Map of the Methodist churches in Finland

Methodism arrived in Finland through

Ostrobothnians Ostrobothnians ( fi, Pohjalaiset) are a Finnish tribes, subgroup (''Heimo'') of the Finns, Finnish people who live in the historical province of Ostrobothnia (historical province), Ostrobothnia in the northwestern parts of Finland. History Ost ...

sailors in the 1860s, and Methodism spread especially in Swedish-speaking Ostrobothnia. The first Methodist congregation was founded in Vaasa in 1881 and the first Finnish-speaking congregation in

Pori ) , website www.pori.fi Pori (; sv, Björneborg ) is a city and municipality on the west coast of Finland. The city is located some from the Gulf of Bothnia, on the estuary of the Kokemäki River, west of Tampere, north of Turku and north-w ...

in 1887. Since 1925, the Methodists' national churches have been the Finnish United Methodist Church in Finland and the Swedish United Methodist Church in Finland. The Methodist Churches of Finland belong to the World Methodist Council. Both churches are subject to the bishop of the Nordic and Baltic countries. Both Methodist churches also belong to the

Finnish Ecumenical Council Finnish Ecumenical Council ( fi, Suomen Ekumeeninen Neuvosto) is an ecumenical Christian organization in Finland, established on 1917. Member denominations Following denominations were members in 2023: * Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland * Fi ...

and the Free Christian Council of Finland. The Finnish Methodist churches officially have around 2,000 members.

History

The first signs of Methodism are from the Vaasa region in the summer of 1859, when Gustaf Lervik, who participated in the revival at the Bethel ship mission in New York, preached in the area. A revival was born from the sermon, but Lervik gave up preaching because of the opposition the movement faced. Gustaf Bärnlund and Wilhelm Bärnlund, who also participated in the Bethel ship, organized revival meetings in Kristinestad from 1866. Methodism actually spread in Swedish-speaking Ostrobothnia when the Swedish Methodist preacher Karl Johan Lindborg started his activities in 1880. The following year, a chapel was consecrated in Kristinestad, which got its own

congregation A congregation is a large gathering of people, often for the purpose of worship. Congregation may also refer to: *Church (congregation), a Christian organization meeting in a particular place for worship *Congregation (Roman Curia), an administra ...

in 1886. In 1882, Lindborg continued his activities in Kokkola, which got its own congregation in 1883 and a church in 1890. The congregation in Kokkola also led the revival in the surrounding countryside and became the foundation congregation of the Methodist congregations in the

Oulu Oulu ( , ; sv, Uleåborg ) is a city, municipality and a seaside resort of about 210,000 inhabitants in the region of North Ostrobothnia, Finland. It is the most populous city in northern Finland and the fifth most populous in the country after: ...

and Jakobstad region. 1904. At the turn of the century, the congregation in Vaasa became the largest and most active congregation in Methodism.

References

{{reflist

External links

Finnish United Methodist Church in Finland website

Swedish United Methodist Church in Finland website