Evangelical Lutheran Church
Description:
Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland is a Finnish Lutheran community with 80.6% of Finns, or about 4.3 million people.
The head of the Finnish Lutherans is Archbishop of Turku Kari Mäkinen.
The main rites of the church are: baptism, communion, confirmation (at the age of 15), wedding, funeral.
The highest authority in the parish is the parish council. All members of the parish who are 18 years old have the right to vote in the elections of the parish council.
The supreme authority of the whole Church is the Synod, which decides on issues of church education, religious policy and church finance. The Synod is convened twice a year. Dioceses are led by a bishop and diocesan chapter.
Over the past decades, the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland has developed a variety of international functions. First of all, this is support for missionaries and assistance to developing countries, ecumenical work.