My persistent interest in the Nordic countries and all things Scandinavia leads me to spend some time now and then doing some searching online to see what kind of work is being done there to plant churches. Last year, I did some searching on the website for Greater Europe Mission, one of my favorite mission agencies. Even though I do not usually get too excited about parachurch organizations, I know they do a lot of great work. I've had some interaction with some of their missionaries, and a former pastor of mine is serving with them in Germany. Anyway, in the process, I was able to get in contact with the regional director for Scandinavia and the Baltic countries, Forrest Hendrix, to find out a little more about what they are doing there and how I could pray for them.

Forrest maintains a blog (albeit somewhat infrequently) and uses it to discuss some of the work they are doing, especially in Vårberg, which is near the Skärholmen neighborhood of Stockholm he was living and working in before returning to the US recently for a period of furlough. One of the most interesting things I thought they did was a real simple act of community service. This is from Forrest's blog speaking about his most recent trip to Sweden:

The last Saturday night I was in Sweden, I went out to do the Saturday evening ministry we do in the community of Vårberg between the two Pubs and beside the subway entrance. I usually set up a table there around 12 o’clock at night and serve free coffee and tea to the people using the Subway and visiting the two Pubs. We do this as a community service. Often our community of Vårberg has had bad press concerning the problems there with drunks etc… We started serving coffee there about a year and a half ago and have continued on Saturday nights. I really enjoy meeting people and getting to know the people of our community. I think we have had a calming effect on the area. That was our goal to begin with.

So simple, and yet it seems to be having quite an effect. I read on another blog that even a local policeman commented to the team that the department had noticed a reduction in calls when they were out there (though I cannot find that post again--I read it a couple of nights ago). You can also read here on Steve Pyfrom's blog, who spent some time with the GEM team in Sweden last year, about his experience serving coffee and meeting people.

We do not always need big, grand programs or organizations to make efforts to witness to and share the love of Christ with people. It can be, as in this case, as simple as a cup of coffee. It might be that this is one way to give your theology legs, an idea we discussed a little in my previous post. This is great; it is real, down to earth, and gives you the opportunity to be one-on-one with people right away. To have the community take notice is exactly what you want, because it will not be long until people are asking who you are and what you are all about. And that is exciting.

Recently, I have been discussing European culture and civilization to some degree, particularly focusing on its historical ties to Christianity and recent divergence (and even apparent aversion) to it. The other day I stumbled across an interesting study conducted by the Uppsala Institute for Diaconal and Social Studies, which I think is affiliated with the Church of Sweden and Uppsala University. One of the researchers, Ninna Edgardh Beckman, contributed a piece to that document on the relationship of religion and welfare in Europe (I apologize, but cannot find the document online anymore). As part of her introductory remarks, she says the following:

The first observation is that welfare reveals the historic influence of the Christian churches. It is impossible to tell the history of any aspect of welfare--of medicine, of poor relief or of education--in Europe, without taking into account the history of the Christian churches. Through their teaching and practice they have all, in various ways, contributed to the aforementioned European understanding of solidarity and social responsibility and also to the actual formation of the different types of welfare systems that prevail in Europe.

She goes on to note that in several European languages, the word for welfare is actually very closely tied to the word "providence." Semantics, however, is secondary, and she further observes that "the degree to which the historic influence of the churches still makes its imprint, in spite of alleged secularity [is striking]...our present welfare states are the products of long and close relationships between church and state all over Europe." This further bolsters the point I have been drawing out in a number of my posts. Despite the occasional European tendency to historical amnesia (conscious or otherwise), especially in regards to religious matters, this demonstrates clearly the influence of the Church over society, and in a positive way.

You may debate the legitimacy of the modern welfare state, and that is fine. That is not the point here. Instead, the point is that historically the Church has been faithful in fulfilling its obligation to "look after orphans and widows in their distress." Yet, as Beckman later notes in her research, the failure of the Church to continue this task into the modern age is evident as the modern welfare state has grown into an all-encompassing government subsidiary. Granted, her finding is reported much more objectively than I have stated here. The rapid decline of the presence of the Church in Europe has not helped either, requiring something other than itself to take up the task. I think it is quite obvious that this has become a burden far too large for any sort of government to bear.

With the disappearance of the Church, it seems as if it would be natural for the state to take up where it had left off, especially considering how closely the two were wed historically. As I alluded to above, it is easy to criticize the welfare state for what it is, but I think it is a natural progression. With both entities occupying a sort of ultimate place in the culture and society it only makes sense that when one no longer remains in that position, the other will move in to take over that role as well. That is not a justification for its existence, merely and observation. To expect Europe to merely shed the welfare mentality is unrealistic, as well as unfair. Economics is a field in which I claim no expertise, but I do know there is not a "one-size-fits-all" solution to various problems.

Also, this is not to blame the Church for the way European culture has changed in recent history. I will not deny that in some ways blame can be cast in that direction, but I do not highlight this in order to point fingers; I think instead we ought to look ahead. So then, I can say with confidence that one place to start is for the Church to reclaim its mission in its entirety, and to once again practice the religion that our God and Father accepts as pure and faultless (James 1:27). If we want to talk about real cultural revolution, this is where it needs to begin.

Far in the north of Europe, in the country of Finland, lies a small village called Näätämo. Its size is negligible, only one minor road running through it on its way to Norway, which lies several miles to the northeast of the village. It is difficult to find any information about Näätämo due to its small size. However, what I have discovered after painstakingly navigating the Finnish language website of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland (I know, too much time on my hands) is that there does not seem to be a church there. The closest church is in the village of Inari, a distance of 144km (89 mi.) from Näätämo. Perhaps the church in the border town of Utsjoki would be closer, but as there are no direct roads from Näätämo to Utsjoki; a 180km (112 mi.) drive through Norway is required. That is one long haul.

One of the members of our teaching team for adult Sunday School at church just wrapped up a great series on the mission of the church. One of the questions raised was where we should focus our mission. Recent missiological thought has helped the church get out of the mindset that mission is "over there," something in which we send people and money to different parts of the world to reach the unreached. Now we realize that the heart of our own culture in the West is devoid of the Gospel, as we see missionaries from other parts of the world coming here, and so we are refocusing our efforts to our own doorstep.

This, of course, is good. But God's children make up a diverse family with hearts for different peoples and places. Much of the focus today is on our cities, but that is not to discredit those who still feel a burden on their hearts for other places around the globe. We still need those people. The gospel still needs to be heard in a myriad of places. I use Näätämo only as an example of the many cities, towns, and villages that do not have churches or where the gospel is not present. For some time a desire to see the gospel take a firm rooting in Europe, and the Scandinavian countries in particular, has been on my heart.

All this is to say, if you feel a burden to go somewhere, then go! Missiological trends and perceived needs should not completely dictate where we carry out the work of Christ's kingdom. No doubt they are very helpful, and must be given due attention. But follow your heart. God uses each of us in different ways in different places, and he leads us by his Spirit to fulfill his purposes. Is your desire to bring the gospel to Näätämo? Then go. They need it just as much as the people in your city.

My peculiar interest in all things Finnish led me to this article about the deteriorating driving conditions in Helsinki. What I found most interesting about the article was that Matti Roine, of the Ministry of Transport and Communications, links the growing problems with economic upturn.

Hard, selfish values raise their ugly head, and people no longer take others into consideration. Self-seeking attitudes are reflected in driving behaviour as well.

Is that a plausible explanation?

Maybe that's partly the reason the Vatican issued their Ten Commandments of Driving.

As someone who loves language and would, if able, engage in serious study of linguistics, I found a book at the library the other day that really caught my attention. It's called, In Other Words: A Language Lover's Guide to the Most Intriguing Words Around the World. What it contains is words from a large assortment of different languages that are untranslatable into English and usually a distinctive, cultural part of a language. It really is quite interesting. The introduction mentions the word sisu, a Finnish word I loved the first time I heard it. It says this of the word:

"It is 1939 and two Finnish foot soldiers are pinned down in a battle during the war between Finland and Russia.

'We're outnumbered,' one soldier says. 'There must be over forty of them, and only two of us.'

'Dear God, it'll take us all day to bury them!' exclaims the other.

Finnish people tell this story, along with a variety of others, to illustrate the national characteristic known as sisu. Sisu, says Professor Kate Remlinger at Grand Valley State University, is an untranslatable word, meaning something like a dogged and proud refusal to lie down and be beaten. 'The way people talk is a reflection of their worldview, their history, and their upbringing,' she says, observing that the idea of sisu is so important to the Finns that, three generations after emigrating to the United States of America, it continues to infuse local Michigan dialect and culture."

I like that. And it explains why the guy who sometimes visited the house next to my in-laws had one of those novelty plates tacked on the front of his massive Ford F-250 Super Duty pickup that said SISU in huge letters.

Yesterday I read about a man by the name of Paavo Ruotsalainen. He was born in the parish of Iisalmi, Finland, in 1777. Outside of Finland, Ruotsalainen's importance is relatively little. However, in Finland he was one of the leaders of the most powerful pietist revivalist movements of the 19th century within the Lutheran Church. From an early age he was a strong pietist, having read his Bible through three times by the time he was confirmed. He became a well-known lay preacher and travelled vast distances to connect with other like-minded figures. He faced oppression and opposition by those who did not agree with him or were worried about what he was trying to do. The movement continued to gain strength and numbers, and after he died in 1852, it continued to shape the future of the Lutheran Church in Finland. Read more about him here and here.

I was not particularly interested in what Ruotsalainen stood for, because I found it a little radical; furthermore, I am a Calvinist, not a Lutheran. But I was interested in the method in which it was achieved. He led a major revival movement within a large state church, but he did so as a layman. He was not a clergyman, bishop, or other high-ranking church officer, he was merely a peasant farmer who kept a pew seat warm in the church.

Growing up, I was generally part of more conservative churches where the locus of ministry was centered in the pastor and the elders of the church. Not much was expected of the rest of the congregation, the "ordinary" believers. I now belong to a church that fully embraces the idea of the priesthood of all believers, and seeks to actively engage all of them in ministry. I believe that this is a very important thing to do, especially when considering some of the things Paul wrote regarding the diversity of the body of believers and how each works together in a community in order to give glory to God by the mutual building up of each other and the empowering of fellow believers for ministry (see 1 Corinthians 12). This is one of the most straightforward indicators of the importance of lay ministry in the church, and a clear rejection of the notion of an ordinary believer.

Lay ministry also plays an important role in the leadership of the church much in the same way that Ruotsalainen functioned in the Finnish Lutheran Church. There are times when those who are officially ordained in ministry may lose sight of the vision of the church, or perhaps stumble over a theological point, or simply make wrong decisions about things. It is here that laymen are responsible for ensuring that these obstacles are overcome and Biblical truth is adhered to.

Of course, none of these functions can be performed without the proper instruction and education for members of the congregation. For these reasons the church throughout history has developed means of educating the people, be it through catechism classes, discipleship courses, or the more modern small group ministry. Whatever the tool may be, it is very important to the life and well-being of the congregation and its ability to fulfill its task and role as a universal priesthood.

Does this blur the line between ordained ministry figures and laymen? Not at all. Those who are ordained have gone through a specific training first directed at molding them into spiritual leaders and mentors who are the shepherds of the flocks of believers. Their responsibility through preaching and teaching the Word and pastoral ministry is to equip the laity to go forth from inside the church's walls and be the light of Christ to the world they are surrounded by. Lay ministry does not mean that each believer will become the pastor of a church, but it is focused on learning to be witnesses of Jesus and the coming Kingdom in every area of life. There simply is no ordinary believer. Those who think there is might do well to take a bit of a cue from the man from Iisalmi.

8 March 2010 note: My interest in Scandinavia largely began in high school, and for quite a few years I thought seriously about getting involved in church planting there. Although I really don't see myself doing that anymore, I still maintain an interest in the region, and am always looking and praying for efforts to promote the gospel there.

A number of people very recently have been interrogating me about my fasincation with the Nordic countries. To spare my already hoarse voice from having to explain it to people, I would like to post a number of reasons for my interest in the Scandinavian region.

I honestly don't know where the interest started. I only remember one day a few years ago when the country of Norway came into my mind, and I began to Google for information about the country. That's where it all began and it's been going ever since. I did all kinds of things to learn. I looked for books at the library on history and tourism, though there were pathetically few. I spent lots of time searching random things on the internet, such as different cities, cultural information, and whatever else I could glean from online browsing. My interest has shifted, and I've spent time studying some of Norway and Sweden, and now am studying Finland.

So why the interest? I think the biggest reason I have interest in Scandinavia is that it is different. It's not radically different, like countries in Asia or Africa, because the countries are still Western. But it has a more distinctive and separate history from the rest of Western Europe. The history of the Nordic countries is not particularly exciting in comparison to other parts of Europe---with the exception of maybe Sweden's rise to power in the 17th century---but it remains interesting to me because it is birthed out of Viking society, which is somewhat different than the rest of medieval Europe. It also has been a society that has developed more or less in isolation from the rest of the continent. I think its separation from the mainland has a big part to play in this.

Another thing that grabs me is the sheer beauty of the region. From Norway's rugged mountains and fjords to Finland's flatter land covered in beautiful forested areas and more than 60,000 lakes, the terrain is spectacular. With a population density of 14 people per km² in Norway up to 20 per km² in Sweden, the amount of open, natural land is not lacking either. All you need to do an image search online to uncover the natural beauty of creation in these countries.

I am also intrigued as to the reason why the Scandinavian countries are considered the most postmodern and unreligious places in Europe, though they once were some of the most religious. To be sure, the rest of Western Europe faces this situation as well, but my research tells me that these are considered the most extreme cases of this. This interests me because here then I see a great, great need for bringing the reality of the Kingdom of God back into countries that used to have such fervor for the gospel. They need a second reformation, if you will. I don't know where the road will lead, but I often think I could see myself being used in that way there.

Then there are the cities. Oslo, founded in 1048. Stockholm in 1252. Helsinki in 1550. There are huge amounts of history in these cities. And they are beautiful cities from what I've observed in pictures. They aren't overly big compared to other European and American metropolis', they're small enough to be full of life, but not unceasingly busy. Dankku has been kind enough to share with me why he loves his city so much, and he is drawn in by its attractiveness and its atmosphere. It's a place where he can walk around and just by being in the atmosphere can feel better about everything. That kind of testimony just grips me.

But it's cold! This is the reaction of many. And I know it is. If you're most southern point is only at something like 55 degrees latitude, the climate is bound to be a little more inhospitable. But still, a temperate stream off the ocean keeps living conditions bearable, and from the records I've seen, it's not actually all that different from here, except that summers are cooler and less humid (an attractive trait!).

I realize I haven't addressed Iceland and Denmark here, though they are the two other countries that fall under the Nordic designation. I think they are neat places too, they just don't grab me like the other three. So what will become of interest in these countries, I am not sure. Maybe just a cool spot to vacation. Maybe a chance to live there for a while. Or maybe an opportunity for God to use me in ministry. Whatever happens, I do not see my interest in Scandinavia waning anytime soon, and I really hope I get the chance to go over there sooner rather than later.