The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Religious Communities in Finland

The COVID-19 pandemic reached Finland at the beginning of 2020. During the pandemic the Finnish government restricted citizens’ basic constitutional rights in a manner that was entirely exceptional for the post-war years. This chapter focuses on how the various measures to curb the pandemic affected religious communities and religious life in Finland. The Finnish situation was made more complex by the special relationship between the state and the two national churches, which operate under public law but are nevertheless administratively independent of the state. The various legal exemptions for religious life from state regulation meant government restrictions on public gatherings and businesses did not apply to worship and other religious gatherings. Nevertheless, the majority churches and other religious communities adhered closely to the state regulations on their own initiative. The lack of government restrictions therefore did not mean the pandemic had no effect on religious life. The article describes how the religious communities adjusted their activities in some rather drastic ways during the shutdown periods.