FINLAND.
Introduction and Progress of Christianity (¢ 1). The Reformation (¢ 2). Bishops Juueten and Erici (§ 3). The Seventeenth Century (§ 4). The Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries (¢ 5). Present Conditions ($ 6).
Finland is at present a grand duchy of Russia, bounded on the north by Norway, on the east by the Russian governments of Archangel and Olonetz, on the southeast and south by Lake Ladoga, the government of St. Petersburg, and the Gulf of Finland, on the west by the Gulf of Bothnia and by Sweden; area 144,000 square miles; population (1903) 2,850,000; capital Helsingfors. With the conversion to Christianity (see below) the country came under Swedish government, and so remained till 1809, when it was definitely ceded to Russia. The great majority of the people are Lutherans (98 per cent in 1900, when the number of Greek Orthodox was 46,466 and of Roman Catholics 755).
It is agreed that the Finns, a branch of the UralAltaic race, originated on the banks of the Yenisei River or Lake Baikal in Asia, and moved westward
in the course of centuries. The isor. Intro‑ lated position of Finland in the north, duction and between the Gulfs of Bothnia and Progress of Finland, explains the fact that it is Christianity. not mentioned in history till com‑
paratively late. It came into contact with the rest of Europe through Sweden as well as by connections with the apostolic see in Rome. About 1157, King Eric IX. of Sweden, whose coasts were harassed by Finnish pirates, undertook a war of conversion against Finland. An Englishman, Henry by name, accompanied him as missionary. The Finns were forced to accept baptism and Christianity, and at the same time had to submit to foreign rule. Henry remained in the country, but soon died, as martyr: A new crusade from Sweden was unertaken in 1249 by Jarl Birger, and a third followed in 1290, under the leadership of Torkel Knutson. The Christian Church began to take root in Finland. The bishop's seat was finally fixed in Abo, where it is still, and the entire spiritual and secular administration centered there. It was the bishop's task to organize the newly founded Church, to baptize, build churches, and accustom the barbarous people to Christian manners. The bishopric of Abo was filled by a number of efficient and powerful men, who, in the beginning, were Swedes; the first Finnish bishop was Magnus I. (1291‑1308). Other prominent bishops were Hemming (1338‑66), Magnus Olai Tavast (1412‑50), Conrad Bitze (14601489), and Magnus Stjernkors (1489‑1500). They possessed the best scientific culture of their time, having studied in Paris, Leipsic, and Bologna. The bishops of Finland had an influential position, not only in the Church, but also in politics. Swedish rulers took pains to win them for their cause. A supreme court, instituted by King Eric of Pomerania, counted the bishop and several priests among its members. The bishop was elected by the cathedral chapter, but the election had to be confirmed by the pope. He had to swear allegiance to the pope, to the Church, and to the king of Sweden. The chapter consisted originally of four and later of ten canons. In 1340 there was instituted the office of cathedral provost, and in 1389 an archdeaconry. Apart from the cathedral chapter, so‑called country‑provosts were appointed who were entrusted with the ecclesiastical supervision of certain districts, called provostahips. Before the Reformation, the Church of Finland attained its highest development underBishop Ma,gnus Tavast (1412‑50). The standard of morality among the priests was generally on a level with conditions in other countries. The Saw of celibacy, introduced in Sweden in 1248, was valid also for Finland, at least nominally. From the oldest times the people paid tithes. Now and then disputes occurred between the secular clergy and the orders, and a bull, issued in 1395 by Boniface IX., accurately defined the activity of the monks. Mendicant friars appeared in Finland as early as 1250. There were six monasteries‑two of the Dominicans
Vinland
THE NEW SCHAFF‑HERZOG
in Abo and Viborg, three of the Franciscans in Abo, Raunao and K6ker, and one of the Brigittines in Nadindal. The brotherhoods of the Middle Ages also found admission into F5n‑
land; fifteen guilds are known to have existed. I There was no higher institution of learning.
The land suffered much, as it was always a bone of contention between Sweden and Russia.
For centuries there were continual battles between
the different tribes in the interior. The spiritual
culture of the people was neglected in these tur
bulent times, especially since the Roman Church
was never interested in the real education of the
people. At the Synod of Soderkoping in Sweden
(1441) it was decided that the Lord's Prayer, the
Ave Maria, and the Creed should be translated into
the mother tongue. Bishop Tavast participated,
and it may be assumed that these decisions applied
also to Finland. Before 1500 there were 120
churches in Finland. In 1504 the Swedish gov
ernment ordered the building of new churches since
the congregations were so large that some people
lived ninety miles from a church. No books for the
use of the people have been preserved from the
Middle Ages, but a Missals Aboense, published in
1483 at the instance of Bishop Bitze, for the use
of the cathedral of Abo, is known, and also a Manu
als Aboenae (1522) for the use of the Finnish Church.
In consequence of the connection of Finland with
Sweden, the Reformation took the same course in
both countries. The first herald of the Reforma
tion in Finland was Peter S#rkilahti, who had
studied under Luther and Melanchthon. In 1524
he returned to his native country and began to
preach the new doctrine. Owing to
s. The Ref‑ the isolated position of Finland, the
ormation. people were not prepared for it and
the Roman Church had a larger field
of usefulness than in Germany. The first Evan
gelical bishop of Finland was Martin Skytte, a quiet
and humble man. His activity was not revolu
tionary. The real Reformer of Finland was Michael
Agricola, son of a poor fisher of Perna, who received
his rudimentary education in the school of Abo and
studied in Wittenberg. There he adopted the
cause of the Reformation. Like the other Reform
ers, he immediately undertook a translation of
the Bible in order to gain a firm basis for his work.
In 1543 he published a primer and soon afterward
a catechism, in 1544 a book of prayer. The trans
lation of the New Testament, which he had begun
in Wittenberg, appeared in 1548. In the following
year he published a manual on baptism and in
1551 the continuation of his translation of the Bible,
the Psalms and part of the Prophets. Haggai,
Zechariah, and Malachi followed in 1552. Agricola
died in 1554. He is gratefully remembered and
highly esteemed by the Finnish people as the Re
former of Finland and the father of Finnish litera
ture. The Reformation was completed by Jacob
Finno. Agricola gave the Finns the New Testa
ment, Finno taught them to sing the Psalms. His
psalm‑book was published in 1583 at Stockholm.
The only copy in existence is defective and is
in the library of Upsala. On the whole the Reform
atory movement took a quiet course, without
into
great frictions. But a sect originated, tracing its origin to a certain Zechariah, a Jew of Novgorod, which. advocated the celebration of the seventh day as Sabbath and obedience to the law of Moses.
t was condemned at a council in 1504.
Under King Gustavus Vasa, Finland was divided
to two bishoprics. The eastern part of the
country was constituted a separate g. Bishops diocese with Viborg as cathed.‑sl town.
Juusten The first bishop there was Paul Juusten dad Erica. who also had studied at Wittenberg.
The church forms in Finland were modeled in general after the mother country Sweden. A church order was issued in 1571. Until that time there were no general church regulations. Some of the ecclesiastical positions were filled immediately by the king, others by the bishop and chapter. The men who influenced most deeply the culture of Finland after the introduction of the Reformation were Bishop Paul Juusten and Bishop Ericus Erici. Juusten became bishop in Viborg in 1554, and in Abo in 1563. He wrote the Capita remm synodicarum which formed the basis of discussions at a convention of priests in Abo in 1573 and which gives an insight into the ecclesiastical conditions of the time. He emphasized especially that the priests in their conduct should be models for the members of the congregation. For the guidance of priests he compiled a collection of sermons which, however, was never printed. The manuscript was burned m the great conflagration in Abo in 1827 when many other treasures perished. In 1574 he published a Finnish catechism in Stockholm and in the following year a manual. He also collected everything that was known of church conditions in Finland in the Middle Ages, under the title Chronicon episcoporum Finlandenaium (ed. H. G. Porthan, Abo, 1784‑1800; also, ed. C. Annerstedt, in Faut, Scriptores rerum Swcicarum, iii., section 2, Upsala, 1871, pp. 132135), and has been justly called the father of the church history of Finland. Not less important and influential was his younger contemporary, Ericus Erici. He was born in the middle of the sixteenth century, studied abroad, and after his return became rector of Gefie in Sweden (1578). In 1583 he was appointed bishop of both Finnish dioceses. He wrote an extensive catechism for the clergy and the first book of homilies in the Finnish language which was still read and loved in the beginning of the nineteenth century.
An important event in the intellectual and
. spiritual life of Finland was the foundation of the academy in Abo (1640). A gymna‑
4. The sium, founded ten years before, had Seventeenth shown itself insufficient for the in‑
. Century. creased demands of education; the population at that time had increased to about 400,000 persons. The number of professors in the academy was eleven, of whom three were in the theological faculty. While this concerned chiefly the higher circles of society, another event occurred a few years later, the effect of which was felt in the most distant parts of the land‑in 1642 the people received the whole Bible in a Finnish translation (see BIBLz Vefmorrs, B,V.). School
816 RELIGIOUS ENCYCLOPEDIA Finland
affairs were regulated by an order, issued by Queen Christina in 1649, according to which there were to be three kinds of educational institutions
academies, gymnasia, and schools.
After the vigorous period of the Reformation theology degenerated into dead orthodoxy. One of the most zealous defenders of the Lutheran doctrine was Professor Enevald Svenonius in Abo who in his zeal for pure doctrine caused the deposition of Bishop Terserus, a deserving man, for alleged syncretistic views. The extreme desire for pure doctrine manifested itself also in the notorious trials for witchcraft at that time. Numerous persons were burned at the stake or beheaded after disgraceful trials, in Sweden as well as in Finland. Even the most intelligent men of the time labored under that delusion. The Pietistic movement has an honorable place in the annals of Finnish church history. The most noteworthy representatives of Pietism were Johannes Wegelius the Elder and Johannes Wegelius the Younger. The older Wegeliue corresponded with Spener; the younger Wegelius published a book of homilies Se evangelium0inen Volgems (" The Evangelical Light ") which went through three editions. The latter decades of the seventeenth century may justly be called the period of the two bishops, father and son, each named Johannes Gezelius. They were conservative in theology and made it their principal task to educate the common people (see GEZELIUs, JoHAN‑
tZs).
The end of the seventeenth century was a time
of great distress and suffering for Finland. A
hundred thousand persons died of hunger. King
Charles XII. of Sweden led his people from war to
war, and extreme poverty was the natural conse
quence. The new century also began with tumult
of war and shedding of blood. The great Northern
War sacrificed thousands of Finns. For a quarter
of a century suffering increased from year to year
in an incredible degree. The period
5. The from 1713 to 1721 is called the time
Eighteenth of great discord in the history of
and Finland. It seemed as if all life
Nineteenth ceased to pulsate. The peace of
Centuries. Nystod in 1721 put an end to the
bloody days of war, but a long
time passed before order was restored. Rus
sia took possession of a considerable portion of
eastern Finland, and the rest of the country under
went a new development. The cathedral chap
ter of the East was transferred from Viborg to
Borgo where it is still. As the war had exhausted
almost all material resources, the interests of the
Church naturally suffered. The new spirit of the
nineteenth century which governed all Europe
even entered Finland. The free thought of France
pervaded the court of King Gustavus III. in Stock
holm, and thence spread among the lower classes
of society. The Church of Finland presented the
same picture of stupor and indifference as the rest
of Protestant Christianity. A barren moralism
took the place of a vivid faith; but in this time of
need God sent a powerful awakening,‑a new Piet
ism originated in Finland. Its author was Paavo
Ruotsalsinen, a peasant. A great numder of
younger clergymen joined the movement, while the older clergy showed more conservative sentiments. F. G. Hedberg separated from the movement, taking a more Evangelical course, and found many adherents (see BORNHOrmmHB). There are today two main tendencies in the Finnish Church‑one keeping more strictly to the Law, whose adherents gathered later around the doctrinal system of J. T. Beck, the well‑known theologian of Tubingen (see BEcx, JOBANN TomAs), and a more Evangelical one whose acknowledged leader was Hedberg. Many Christian sects have also made propagandaBaptists, Methodists, Adventists, and others. Free.. churchism has its workers here and there. For some decades the sect of the Laestadians, called after Provost Lars Levi Laestadius, has been active in northern and southern Finland.
In 1850, Finland was divided into three diocesesAbo, Borgo, and Kuopio; in 1897 Nyslott was added as a fourth. Since 1817 the bishop of Abo has been archbishop and thus primate of the Fin‑
nish Church. From 1839 to 1843 a
6. Present theological periodical was published at
Conditions. Abo, the Ecklmiastikt Latteraturblad.
Bishop Schauman edited for some years (1869‑72) Sanningavittnd (" Witness of truth "). Professor Raboergh, who later became bishop, edited a valuable periodical for theology and Church. At present there are two periodicals: Theologisk tidakrift and Wartija ("Watchman"). The new church law, enacted on July 1, lg70, was of great importance. According to it, representatives of the laity have the right of decision in ecclesiastical questions. A general convention of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Finland meets every tenth year, or oftener, if necessary. It discusses vital questions of the Church, such as changes in church law, introduction of new church books, catechisms, Bible translations, etc. Another event of the most vital importance was the separation of Church and school, in 1870. At present, there are 1,273 elementary schools. As Finland does not yet possess any civil lists, the church registers of the congregations are the only official documents upon which the census is based. Consequently is it the duty of pastors to keep registers of crimes, vaccination, and lists of men subject to military duty. Since the church convention of 1886 Finland has had a new hymn‑book, catechism, and collection of pericopes. A Bible committee is preparing a new translation of the Bible which is necessitated by the national awakening of the last decades and the development of the language. After the great conflagration at Abo in 1827, the university was removed from that city toHelsingfors. The teaching force of the university has been doubled since 1640, but the theological faculty consists of only four ordinary profeeore. A candidate of theology must have been two years in service before the respective cathedral chapter admits him to the official examination which gives him the privilege of applying for a pastorate. There are consistorial and imperial pastorates. In the former case the preacher is elected by the congregation and confirmed by the cathedral chapter, in the latter case the confirmation comes
from the government. Since 1842 the Finnish
Church has had a widows' or pension fund from
which widows and orphans of preachers and teachers
receive annual pensions. On the whole, the Fin
nish people are= to the Church. The in
crease of merely external education among the
common people has to a certain degree loosened
their attachment, and some school teachers are
hostile to the Church. Moreover, the antieccle
siastical press has tried to sow discord and estrange
people from the Church, but so far without success.
See SWEDEN. (J. A. CEDERBERG.)
BIBLIOGRAPHY: The literature, mostly in Finnish and Swedish, is given in Hauck‑Herzog, RE, vi. 68. Sources are: M. P. Juusten, Chronieon evisco~orum Pinlandensium, ed. H. G. Porthan, Abo, 1784‑1800; H. G. Porthan, Opera selects, 5 vols., Helsingfors, 1859‑73; Regw trum ecclesio: Aboensis, ib. 1890. Consult, M. J. Alopsrus, Borga gymnasia historia, Borga, 1804; Finnland and die eoangeliach‑lutheriache %irehe, Berlin, 1888; Finland in Ode Nineteenth Century, Helsingfors. 1894; J. R. Fisher, Finland and the Tsars, 1809‑99, London, 1899; Dwight, Tupper and Bliss, Encyclopedia of Missions, pp. 230‑237, New York, 1904.
FINLEY, SAMUEL: American Presbyterian, fifth president of the College of New Jersey (Princeton); b. in County Armagh, Ireland, 1715; d. in Philadelphia, Pa., July 17,1766. Having received a good education from his parents, who were of Scottish descent, he came to Philadelphia in 1734, and studied for the ministry. He was ordained by the New Brunswick presbytery in 1742 and sent to Milford, Conn., in 1843, but for preaching to the Second Society at New Haven, in violation of the statute forbidding itinerant ministers to preach in any parish without the consent of the pastor, he was expelled from the colony as a vagrant a few months later. In 1744 he accepted a call to Nottingham, Md., where he established an academy which acquired considerable fame. He remained at Nottingham till 1761, when he succeeded Samuel Davies as president of the College of New Jersey. Though he never published anything but occasional sermons he enjoyed a great reputation as a scholar, and in 1763 received the degree of D.D. from the University of Glasgow. Among his sermons may be mentioned, Christ Triumphing and Satan Raging (1741), The Curse of Meroz (1757), and On the Death o/ President Datries (1761).
FINNEY, CHARLES GRANDISON: Congregationalist, revivalist, theologian and president of Oberlin College; b. at Warren, Litchfield County, Conn., Aug. 29, 1792; d. at Oberlin, 0., Aug. 16, 1875. When he was two years old his parents removed to Oneida County, N. Y., thus placing him beyond the reach of more than a common school education. When about twenty he went to New Jersey, where he attended a high school and taught. In later years he acquired some knowledge of Latin, Greek, and Hebrew. In 1818 he entered a law office in Adams, N. Y. At that time, he says, he was " almost as ignorant of religion as a heathen " (Autobiography, p. 7). His curiosity was excited by quotations from the Bible in his law books, and he purchased the first copy he had ever owned, and began to attend prayer‑meeting and church.
His conversion in 1821 was remarkable for its
THE NEW SCHAFF‑HERZOG
suddenness, thoroughness, and the definitely marked stages of his experience. After great mental agony, in which he prayed long and fervently, suddenly, he says, " the Holy Spirit descended upon me in a manner that seemed to go through me, body and soul. I could feel the impression like a wave of electricity going through and through me " (Autobiography, p. 20). Feeling an immediate call to preach, he forsook the law, was Conversion received under care of nresbyteFy
and Ac‑ (1822), and licensed to preach (1824). five Life. He at once turned his attention to revival labors, which were continued, with few interruptions until 1860, when he was forged to give up the work of an itinerant evangelist on account of age. These labors, beginning in western and central New York, were extended to Boston, New York, Philadelphia, and other cities of the East, and reached to England in 1849 and 1858. In 1832 he accepted a call to the pastorate of the Second Free Church of New York City, and in 1834 another to the recently organised Congregational Church in the same city, known as the Broadway Tabernacle. In 1835 he went to Oberlin as professor of theology, and he continued to labor till the time of his death as instructor, pastor, and college president (1852). During his residence at Oberlin he continued, as before, to hold revival meetings.
As preacher Finney had rare gifts. Wherever he went extensive revivals prevailed. His manner was dramatic, direct, and personal. He used simple language and illustrations. His presentation was clear and strictly logical. He directed his appeals to the conscience, rather than to the emotions, and made it tremble and quake by his searching analysis of the motives of action. As Revival‑ He chose for themes passages which ist, Preach‑ delineate the sinner's condition as
er, and one of conscious alienation from God, Teacher. and sinning against him. He dwelt upon the enmity of the carnal mind, the want of holiness, and the certain destruction of the impenitent. He called upon his hearers to come to an immediate decision and submit to God. " Instead of telling sinners," he says, " to use the means of grace, and pray for a new heart, I called on them to make themselves a new heart and spirit, and pressed the duty of immediate surrender to God " (Autobiography, p. 189). These meetings were often accompanied by violent bodily manifestations; and Finney was in the habit of calling upon the audiences to go forward to the anxious‑bench, or to rise in attestation of new resolutions. These methods, his directness and calls to repentance, his departure from the ‑doctrine of imputation and other features of the Calvinist theology early evoked criticism and strong opposition from religious associations and such church leaders as Asahel Nettleton and Lyman Beecher (qq.v.). In 1827 a convention was held at New Lebanon attended by Dr. Hawes of Hartford, Justin Edwards of Andover, Lyman Beecher of Boston, Dr. Beman of Troy, and others, to consider the matter. In course of time the opposition decreased (Autobiography, pp. 210‑226).
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