The Orthodox Church of Finland has been closely following the Estonian Parliament’s actions in relation to the Orthodox Church operating in Estonia under the Moscow Patriarchate. Now the Parliament has made a decision that requires this church to sever ties with Moscow and the Russian Orthodox Church, which is an organization supporting the war of aggression in Ukraine.
The church under the Moscow Patriarchate in Estonia represents the last remnants of the Soviet occupation era in a country that has built its identity as a free nation. In this historical situation, the Orthodox Church of Finland naturally positions itself to support the Estonian Autonomous sister church under the Ecumenical Patriarchate, the legitimate heir to Estonia’s indigenous Orthodox tradition. This ecclesiastical community, established during the independence period in 1923, represents the authentic canonical continuity in the Estonian spiritual landscape and offers a home to all Orthodox Christians regardless of their ethnic backgrounds.
The Orthodox Church of Finland through a press release hopes that the community currently under Moscow’s patriarchal authority might discover a path toward reconciliatory integration with the Estonian Autonomous Church. Such a transition would manifest the authentic spiritual liberation that Christ extends to all humanity. The reality remains that the Russian ecclesiastical presence in Estonia operates not through genuine independence but through directives from Moscow – a relationship that has rendered it vulnerable to political instrumentalization and rhetoric justifying war.
“The Apostle Paul reminds us clearly that a Christian is called to freedom, not to external subjugation,” states Archbishop Elia of Helsinki and all Finland. “When ecclesiastical structures become subordinated to the geopolitical aspirations of foreign powers, this constitutes a profound violation of the freedom into which Christ has called us. The Estonian Autonomous Church stands prepared to provide an authentic spiritual haven where both freedom and Orthodox tradition’s distinctive character can flourish within Estonian society.”
Our ecclesiastical tradition emphasizes that the Church’s vocation lies in peace-building and upholding human dignity – never in sanctifying warfare or employing national boundaries as instruments of domination. “When faith becomes weaponized to legitimize conflict, it fundamentally betrays Christianity’s central message of neighbor-love,” the Archbishop continues.
The Orthodox Church of Finland through its press release hopes Estonia’s courageous stance might awaken other Baltic nations to recognize the instrumentalization of religious institutions in service of Russia’s aggressive military campaigns.
“Our prayers center on the realization of peace for all Baltic peoples, and especially for those Orthodox brothers and sisters seeking spiritual belonging amid these transformative circumstances. Christ’s call to truth and freedom resonates across artificial borders and national identities, summoning us toward building a world where each person’s inherent dignity is honored as bearing the divine image – never as an instrument for power’s exercise,” the Archbishop emphasizes.
