Ilkka Tapani Kantola (born 17 March 1957) is a Finnish politician and

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched th ...

minister. He has been a

Social Democratic Social democracy is a political, social, and economic philosophy within socialism that supports political and economic democracy. As a policy regime, it is described by academics as advocating economic and social interventions to promote soci ...

member of the

Parliament of Finland The Parliament of Finland ( ; ) is the unicameral and supreme legislature of Finland, founded on 9 May 1906. In accordance with the Constitution of Finland, sovereignty belongs to the people, and that power is vested in the Parliament. The ...

since 2007. Previously he served as

Bishop of Turku The Archdiocese of Turku ( fi, Turun arkkihiippakunta, sv, Åbo ärkestift), historically known as '' Archdiocese of Åbo'', is the seat of the Archbishop of Turku. It is a part of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland, and its see city is ...

Life

Kantola was born in

Rymättylä Rymättylä (; sv, Rimito) is a former municipality of Finland. It was, together with Merimasku and Velkua, consolidated with the town of Naantali on January 1, 2009. It is located in the province of Western Finland and is part of the Southwest ...

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

. He graduated as

Doctor of Theology Doctor of Theology ( la, Doctor Theologiae, abbreviated DTh, ThD, DTheol, or Dr. theol.) is a terminal degree in the academic discipline of theology. The ThD, like the ecclesiastical Doctor of Sacred Theology, is an advanced research degree equiva ...

from the

University of Helsinki The University of Helsinki ( fi, Helsingin yliopisto, sv, Helsingfors universitet, abbreviated UH) is a public research university located in Helsinki, Finland since 1829, but founded in the city of Turku (in Swedish ''Åbo'') in 1640 as the ...

in 1994. He served as General Secretary of the Archdiocese of Turku from 1994 to 1998 and then as Bishop of the Archdiocese. In 2005 Kantola resigned after it was revealed that he had an extramarital affair with a married female minister. This was the first time when a Bishop of the Lutheran Church of Finland resigned prematurely. In

2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister of Pakistan, Pr ...

, Kantola was elected to the Parliament of Finland from the electoral district of

Finland Proper Southwest Finland, calqued as Finland Proper ( fi, Varsinais-Suomi ; sv, Egentliga Finland), is a region in the southwest of Finland. It borders the regions of Satakunta, Pirkanmaa, Tavastia Proper (Kanta-Häme), Uusimaa, and Åland. The regi ...

Next year "Next Year" is a song released as the last single from the third Foo Fighters' album ''There Is Nothing Left to Lose''. History A shorter version (running at just 3:21 compared to the original's 4:36) was released as a single in 2000 and wa ...

he was elected to the City Council of

Turku Turku ( ; ; sv, Åbo, ) is a city and former capital on the southwest coast of Finland at the mouth of the Aura River, in the region of Finland Proper (''Varsinais-Suomi'') and the former Turku and Pori Province (''Turun ja Porin lääni''; ...

. He has been twice re-elected to both the Parliament and the City Council. From 2011 to 2015, he chaired the Administrative Council of the Finnish Broadcasting Company (

Yle Yleisradio Oy ( Finnish, literally "General Radio Ltd." or "General Broadcast Ltd."; abbr. Yle ; sv, Rundradion Ab, italics=no), translated to English as the Finnish Broadcasting Company, is Finland's national public broadcasting company, found ...

). Kantola is currently member of the Constitutional Law Committee and Education and Culture Committee of the Parliament.

Electoral history

Parliamentary elections

Municipal elections

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kantola, Ilkka 1957 births Living people People from Naantali Finnish Lutheran bishops Social Democratic Party of Finland politicians Members of the Parliament of Finland (2007–11) Members of the Parliament of Finland (2011–15) Members of the Parliament of Finland (2015–19)