Finland: The Land of the Church and of Church Sociology

The roots of the sociology of religion in Finland can be traced to the influence of early-twentieth century social anthropologists and social historians. But the post-Second World War phase of development took a relatively different direction. It favored the collection of official statistics of church participation and was preoccupied with the consequences of extremely rapid social change. The Lutheran Church's own interdisciplinary Research Institute, founded in 1969, subsequently investigated the dimensionality of Finnish religious commitment. Universities have also supported the small-scale development of the academic discipline of "Church and Social Studies," although until recently Finnish sociologists had shown relatively little interest in religion as a social phenomenon. There is heavy reliance on church statistics and survey findings but very little application of sociological theory. The increasing exposure of Finnish sociologists of religion to international influences is beginning, however, to reorient the subject in a more theoretical and challenging direction. Development of theory appropriate to Nordic conditions is now a first priority, while other tasks for the future include studies of non-official religion and of the relation between theology and sociology.