Why pantheism is on the rise in Finland
Two participants named "Christmas Now" and "Zurele" pose at the NordicFuzzCon in Malmo, Sweden. The NordicFuzzCon is one of the largest European gatherings of "furries" and cartoon animal enthusiasts. Photo EPA, Johan Nilsson
Northern Europe
A young child comes to school wearing the mask of a cat. This may seem like a normal game. But when the child enters the classroom, he keeps the mask on. The teacher asks him to remove it, but the child says he can't. "I am a cat, Ma'am! I can't remove the mask."
This may sound unbelievable, yet cases like this are multiplying rapidly in Finnish public schools today. There is now even a word to identify those who think that they are animals: 'therian'.
Several popular national channels such as YLE or MTV3 have recently reported this new phenomenon of children believing to be 'therians'.
They interviewed secular psychologists to find reasonable explanations for it, but the latter replied that children were only playing. Thus, these 'experts' ended up recommending that the parents let the children play. What can be more natural than that?
'Relaxation'
On the other hand, other secular news outlets have been more alarmed by the rising number of children who truly believe they are animals.
What is interpreted as a game by secular psychologists is, in fact, a testament to the rise of pantheism in Finland. It is also expressed in the growing interest in witchcraft, which is increasingly used even in Finnish kindergartens.
Mary*, a Christian woman working in several kindergartens, pointed out that teachers are increasingly tempted to use witchcraft in the classroom.
Mary said in an interview that she indeed saw that pagan methods were increasingly being used in childcare. For example, during the afternoon nap, classical music or children's audiobooks are often played to children as they fall asleep. Recently, Mary noticed that New Age' relaxation' was preferred over classical music.
Sometimes, the recordings of a famous Finnish witch calling herself Kuparikettu (the copper fox) are used. Kuparikettu has an internet page, a Youtube channel and over 50,000 followers on Tiktok.
She has been interviewed in many magazines and even invited to teach in the Evangelical-Lutheran Church of Finland. Mary explained: "I went to watch a recording of Kuparikettu from YouTube. I was shocked because I immediately understood what was going on.
The drums of a shaman were played in the background. Then she said, "I will lead you. You are safe. I am your spiritual guide. Imagine yourself sitting on a mattress. Now, let's get up together and travel to ancient Finland." Of course, this is pagan Finland.
Kuparikettu turns paganism into a story for children. The children are then told to honour a small mythological creature called tonttu [a sort of dwarf, ed.] because they are "clairvoyants."
Healing
In an attempt to reason with her fellow teachers, Mary asked them why they used these materials for the children. Their answers ranged from "it's trendy" or "it's just a story" to more spiritually loaded answers such as "it brings healing" or "it's nature-oriented".
Mary tried to warn them that this involved the occult. The teachers, who didn't necessarily connect what they were doing with witchcraft, replied that these things were good and beneficial for the children. Some teachers even confirmed to Mary that Kuparikettu is used often in current kindergartens.
The positive outlook on witchcraft is undoubtedly not limited to kindergarten teachers. Finnish secular media are increasingly promoting children's books that deal with the occult. For example, at the beginning of September, the national newspaper Helsingin Sanomat published an article entitled "Nursery Rhymes, Soul Animals and Saving the Baltic Sea".
The author recommended several children's titles that contain occult themes. As it seems, mainstream media are increasingly approving of witchcraft, and these topics are in the interest of the authors, publishers, and the public as well.
Moreover, the children's sections in public libraries nowadays also place a greater emphasis on books dealing with witchcraft. With more of these titles available and encouraged, it is not surprising that children are displaying animal behaviour to their parents and teachers.
This attempt to reshape Finnish culture according to pantheistic categories is certainly concerning from a Christian perspective. However, it is also an opportunity for the Christian church to pursue a more active role in education, the media, and the arts. It is indeed the case that when darkness is increasing, the light can shine the strongest.
[1]Helsingin Sanomat Viikko, week 36/2024. *Mary is a pseudonym
What is pantheism?
Pantheism (from the Greek πᾶν‘pan' – meaning all – and θεός 'theos' – meaning god) is simply the idea that all is god. At its very heart, pantheism posits the rejection of a God distinct from creation, such as the God of Christianity. The logical consequence of believing that there is no God who created and sustains the universe is that the ultimate reality is the universe itself.
Hence, pantheism believes that everything in this universe is one god. Since all is one, differences do not exist according to this worldview. Differences are just an illusion. Therefore, the pantheistic worldview seeks to eliminate all the differences of the created order because they contradict the belief that all is one and all is god.
In other words, pantheism seeks to deconstruct the differences created by God in the act of creation (see Genesis 1). Transgenderism is a step in the attempt to deconstruct such differences. The logical second step is eliminating the distinction between animals and mankind. This is the step in which the pantheistic worldview is leading the West today.
It is, therefore, not a coincidence that more and more children are growing up believing that they are animals. Of course, we can quickly understand the next step, i.e., the elimination of distinctions between mankind, animals, and plants.
Pantheism is a religion. It seeks to alienate the minds and hearts of men and women from reality. It is nothing else but that same sin that Adam and Eve committed. It is an attempt to redefine reality according to man's terms.
Inconsistent legal framework
Pantheism is a religion. Therefore, it is good to look into Finnish law to see what it says regarding religious education in public schools. Article 13, paragraph 1 says: "The provider of basic education shall provide religious education in accordance with the religion of the majority of pupils…." In addition, paragraphs 2 and 3 make provisions for religious education for those belonging to a religious minority.
In other words, based on these articles alone, parents could sue a teacher introducing new-age material or witchcraft to their children without their consent, as is happening right now.
Nonetheless, the Finnish legal framework, built on non-Christian premises, quickly shows its internal inconsistency. Paragraph 5 of the same article says: "Pupils who do not belong to any religious community and do not take part in religious education referred to in subsection 1 shall be taught ethics."
However, ethics cannot be achieved without a prior understanding of right and wrong. Such understanding is always grounded in a set of beliefs, in other words, in a religion (humanism being one of them).
Moreover, Article 29 requires the right to a safe learning environment. The term safety means "safeguarding pupils against violence, bullying, and harassment." But obviously, one cannot define safety before presupposing one's own religious worldview. If God does not exist, then safety will only be measured in terms of elements linked to this world. That is, safety only consists of keeping children from the aggression of other pupils or potentially teachers.
However, in the Christian worldview, the spiritual world is also taken into account when measuring safety. Christianity recognises the existence of demons. From a Christian perspective, safety must include protection from demonic activity. In this regard, Finnish public kindergartens do not seem to comply with the law.
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