Sacred rites

In addition to worship services, the Lutheran church has a number of sacred rites.  These web pages introduce the rite of Holy Baptism, church weddings, the blessing of a new home and funeral rites.  Sacred rites like these are times of prayer, hearing God's word and receiving his blessing at important occasions in life, so they are also called ”occasional services” (kirkolliset toimitukset in Finnish, kyrkliga förrättningar in Swedish).  Confirmation is also a sacred rite, but you can read more about it on the page Church membership and confirmation.

If you are about to arrange a baptism or church wedding, or if a family member has died and you wish to arrange a Christian funeral, contact the parish office or a pastor of your local congregation.  Contact information is given on the web page of each congregation.  Also, you may contact the parish office if you want to have a pastor or some other church worker to lead the blessing of your home.  If you are a Christian but you are unable to attend communion services because of illness, it is also possible to ask for a pastor to visit you at home.  Private confession of sin is also a sacred rite; if you wish to talk about your life with a pastor or some other church worker that is also possible if you can find a common language.

When you have asked for a sacred rite in one of our congregations, you do not pay any money for the services of a pastor or church musician.

Agendas (orders of worship) that are used in the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland for baptism and other occasional services can be found bilingually in Finnish and English at
www.evl.fi/kkh/to/kjmk/toim-kirja/engl.html

Click on the appropriate title for a page that provides more information:
Baptism
Church weddings
Blessing of a new home
Funerals

All weddings are public occasions, and so are any rites that take place in a church building.  Even if you have not been invited, you may join the congregation and find a seat for yourself.  Please do not stroll around with a camera or chat with your friend!  Remember that the occasion is unique for the family involved and that Finns tend to be quite serious when it comes to sacred rites.  On the other hand, many sacred rites take place at home, and then the occasion is more private in nature.  It is a peculiar feature of Finnish Lutheran tradition that children are often baptized at home.