Finnish priest reinstated after losing position for criticising church and performing same-sex wedding

A prominent critic of the Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Church, Kai Sadinmaa, has been reinstated as a priest five years after losing his clerical rights for officiating a same-sex wedding and publicly condemning church leadership, reports Yle.

The Helsinki Diocese Chapter announced last week that Sadinmaa would return to his position, beginning his duties at Malmi Parish on Wednesday, 1 April. His reinstatement follows renewed dialogue with Bishop Teemu Laajasalo, who oversees the diocese.

Sadinmaa’s dismissal in 2019 stemmed from a series of confrontations with church authorities. In March 2017, he deliberately defied official policy by performing a wedding ceremony for a same-sex couple, Hannu Virtanen and Raul Medina, on the day Finland’s gender-neutral marriage law took effect. Though legally permitted, the church maintained its traditional stance against such ceremonies.

His criticism escalated in 2020 when, alongside fellow priest Árpád Kovács, he drafted a manifesto urging church employees to “resign from the bishops” after a bishops’ conference issued what Sadinmaa deemed an insufficient statement on same-sex unions. The manifesto was published on Facebook and read aloud on Yle Radio 1’s Horisontti programme.

The Helsinki Diocese Chapter, then led by Laajasalo, demanded a written explanation. While Kovács resolved the matter with his bishop, Sadinmaa’s refusal to back down led to his suspension. In his final service at Viikki Church, he denounced the clergy and encouraged congregants to share communion without priests—actions cited in the decision to permanently revoke his licence.

After leaving the church, Sadinmaa worked temporary jobs, wrote a one-man play titled Sadinmaa’s Confirmation School, and began two books. A turning point came last summer when a football injury left him hospitalised. During his recovery, he reconnected with Laajasalo, leading to reconciliation.

Sadinmaa has long framed same-sex marriage as a human rights issue, while the church’s General Synod has upheld the definition of marriage as a union between a man and a woman. His return to the pulpit marks a rare shift in a years-long standoff, though the church’s doctrinal position remains unchanged.