On the tenth of February, the former deputy general secretary of the Lutheran World Federation for ecumenical relations, Rev. Dr. Kaisamari Hintikka, was consecrated bishop in the Diocese of Espoo in Finland.
In her sermon, Bishop Dr. Hintikka spoke about the diocese she will lead as a precious community with a diversity of congregations that “is home to a wide circle of people: seekers and sensitive askers of questions; critics and the reborn; those who bear witness in the most varied of ways”. Amid all this diversity, she said, “we are united in the calling to build this diocese and the church of Christ together. It is a calling that overcomes any boundary between us. It is a calling that will carry this diocese forward.”
At the consecration service, the bishops, pastors, deacons, and staff of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland and the Diocese of Espoo were joined by representatives from sister churches in communion and from ecumenical partners.
The LWF general secretary, Rev. Dr. Martin Junge, said that the LWF is grateful for Hintikka’s leadership in the LWF’s theological and ecumenical work over these past years. “We rejoice together with the Diocese of Espoo over the capable leader who was called to the ministry of bishop.”
Photographs: Kirkon kuvapankki / Markku Pihlaja
Source: Lutheran World Federation