Finland ~ Thursday and Friday

April 18 & 19

Thursday was another very quiet day.  I woke quite early with a pounding headache but was able to go back to sleep for a while.  Once up, a few cups of strong Finnish coffee got me going enough to shower and pack up my things.  Anne and one of her daughters went grocery shopping but I stayed home.  They brought home a handful of florist blooms for an Easter bouquet but it was a bit sparse to put into a vase.  Anne let me go for a walk in the forest to snip bits of this and that to create a larger arrangement.

In the late afternoon my brother Wade came to pick me up on his way home from work.  When we arrived at their country home, I found that the rest of the family was all out and about.  We had a nice visit while eating spaghetti that Anna thoughtfully left for us.

Later in the evening, both parents needed to be gone for a while.  The older kids were gone so I offered to babysit the youngest three.  And so ended a pleasant family-type day.

Good Friday.  Long Friday.  The day Jesus Christ gave his all for us that we can live eternally with him.  He died, that we might live.

Morning coffee in a pretty Finnish cup

Wade, his older children and I went to a nearby Christian Retreat Center to watch an outdoor play.  It was very well done with excellent sets and actors.  It was in Finnish so I couldn't hear the actual words but Wade said that much of it was spoken verbatim from the scriptures.  The story was quite easy to follow, but when it wasn't, Wade translated bits for me.  Photos were not allowed for copyright reasons but I appreciated it for the seriousness of the subject.  Below the last picture on this blog, there is a link to the trailer for the play and some accompanying pictures.  It says, "Link for Easter Play".  Click on that and if you'd like, you can have the page translated.

Program and ticket

The play took place at 5 or 6 different locations across the campus.  Some out in the sunshine and some in the forest.  There was quite a lot of walking, with the huge audience following the actors to the next location.  After it was all over, they allowed people to take photos of the sets and actors.

Location of several opening scenes, including The Last Supper

At this location "Jesus" healed a blind girl and also the Pharisees made accusations

The upper portion is roofed with a huge Bible.  Here prophesies from Isaiah were read.
The lower area was Herod's palace and throne.  Here the crowd cheered as Barabas was
released and cried out for Jesus to be crucified.

At the top of the hill, after a long walk through the forest, there were the crosses.  The crucifixion was very tastefully done, with those being crucified facing away from the crowd.  Nearby was a small building that was used for the tomb Jesus' body was laid in.  After He had risen, they invited the audience to walk into the tomb and see the empty grave clothes lying there.  There was a side exit for us to leave by.

Spring has finally begun to show in Finland.  We spotted these delicate beauties on the way back down the hill.

After the play we came back home for a couple of hours and to eat an early dinner.  The table was set beautifully for Good Friday.  Wade grilled some steaks, which were a treat.

In the evening Wade, his oldest daughters and I left again for a music concert in the Lohja Church.  I somehow neglected to get a picture of this old stone building but a flyer that I picked up in the foyer provides some history.  There was some kind of building on the current foundation that dates back to the late 14th century.  The present vaulted, three-nave church was completed in the 1510s.

Resident graveyard and belfry

From the flyer, "The belfry in the churchyard has a lower part of medieval origin while the wooden upper part dates back to the 1740s.  The mortuary chapel next to the belfry was built in 1824."  Prior to the mortuary chapel being built, the lower portion of the belfry was used to store the bodies of the deceased.

Belfy - lower part from medieval times, upper 1740s

The interior of the church is beautifully decorated in vast, detailed murals on all the walls and ceilings.  From the flyer, "The series of murals, painted al secco, follow a definite sequence, primarily the chronological sequence of the ecclesiastic year, with the events of the Old and New Testament intertwined."

The concert itself wasn't too easy to follow but the music was nice.  Primarily strings, with many violins and maybe a French horn in the back.  There were four soloists, two men and two women.  Everything was in Latin.  Of course, had it been in Finnish I wouldn't have understood it any easier.

Music program

The program began with the seven statements made by Christ.  They were written in Latin and translated into Finnish so Wade could read them to me prior to the concert starting.

Six of the seven statements of Christ

After some time Wade figured out that the different solos were representing Christ, and then His soul responding.

For those who like to try to read Latin

The concert lasted nearly two hours but was quite enjoyable.  I'm sure that the younger kids were glad that they had stayed home though.

Four soloists

Main church organ, built in 1985.  There is also a smaller chancel organ built in 1986.

Link for Easter play