A very special biblical year has begun!

The priest of the Lutheran parish of Rovaniemi, Aki Hätinen:

In August 2022 I visited in the city of Bursa, Turkey. During The Ottoman Empire, it used to be its capital. One hour distance from this beautiful city locates a small city called Iznik. I paid a visit there also during my trip. The town is at the site of the ancient Greek city of Nicaea. This year Nicaea plays a great role in Christian world.

The year 2025 marks the 1700th anniversary of the Roman Ecumenical Christian council of Nicaea, convened by Emperor Constantine I in 325.

Constantine I (also known as Constantine the Great) was the first Roman emperor to convert to Christianity. He played a pivotal role in elevating the status of Christianity in Rome, decriminalizing Christian practice and ceasing Christian persecution. This was a turning point the Christianization of the Roman Empire. Constantine is sometimes associated with the religiopolitical ideology, which epitomizes the unity of church and state. He founded the city of Constantinople and made it the capital of the Empire, which remained so for over a millennium.

The central message of the meeting in 325 was the encapsulation of the Christian Trinitarian faith and the miracle of the Son of God becoming man in a common confessional text. As completed at the Council of Constantinople in 381, it is still in regular use in many Christian churches as a baptismal confession and as a confession of faith read together in worship.

The concise wording of the Nicene Creed is a biblically based way of joining the faith revealed in God's revelation in Jesus Christ. It is both a celebration of God's works and a substantive focus on the core content of Scripture in a way that expresses the faith that proclaims and through which the good news of the triune God's works of creation, redemption and sanctification is proclaimed. Happy 1700th anniversary for everybody!

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Rovaniemi Parish Magazine November 2021 English Summary

WELCOME TO THE CHURCH AND PARISH EVENTS! THE NATIVITY SCENE Is at Lordi’s Square (Maakuntakatu 29-31) and you can also watch it on the webcam . THE ROVANIEMI CHURCH IS OPEN Daily from November 29, 2021 to January 9, 2022 from 9:00 to 21:00. Welcome! A guide is present every day and priests are on call from Monday to Friday from 10:00 to 13:00 as well as during church services. IN ALL ROVANIEMI PARISH BUILDINGS, face masks are primarily used and safe distances are kept. THE INTERNATIONAL GREATEST CHRISTMAS CAROLS EVENT will be held on December 16 at 18:00 in the church. You can also follow along at the Rovaniemi parish YouTube channel: youtu.be/aUMm8NGgSus. GREATEST CHRISTMAS CAROLS will also be sung at Hotel Aakenus on December 15 at 18:00 and at Hemingway’s on December 16 at 21:00. THE CHRISTMAS MIDNIGHT MASS will be held multilingually on December 24, 2021 starting at 23:00 in the Rovaniemi church. CHRISTMAS TRAIL 2021 – A STAR SHINES IN THE DARKNESS In th...

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