One third of parishes of the Finnish Evangelical-Lutheran Church suffer from economic difficulties, says Sunnuntaisuomalainen, the weekend supplement of a number of Finnish provincial newspapers. According to information from the Church Council, 150 of Finland's approximately 550 Lutheran parishes were running on a deficit.
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Resignation of members is one of the factors reducing church revenue. Finland’s 20 largest parishes or parish groups lost about EUR 2.2 million in church tax income due to resignations.
Veikko Huotari, Bishop of Mikkeli Diocese attributes the trend to a negative public image of the church. He notes that members of sexual minorities, for instance, might feel that the church considers them second-class citizens.