Director of the Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Mission, Th.D Seppo Rissanen

Seppo Rissanen became the Director of the Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Mission on the 1st of January, 2002. Rissanen is a Doctor of Theology from Åbo Akademi since 1993: the subject of his thesis was the theological meeting of Christianity and Islam in the Middle-East during the early rule of the Abbasid Caliphate. He has a Master’s degree from the University of Helsinki from 1977. He studied cultural anthropology, orientalism, and comparative religion. In addition, he has studied theology and orientalism in Göttingen in 1991-1992 as a researcher for the Academy of Finland.

Rissanen has missionary experience from parish activities as well as from the point of view of a missionary abroad.

During 1986-2001 he worked as a parish pastor in Turku, first in the Maarian seurakunta parish and the last six years as vicar at the Mikaelinseurakunta parish.

Rissanen is a member of the Council for International Relations of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland and the chairman of the group Church and Islam.