Eroakirkosta.fi
Encyclopedia
Eroakirkosta.fi is a Finnish
website which offers an electronic service for resigning from Finland's state church
es; the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland
and the Finnish Orthodox Church
. "Eroa kirkosta" translates to "resign the church".
The website was created by Freethinkers of Tampere, an organization that supports a formal separation between Church and State, and opened on November 21, 2003. The Finnish law on freedom of religion
was updated on August 1, 2003 and then allowed resigning from religions without a visit to a bureau. Because eroakirkosta.fi is not maintained by magistrate
s, the website can not directly resign a person from a church. Instead, the website forwards the filled-in resignation forms to magistrates who then complete the resignation. Resignations through e-mail
are allowed because the Finnish law requires resignations to be "in writing" but not "signed
". Eroakirkosta.fi also gives the user the alternative to print the resignation form and send it through regular mail
.
Eroakirkosta.fi became popular very quickly. Within ten weeks over 1,400 people had resigned through the website. In 2004, almost 39% of all resignations in the country were done through eroakirkosta.fi. In 2005, the percentage increased to 68.9. In 2006, almost four out of five persons resigned through the website. The total resignation rates in Finland have also increased. The number of people resigning from the state churches has tripled in six years (2000–2006), and the 2005 and 2006 resignation numbers both break the old record of 30,710 from 1992. 47 300 members left the church through the service in 2008, that is 91% of all resignations (52 200).
on October 12 was followed by thousands of people resigning from the Evangelical Lutheran Church
by using the service.
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
website which offers an electronic service for resigning from Finland's state church
State church
State churches are organizational bodies within a Christian denomination which are given official status or operated by a state.State churches are not necessarily national churches in the ethnic sense of the term, but the two concepts may overlap in the case of a nation state where the state...
es; the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland
Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland
The Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland is the national church of Finland. The church professes the Lutheran branch of Christianity, and is a member of the Porvoo Communion....
and the Finnish Orthodox Church
Finnish Orthodox Church
The Finnish Orthodox Church is an autonomous Orthodox archdiocese of the Patriarchate of Constantinople. The Church has a legal position as a national church in the country, along with the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland....
. "Eroa kirkosta" translates to "resign the church".
The website was created by Freethinkers of Tampere, an organization that supports a formal separation between Church and State, and opened on November 21, 2003. The Finnish law on freedom of religion
Freedom of religion
Freedom of religion is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or community, in public or private, to manifest religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship, and observance; the concept is generally recognized also to include the freedom to change religion or not to follow any...
was updated on August 1, 2003 and then allowed resigning from religions without a visit to a bureau. Because eroakirkosta.fi is not maintained by magistrate
Magistrate
A magistrate is an officer of the state; in modern usage the term usually refers to a judge or prosecutor. This was not always the case; in ancient Rome, a magistratus was one of the highest government officers and possessed both judicial and executive powers. Today, in common law systems, a...
s, the website can not directly resign a person from a church. Instead, the website forwards the filled-in resignation forms to magistrates who then complete the resignation. Resignations through e-mail
E-mail
Electronic mail, commonly known as email or e-mail, is a method of exchanging digital messages from an author to one or more recipients. Modern email operates across the Internet or other computer networks. Some early email systems required that the author and the recipient both be online at the...
are allowed because the Finnish law requires resignations to be "in writing" but not "signed
Signature
A signature is a handwritten depiction of someone's name, nickname, or even a simple "X" that a person writes on documents as a proof of identity and intent. The writer of a signature is a signatory. Similar to a handwritten signature, a signature work describes the work as readily identifying...
". Eroakirkosta.fi also gives the user the alternative to print the resignation form and send it through regular mail
Mail
Mail, or post, is a system for transporting letters and other tangible objects: written documents, typically enclosed in envelopes, and also small packages are delivered to destinations around the world. Anything sent through the postal system is called mail or post.In principle, a postal service...
.
Eroakirkosta.fi became popular very quickly. Within ten weeks over 1,400 people had resigned through the website. In 2004, almost 39% of all resignations in the country were done through eroakirkosta.fi. In 2005, the percentage increased to 68.9. In 2006, almost four out of five persons resigned through the website. The total resignation rates in Finland have also increased. The number of people resigning from the state churches has tripled in six years (2000–2006), and the 2005 and 2006 resignation numbers both break the old record of 30,710 from 1992. 47 300 members left the church through the service in 2008, that is 91% of all resignations (52 200).
Publicity
The web service received publicity October 2010, after a gay rights panel discussion on TVYLE TV2
YLE TV2 is a Finnish television channel owned and operated by YLE.TV2 launched in 1964, and broadcasts public service programming, children's, youth, sport and music programmes.-Own Productions:* Ajankohtainen kakkonen* Akuutti* Jopet Show* Kummeli...
on October 12 was followed by thousands of people resigning from the Evangelical Lutheran Church
Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland
The Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland is the national church of Finland. The church professes the Lutheran branch of Christianity, and is a member of the Porvoo Communion....
by using the service.
Resignation statistics
| Year | All resignations | Through eroakirkosta.fi | Percentage |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | 26,857 | ~1,000 | ~3.7 |
| 2004 | 27,009 | 10,459 | 38.7 |
| 2005 | 33,043 | 22,770 | 68.9 |
| 2006 | 34,952 | 27,672 | 79.2 |
| 2007 | 37,879 | 32,418 | 85.6 |
| 2008 | 52,203 | 47,333 | 90.7 |
| 2009 | 43,650 | 39,200 | 89.8 |
| 2010 | 83,097 | 79,200 | 95,3 |