Adventures in Lapland and Svenskfinland: part three

It is a lovely view through the Esse Kirkohemmet, the Church Centre, across the frozen river to Esse Kirka, the main church building, and the detached belfry.

I attended an evening Lutheran church service in Jakobstad, on the day of our return from Lapland.  Johan Candelin, who works for a Christian charity which helps persecuted churches, was the guest preacher. He does not need a pulpit, being two metres tall. I met him years ago in the 1990s at the Lutheran church in Kokkola, when Jan-Erik was kyrkoherde in Purmo. Sometimes I feel like a Hobbit in Svenskfinland. I believe Johan is related to Jan-Erik's daughter in law. Johanna is married to Jan-Erik's eldest son, Jonathan. He is the same age as my eldest son.

Johan preached about the death of Jesus on Calvary's cross and what His death achieved.  I did record a bit of this part of the service on my camcorder. (I will ask for permission to put it on YouTube.) The message ended with a report on his work and travels to help Christians in lands where there is persecution and opposition to the Gospel. Very challenging indeed. There was a retiring collection for a ministry which involves caring for vulnerable street children in Egypt.

What fabulous facilities the Lutheran church has in Finland, arguably the most Lutheran country in the world. The Lutheran Church in Finland receives one per cent in tax from the nation's income, I believe.  They use the money well. And they work hard to remove poverty.

The altar at Esse Kyrka

Inside Esse Kyrka

The pulpit at Esse Kyrka

Johan Candelin at Jakobstad

A chapel at Jakobstad church centre. Finnish minimalism.

The lecture theatre has video and translation room facilities

Jan-Erik in the lecture theatre at Jakobstad Church Centre

Adventures in Lapland and Svenskfinland: part two

The Iceman and Elizabeth at Kemi Ice Castle

In the Karasjok Co-op, meeting a Sami lady.

We saw some unusual sights, well very usual for England and Wales, but not in the Artic Circle.
The Rohan thermal clothing did well in sub zero temperatures and extreme weather conditions.

Update 6 April

In deepest Lapland, just before a snowstorm. See if you can spot the reindeer in this photograph. It was a special place, far from the madding crowd. So remote, so peaceful, so cold, but we did not feel the cold as we were appropriately dressed.

To be continued.....in due course.

Adventures in Lapland and Svenskfinland: part one

Earlier this month I went with my wife to visit our old friends living in Svenskfinland, that is among the minority Swedish speaking community in Finland. For some time we have been planning a trip to Lapland, a place that has always fascinated me. Land of the midnight sun, the aurora borealis or northern lights, reindeer herds, Santa Claus/Father Christmas/Julgubbe, heavy snowdrifts, frozen rivers, Sami folk, winter sports, and ice castles and ice hotels.




Liz had a particularly nasty virus infection, so our long car journey to Rovaniemi, our hotel for the first night only, was delayed by a day. Jan-Erik's car, a four wheel drive Honda with appropriate winter tyres, performed magnificently. Marianne had stocked the vehicle with plenty of snacks, soft drinks, emergency rations and some interesting items for the Lapland trip.


On the Lord's Day, when we were due to leave for Lapland, Liz was particularly poorly, too poorly to sing at the morning service as planned.  She's Welsh, with firm roots in chapel culture, so it was a great disappointment to her. I preached at Esse, on the passage for the day in the Lutheran liturgical calendar. Jan-Erik translated. My Swedish is not good enough yet, but I do speak Svengelska very well indeed! It was one week before Palm Sunday, therefore this Lord's Day we celebrated the annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary.  So Liz and I had travelled from Essex to Esse.

To be continued.

Diabolical deeds done by Taliban murderers in Lahore

The events in Lahore, Pakistan, on Easter Sunday were diabolical. It was a soft target hit and children were blown to bits. A despicable crime that would be despised by even the most hardened long sentence offenders incarcerated in UK prisons. They do not tolerate criminals who harm children.

Now is the time for justice to be seen to be done by the Pakistani police and judicial system.
Let justice flow like rivers. Away with pious pronouncements and pathetic promises. Justice is demanded, and nothing less.

Harming, hurting and hampering children does have serious eternal consequences.

Matthew 18:2-6, Mark 9:42-48 and Luke 17:1-3.

Ultimately the wrath of God will come upon those who have sinfully caused children to suffer.
Unless someone is protected by the blood of Christ, then their eternal punishment will be severe.
Weeping and wailing. Gnashing of teeth. Their perdition will be painful!

IS, that's intensely satanic!

We have seen the true colours of IS. They are very dark indeed.Cowardly acts of violent hatred, murderous mayhem, suicide slaughter, bloodthirsty behaviour.They fight like foxes who kill all the chickens in the pen, eager to eliminate every animal without remorse. It's in their nature, their carnal and satanic nature.

They force women to wear dark, depressing and debilitating garments. Yes, they are debilitating in the hot weather, as black is not the best choice of colour in the searing heat.  Dark, depressing garments are symbolic of a dark and deeply depressing religion.

Dr Patrick Sookhdeo, Hard Pressed on Every Side

Praise God for Patrick Sookhdeo, founder of Barnabas Fund. In the face of many challenges, hostility, smears and attacks, the Barnabas Fund continues to help, support, serve, and defend persecuted Christians, and Dr Sookhdeo enjoys the loyal support of all the boards of Barnabas Fund around the world.

The Barnabas Trustees should be commended for defending the charity and Dr Sookhdeo from these attacks by publishing Hard Pressed on Every Side.  Dr Sookhdeo resigned from the Barnabas Fund in November 2015. The booklet seeks to correct inaccuracies and misleading information.

You can obtain an electronic version  on line

https://barnabasfund.org/hard-pressed-on-every-side

Christianity in Syria and Iraq

In parts of Iraq and Syria Christians have fled their homes, seen churches destroyed and folk murdered for their faith. The oldest Christian monastery in Iraq, St Elijah's in Mosul, which is over 1,400 years old, has been demolished by ISIS/ISIL/Daesh.

Christians are harshly persecuted by hardline jihadists throughout the Middle East. Many of these Christians are now in refugee camps outside of Iraq and Syria. Lebanon has been a safe haven, though there are tensions caused by the massive wave of refugees. Some have managed to find sanctuary in the West through Christian relief agencies and charities. They are living martyrs escaping from the killing fields.  Merchants of murder, mayhem, misery and slavery have ruined many lives. These refugees have lost homes, jobs, possessions and loved ones.

Barnabas Fund is an aid agency for the persecuted church. It is a registered charity that helps Chrstians in hostile environments, mainly in Muslim lands.  I thoroughly recommend their work.
To find out more about this valuable agency which makes a difference in the lives of suffering Christians, please visit
  www.barnabasfund.org