Aleksi Emanuel Lehtonen (21 June 1891 – 27 March 1951) was archbishop of Turku from 1945 till 1951.

Education

Lehtonen was born on 21 June 1891 in

Uusikaupunki Uusikaupunki (; , ) is a list of towns in Finland, town and municipalities of Finland, municipality of Finland. It is located in the Southwest Finland regions of Finland, region, northwest of Turku and south of Pori. The municipality has a pop ...

. He attended school in Uusikaupunki, where he graduated as a student at the age of 16. He studied theology at the

University of Helsinki The University of Helsinki (, ; UH) is a public university in Helsinki, Finland. The university was founded in Turku in 1640 as the Royal Academy of Åbo under the Swedish Empire, and moved to Helsinki in 1828 under the sponsorship of Alexander ...

and graduated in 1911. He graduated with a

Bachelor of Theology The Bachelor of Theology degree (BTh, ThB, or BTheol) is a two- to five-year undergraduate degree or graduate degree in theological disciplines and is typically (but not exclusively) pursued by those seeking ordination for ministry in a church, de ...

in 1917 and a Licentiate in 1921. He earned his

Doctor of Theology Doctor of Theology (, abbreviated DTh, ThD, DTheol, or Dr. theol.) is a terminal degree in the academic discipline of theology. The ThD, like the ecclesiastical Doctor of Sacred Theology, is an advanced research degree equivalent to the Doctor o ...

in 1923.

Career

He was ordained to priesthood on 10 June 1911 and was appointed as priest in Lavia. In 1917 he became vicar of a parish in

Helsinki Helsinki () is the Capital city, capital and most populous List of cities and towns in Finland, city in Finland. It is on the shore of the Gulf of Finland and is the seat of southern Finland's Uusimaa region. About people live in the municipali ...

and in 1922 he was appointed assistant professor of pastoral theology in

. In 1932 he became the Professor of Practical Theology. After the sudden departure of Bishop Jaakko Gummerus, Lehtonen was elected Bishop of Tampere in 1934. He was consecrated that same year in

Tampere Cathedral Tampere Cathedral (, ; originally known as St. John's Church) is a Lutheran church in Tampere, Finland, and the seat of the Diocese of Tampere. The building was designed in the National Romantic style by Lars Sonck, and built between 1902 and 190 ...

by three bishops,

Erkki Kaila Erkki Kaila, previously Erik Johansson (2 June 1867 – 9 December 1944), was the Archbishop of Turku, and the spiritual head of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland between 1935 and 1944. He was a Member of Parliament between 1917 and 1927 ...

of Viipuri, Max von Bonsdorff of Borgå and Erling Eidem of Uppsala. It was through him that the apostolic succession was reinstated in the Church of Finland through the consecration initiated by Erling Eidem, the Archbishop of Uppsala. Nevertheless, even though the apostolic succession was considered an important factor to reinstate, it was not considered a requirement by the Finnish Church for a valid consecration. Lehtonen was appointed Archbishop of Turku on 14 March 1945, and was installed on 10 June in

Turku Cathedral Turku Cathedral (, ) is the only medieval basilica in Finland and the Mother Church of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland. It is the central church of the Lutheran Archdiocese of Turku and the seat of the Lutheran Archbishop of Turku, Arch ...

. He was active in the

Ecumenical movement Ecumenism ( ; alternatively spelled oecumenism)also called interdenominationalism, or ecumenicalismis the concept and principle that Christians who belong to different Christian denominations should work together to develop closer relationships ...

and sought

Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland The Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland (; ) is a national church of Finland. It is part of the Lutheranism, Lutheran branch of Christianity. The church has a legal position as a national church in the country, along with the Orthodox Church o ...

to have closer relationship with

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

. His son Samuel Lehtonen became Bishop of Helsinki.

References

External links

"Towards 'a real reunion'?" : Archbishop Aleksi Lehtonen's efforts for closer relations with the Church of England 1945–1951
by Mika K.T. Pajunen, 2008

1891 births 1951 deaths People from Uusikaupunki People from Turku and Pori Province (Grand Duchy of Finland) Lutheran archbishops and bishops of Turku 20th-century Lutheran archbishops Academic staff of the University of Helsinki 20th-century Finnish Lutheran bishops Finnish Lutheran archbishops {{Finland-Lutheran-bishop-stub