 1923. Freedom of religion is a constitutional right. It entails the right to profess and practice a religion, the right to express a conviction and the right to belong or not to belong to a religious community.

The rationale behind the new Act is the notion of positive freedom of religion. Religion is considered not only as the individual's own choice but also as part of community tradition. The function of the State is to ensure freedom of religion and create the preconditions for its implementation.

Under the former Act, the denomination of the child was automatically determined by the denomination of his/her parents/guardians. On this point the new Act remains neutral, only determining who decides on the denomination of the child. Under it, the parents/guardians determine the denomination of the child together, that is, whether or not they wish to keep the child in the Church. There is one exception, however: the decision on the denomination of a child aged 12 to 17 requires unanimity between the child and the guardians. A child aged 15 or older may, with the parents'/guardians' written permission, join or leave a religious community. The religious affiliation of a child who has turned 12 may be changed only with his/her consent.

A child aged 12 to 17 may join or remain a member of the Church or a religious community even though the parents are not members. A child under the age of 12 may be received as a member of the Church if at least one of the parents/guardians is a member. A child under the age of 12 may remain a member of the Church even if his parents/guardians relinquish it. Those over 18 may decide independently about their religious affiliations.

Under the 1923 Act, an individual could belong to only one religious community at a time. After the new law of 2003 this provision was in effect for a three-year transitional period, i.e. until 31 July 2006. After that, the Freedom of Religion Act in no way prevents a person from simultaneously belonging to several religious communities. It will be for the religious communities to decide whether or not their members can also belong to other religious communities.

In keeping with the spirit of the Constitution, the new Act emphasizes the positive right to receive religious instruction. The earlier law departed from the notion of negative right to be exempted from religious instruction. In the new Basic Education and Upper Secondary School Acts, the term "religious instruction according to the pupil's denomination" was replaced by the term "the instruction of their own religion". On the one hand, a pupil is entitled to instruction in his/her own faith; on the other, he/she is obliged to participate in it. A pupil who does not belong to the religion of the majority of pupils can participate in the instruction of this religion only if he/she enrolls separately for it.

The Freedom of Religion Act does not impinge on school traditions. According to the Parliament of Finland, the singing of traditional hymns at end-of-term celebrations in spring and before Christmas does not constitute the practice of a religion in the meaning of the Act. The meaning of these celebrations is seen to be to pass on and preserve culture; accordingly, all pupils, regardless of their religious affiliation, can participate.

As in the earlier legislation, a minimum of 20 individuals is required to found a religious community. Religious groups can organize themselves in Finland in several ways. They can officially register either as a religious community organization under the Freedom of Religion Act or they can organize a registered association under the Associations Act (1989). The criteria for the former are tighter, but such an official recognition brings various benefits, such as a right for school religious education and a right to perform marriages. It is, furthermore, legal to conduct religious activities with no formally recognized organization at all.

The 2003 act also made possible to resign from a religious community in writing. That is, by letter, or any written form acceptable to authorities. Later in 2004 this was extended to email by a new act on electronic communication with public officials. Resignation by email became possible in 2005 in most magistrates. Eroakirkosta.fi organization challenged the rest of the magistrates through parliamentary ombudsman Petri Jääskeläinen. On December 2006 the ombudsman decided that all magistrates must accept email resignations.