Laity drive Finnish Lutherans to recognize same-sex marriages
A month or so ago a leader of the Christian Democratic Party in Finland created a controversy by speaking out against the possibility of the Finnish Lutheran Church allowing for gay marriages to be blessed. The result was a wave a resignations of church memberships - at its peak reaching "hundreds an hour".
Finnish bishops spoke out soon afterward asking that delegates to the coming church synod work to find a way to find a nuanced way to support gay and lesbian Finns. An article from last month says the bishops are calling for the Church to "come out" on the question. The Archbishop called for the Church to take a clear and unequivocal stance in support of gay and lesbian couples.
Yesterday the Finnish Synod passed a proposal that calls for the creation of a liturgical form that would allow same-sex couples to have their relationships honored by their churches:
"'The proposal offers a positive opportunity to minister to church members who are sexual minorities,' the General Synod, the Evangelical Lutheran Church's highest administrative body, said in a statement.The General Synod must now draw up a formula for a prayer that walks a fine doctrinal line, observers said.
Lutheran ministers will have the choice of performing the prayer with gay couples in a church, but it will not actually constitute a church's blessing of the union itself, synod spokesman Marko Kailasmaa told AFP."
From here.
It appears therefore that the church took this response because of the strong reaction among the laity to the government's claim that the Church could make no space for LGBT couples in the pews.
The Finnish Church is party to the Porvoo Agreement. In fact one of the bishops mentioned above as calling for the church to support lgbt people is the Bishop of Provoo. The Church of England, also a party to the Porvoo Agreement and shares in the full life of the communion with the Finnish Church.
The Church of England, also a party to the Porvoo Agreement and shares in the full life of the communion with the Finnish Church.
The Finnish Church is just the latest member of the Porvoo Communion to liberalize its views on gays and/or have openly gay or women bishops.
How does the Archbishop of Canterbury reconcile the continued membership of the Church of England in the Porvoo Communion with the his sensitivity to the opinions of primates in the Anglican Communion opposed to membership of The Episcopal Church in the Anglican Communion, and with his desire for progress on the ecumenical front (read, the Roman Catholic Church)?
He doesn't. Is that via media or hypocrisy?
Posted by John B. Chilton![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.episcopalcafe.com/lead/nav-commenters.gif)
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November 13, 2010 9:56 AM
Mental gymnastics are a high art with the ABC
Posted by Ann Fontaine![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.episcopalcafe.com/lead/nav-commenters.gif)
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November 13, 2010 11:01 AM
Again, why isn't the Episcopal Church looking to join the Porvoo Communion? We seem to have more in common with them than with many of our "Communion Partners" in other parts of the world.
Posted by Clint Davis![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.episcopalcafe.com/lead/nav-commenters.gif)
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November 13, 2010 1:28 PM
@ Clint Davis
Every time we find one of these reports on the Scandinavians, I say the same thing. We should pursue a formal ecumenical relationship with them. Sweden went through similar difficulties to what we are experiencing, even to defectors and African bishops intervening. We need to really do something towards ecumenical relationships with the Scandinavian churches. We are very much alike in many ways, and our work on common mission and witness could be extremely productive and a sign that the "mainline" churches are still alive and doing good things.
Posted by Jeffrey L. Shy, M.D.![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.episcopalcafe.com/lead/nav-commenters.gif)
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November 13, 2010 4:26 PM
Just remember that not all of the churches in the Porvoo Communion are as open to progressive issues. The Lutheran Church in Estonia, a member of the Communion, recently and very publicly defrocked a gay pastor.
The ABC and the Baltic State churches appear to be less friendly with the Swedish church, another Porvoo member church, after they consecrated a lesbian in a same gender relationship as a bishop.
Posted by Hermano David | Brother Dav•veed![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.episcopalcafe.com/lead/nav-commenters.gif)
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November 13, 2010 11:39 PM
@ Hermano David,
Agreed on being selective. I would not advocate trying to "join" the Porvoo agreement. I would advocate a full communion agreement with Church of Sweden and probably Finland. I do not know the Finnish history as well, but Sweden clearly has a more "catholic" form of Lutheranism and an unbroken Episcopal tradition and unique Prayerbook history that makes them really quite natural cousins. Add to that a contemporary bend in theology and world view, and it is hard to see any negatives to pursuing a formal relationship. I would trade the Archbishop of the church of Sweden any day for ++Rowan.
Posted by Jeffrey L. Shy, M.D.![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.episcopalcafe.com/lead/nav-commenters.gif)
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November 14, 2010 10:48 AM
On the other end of the spectrum, the Lutheran church in Denmark chose not to join the Porvoo Communion back in the day, partly because the Church of England refused to ordain women. Now that the CoE are hopefully ready to consecrate women as bishops the Danish church recently bellied up to the table and signed the agreement to be a member church.
Posted by Hermano David | Brother Dav•veed![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.episcopalcafe.com/lead/nav-commenters.gif)
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November 14, 2010 4:11 PM