Russian Orthodox Church in Finland

Russian Orthodox Church in Finland (Patriarchal Parishes in Finland)
Good Friday in the St. Nikolaos community of Helsinki, 1932
ClassificationEastern Orthodox
PrimatePatriarch of Moscow and All Russia Kirill
LanguageChurch Slavonic (worship), Finnish, Russian, Swedish
LiturgyByzantine Rite
HeadquartersPatriarchal: Moscow, Russia
Jurisdictional: Helsinki, Finland
TerritoryFinland
Independence1926, 1945
RecognitionSemi-Autonomous
Parishes2
Members4,200
Places of worship5
Other namePatriarchal Parishes in Finland (Патриаршие приходы в Финляндии)
Official websitewww.finland.orthodoxy.ru
https://www.svt-nikolai.org/en/

The Russian Orthodox Church in Finland (Finnish: Venäjän ortodoksinen kirkko Suomessa, Russian: Русская православная церковь в Финляндии) is a semi-autonomous part of the Russian Orthodox Church formed in 1926. An official headquarters of the Moscow Patriarchate, led by Archpriest Viktor Lyutik, was opened in Helsinki in 1999.[1]

The Russian Orthodox Church in Finland is organized in to two parishes, the St. Nikolaos Orthodox Parish in Helsinki, and the Intercession Orthodox Parish.[2] They maintain a total of five churches, located in the cities of Helsinki, Pori and in the town of Sastamala.

The total number of registered members as of 2025 is 4,200,[3] with the largest community being the St. Nikolaos Orthodox Parish with more than 3,700 members.[4] The Spaso-Preobrazenskaja community in Tampere is under the jurisdiction of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia, and is therefore considered separate.

History

See also: Orthodox Church of Finland § History

The Finnish Orthodox Church separated from the Russian Orthodox Church in 1923 as a result of the Russian Revolution of 1917 and the Independence of Finland. The Finnish government had encouraged the independence of the Finnish church from the Moscow patriarchate, both due to historical Russian influence, and later Bolshevik.[5]

Some of the Orthodox in Finland, of Russian background, were dissatisfied with the changes enacted by the Finnish Orthodox Church,[6] instead wanted to retain the practices present in Russia which were standard in Finland prior to 1923, such as the use of Church Slavonic in liturgy and the Julian calendar, thereby formed their own parishes.[7]

In 1926, by petition of the Russian Orthodox community in Vyborg, the Vyborg Intercession Community was established, followed by the formation of the Brotherhood of St. Nicholas in the city of Helsinki, under the guidance of Father Grigory Svetlovsky.[8] The Brotherhood of St. Nicholas, today the St. Nikolaos Orthodox Parish, began the construction of its current parish building in 1938, with its consecration in December of that year.[9]

From 1931 to 1945 the Russian Orthodox Church in Finland was temporarily under the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople.

Present

In 2012 the Saint Nikolaos Orthodox Parish begun the construction of a large church complex, which due to a number of difficulties involving lack of funding and its mishandling, came to a definitive halt in 2015. The cost of demolishing was too great for the parish, and so sought to sell it, to no avail. In 2021, the city of Helsinki forbade any further attempts at construction, and talks have begun regarding what to do with the land.[10]

Since 2022, the former Church of the Dormitition, a part of the now-closed Russian consulate in Turku, was purchased by the city and is since defunct. The closing of the church was due to that of Russia closing the Finnish consulate in Saint Petersburg.[11]

Following the war in Ukraine, the Russian Orthodox Church in Finland has faced pressure to become independent from Moscow, and to condemn the actions of Russia.[12] While the church has condemned the war, it maintains that it can not separate from Moscow without violating canonical law. Finnish media, such as YLE or Iltalehti, have labeled the church as "Putinistic",[13] which the church has rejected, citing their autonomous status.[14]

Saint Nikolaos Orthodox Parish

As the largest Russian Orthodox parish in Finland, it has three active priests, of the rank of rovasti (comparable to archpriest or protopresbyter) serving the community, as well as a second smaller building, the Church of Xenia of Saint Petersburg. The parish maintains an active website, wherein information regarding the parish may be found.[15]

According to their website, as the Russian Orthodox Church in Finland is unaffiliated with the Finnish Orthodox Church, it is therefore not considered a national church, like the Finnish Orthodox Church or the Evangelical Lutheran Church. Members registering can not state that they are "Orthodox", as they would be assumed as being part of the larger Finnish Orthodox Church, and therefore be incorrectly taxed. According to them this is a common mistake.[16]

Churches

See also

References

  1. ^ Представительство Московского Патриархата в Финляндии Russian Orthodox Church in Finland Official Homepage (in Russian). Retrieved 8 June 2014.
  2. ^ "St. Nicholas Orthodox Parish, Helsinki | Russian Orthodox Church Moscow Patriarchate". Retrieved 2025-11-29.
  3. ^ Jämsén, Elina (24 April 2022). "Moskovan patriarkaatin alaisen ortodoksikirkon rovasti Suomessa tuomitsee Venäjän hyökkäyssodan, mutta haluaa pysyä johtajansa alaisuudessa: Kirill ei ohjaile kirkkoa" (in Finnish). Retrieved 29 November 2025.
  4. ^ "Vahvistus tuli: Putinin kirkkoihin liittyy toimintaa Suomessa". www.iltalehti.fi (in Finnish). Retrieved 2025-11-29.
  5. ^ "Suomen ortodoksinen kirkko joutui taistelemaan autonomiastaan useaan otteeseen | Aamun Koitto". aamunkoitto.fi (in Finnish). 2023-01-16. Retrieved 2025-11-30.
  6. ^ "История прихода | Православный Свято – Никольский приход в Хельсинки" (in Russian). Retrieved 2025-11-30.
  7. ^ "История прихода | Православный Свято – Никольский приход в Хельсинки" (in Russian). Retrieved 2025-11-30.
  8. ^ "История прихода | Православный Свято – Никольский приход в Хельсинки" (in Russian). Retrieved 2025-11-30.
  9. ^ "История прихода | Православный Свято – Никольский приход в Хельсинки" (in Russian). Retrieved 2025-11-30.
  10. ^ Seura (2023-06-04). "Seura selvitti Moskovan ortodoksisen kirkon erikoiset käänteet Helsingissä". Seura.fi (in Finnish). Retrieved 2025-11-30.
  11. ^ "Vahvistus tuli: Putinin kirkkoihin liittyy toimintaa Suomessa". www.iltalehti.fi (in Finnish). Retrieved 2025-11-30.
  12. ^ "Moskovan patriarkaatin alaisen ortodoksikirkon rovasti Suomessa tuomitsee Venäjän hyökkäyssodan, mutta haluaa pysyä johtajansa alaisuudessa: Kirill ei ohjaile kirkkoa". Yle Uutiset (in Finnish). 2022-04-24. Retrieved 2025-11-30.
  13. ^ "Vahvistus tuli: Putinin kirkkoihin liittyy toimintaa Suomessa". www.iltalehti.fi (in Finnish). Retrieved 2025-12-01.
  14. ^ "Moskovan patriarkaatin alaisen ortodoksikirkon rovasti Suomessa tuomitsee Venäjän hyökkäyssodan, mutta haluaa pysyä johtajansa alaisuudessa: Kirill ei ohjaile kirkkoa". Yle Uutiset (in Finnish). 2022-04-24. Retrieved 2025-11-30.
  15. ^ "Общая информация о приходе | Православный Свято – Никольский приход в Хельсинки" (in Russian). Retrieved 2025-12-02.
  16. ^ "О регистрации в приходе | Православный Свято – Никольский приход в Хельсинки" (in Russian). Retrieved 2025-12-02.

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