Some Finnish Lutheran leaders, their families, and a few politicians gathered under a tent in August 2021 for the elevation of Juhana Pohjola to bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Mission Diocese of Finland (ELMDF). The canvas protected them from the summer sun, but as they celebrated Pohjola’s investiture, they worried about facing a different kind of heat. Pohjola, 49, and one of his guests, politician Päivi Räsänen, 62, are facing criminal charges. According to the nation’s top prosecutor, the two people are accused of violating the equality and dignity of LGBT people.
Juhana Pohjola
Though Finland has legal protections for free speech and the free exercise of religion, Prosecutor General Raija Toiviainen says Räsänen and Pohjola’s actions are criminal incitement against a minority group—hate speech. According to the prosecutor, Räsänen has fueled intolerance and contempt of LGBT people three times: in comments she made on a nationally syndicated talk show on Finnish state-supported radio; in a 2019 tweet where she quoted Romans 1:24–27 to criticize the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland (ELCF)—one of Finland’s two
national churches—for its affiliation with Helsinki Pride; and in a 23-page booklet that Räsänen wrote titled Male and Female He Created Them.
Pohjola is being charged for publishing Räsänen’s booklet, which argues against same-
sex marriage, contrasts LGBT identities with the Christian notion of what it means to be human, and describes same-sex attraction possibly as being inherently sinful and possibly the result of a “negative developmental disorder.” It was released in 2004 by Luther Foundation Finland, the legal entity behind the ELMDF. The bishop is not too worried for himself, but he does worry about the long-term impact if the courts rule that Räsänen’s quoting Romans and publishing a book about the Bible and sexuality are considered criminal incitement. “I do not so much fear the outcome of the court case,” he told CT, “but the strong signal it gives to many: to be silent. I fear self-censorship and intimidation.” The trial, due to begin on January 24, has stirred strong feelings in Finland. More
than 70 percent of Finns support same-sex marriage, which has been legal in the country since 2017, and many see defending the dignity of LGBT people as the critical civil rights issue of the day.
Source: Christianity Today
