Stefferi
Chief Suomiposter
10mo ago·Edited 10mo ago
Geographically, sure. However - and since I'm not a Lutheran and not from the Laestadian areas, my knowledge is pretty limited - my understanding is that most actual "Laestadian" activity does not happen in the formal church structures but in their own conventicles (I hadn't heard of this English term before, or perhaps I had but hadn't looked it up), which they have in common with the other Evangelical movements inside the Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Church.
Also, there are surprising cases on "cultural" Laestadianism that sometimes turn up. For instance, there's an older female reporter whose name has become byword for almost ridiculous levels of liberal pro-European cosmopolitanism and particularly Francophilia (rare in Finland, Finns tend to be Anglophiles and/or Germanophiles). However, recently, the same reporter wrote an article recommending voting for the presidential candidate of the Centre Party, a centrist pro-rural party. This befuddled me a bit until it was pointed out to me that the said reporter comes from a Laestadian background, and Laestadians have always been Centre supporters - apparently something might remain even after you leave the conventicle life.
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Notes -
Geographically, sure. However - and since I'm not a Lutheran and not from the Laestadian areas, my knowledge is pretty limited - my understanding is that most actual "Laestadian" activity does not happen in the formal church structures but in their own conventicles (I hadn't heard of this English term before, or perhaps I had but hadn't looked it up), which they have in common with the other Evangelical movements inside the Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Church.
Also, there are surprising cases on "cultural" Laestadianism that sometimes turn up. For instance, there's an older female reporter whose name has become byword for almost ridiculous levels of liberal pro-European cosmopolitanism and particularly Francophilia (rare in Finland, Finns tend to be Anglophiles and/or Germanophiles). However, recently, the same reporter wrote an article recommending voting for the presidential candidate of the Centre Party, a centrist pro-rural party. This befuddled me a bit until it was pointed out to me that the said reporter comes from a Laestadian background, and Laestadians have always been Centre supporters - apparently something might remain even after you leave the conventicle life.
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