”Elämäni vaikein ristiriita”. Affektit ja vanhoillislestadiolainen homoseksuaalisuus

Authors

• Eetu Kejonen Åbo Akademi
• Teemu Ratinen Helsingin yliopisto

DOI: https://doi.org/10.23980/sqs.63644

Abstract

“The biggest contradiction of my life”
Affects, homosexuality, and Conservative Laestadianism

Conservative Laestadianism, the biggest revivalist movement within the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland, is known for its strong heteronormativity and strict sexual ethics. This article examines how different affective practices produce homosexual subjectivity within the movement. The authors analyze autobiographical letters written by Conservative Laestadians that identify themselves as homosexuals by asking, for example, how the affects of shame, fear and disgust produce subjectivity both at the level of individual’s soul-searching and at the level of family members’ emotional ties. A close reading of the material shows that Conservative Laestadianism is not merely limiting sexuality. On the contrary, the limits of the movement, as well as the conditions of being accepted as part of it, are constantly being negotiated within Conservative Laestadianism.