‘Impartial Sources’ and the Registration of Religious Communities in Finland*

Authors

  • Essi Eleonoora Mäkelä University of Helsinki

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1558/jasr.35224

Keywords:

Religion, law, registering religious communities, Finland, Paganism, new religious movements, nonpartisan sources

Abstract

The Freedom of Religion Act in Finland dates to 1922, but before 2003 only one community with no connections with the so-called world religions, 'scientific' Totuuden ystävät, was registered (in 1958). In 2003 an evaluative board was established to supervise registration. The number of rejected applications has been growing since the 1990s. Because these all concern minority movements, the Finnish case can shed light on the worldwide interest in state responses to minority religions. This article analyses the applications of three groups: La Sociedad del Amor de Dios (2015) and Suomen Äärimmäisen Vapaa Eristinen Liike (2016), both of which were unsuccessful, and Karhun kansa (2013), which was successful. Key questions include 'On what basis does the board of experts reject or approve the applications of new or "alternative" religious groups?' and 'What role do "impartial sources" play in the decision-making process of the board?'.

Author Biography

  • Essi Eleonoora Mäkelä, University of Helsinki

    Essi Mäkelä is a PhD Candidate at the University of Helsinki, Finland. Her PhD concerns the rhetorics and discourses in the registration of new and pagan religious communities in Finland. The case studies in her PhD include a Wiccan, a Pastafarian, a Fenno religious and a Discordian community. She has interviewed community members and evaluative board members to gain insight into the process from multiple perspectives. Her earlier research has looked Discordianism as a liquid religion and Carlos Castaneda as an academic prankster. Mäkelä's interests lie in the societal construction of the concept of religion, the limits and negotiations of Freedom of Religion as a human right, the situating of pagan and new religions within society, and how the borders of contemporary and traditional religiosity are built in speech and practice. She is also interested in the way these concepts are constructed within the Study of Religions and other Human and Social Sciences.

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Published

2018-11-21

Issue

Vol. 31 No. 1 (2018)

Section

Articles

License

© Equinox Publishing Ltd.

For information regarding our Open Access policy, click here.

How to Cite

Mäkelä, E. E. (2018). ‘Impartial Sources’ and the Registration of Religious Communities in Finland*. Journal for the Academic Study of Religion, 31(1), 3-26. https://doi.org/10.1558/jasr.35224