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Curate Tapani Ordained
On 27 March, Curate Tapani became Pastor Tapani as he was ordained into the Office of the Holy Ministry at Christ Lutheran Church in Petts Wood, Kent, and installed as the pastor of Our Saviour Lutheran Church.
Having completed nearly two years of curacy, faced an oral examination by the ELCE's Church Examination Board, which recommended him for ordination. Once the Executive Council of the ELCE had approved Tapani for ordination, Our Saviour extended a call to him.
What a joyful occasion it was when the congregation of Our Saviour — boosted by Tapani's family and friends from Finland and the UK — once again celebrated a communion service on Palm Sunday with their own pastor.
Chairman of Our Saviour, Mike Covington greeted the congregation with this joyful declaration: "Thanks be to God: we have a pastor!"
There is a special section in the latest British Lutheran on the ordinations. It can be downloaded by clicking here. (NB. This is a large file, approximately 4MB, so will take several minutes to download on a dial-up connection.)
Procession of ordinands and ELCE clergy
The congregation
A packed Christ Lutheran Church
The Revd. Graham Jenks read the OT reading
The Revd. Joel Humann read the Epistle
The Revd. Claudio Flor read the Gospel
The Revd. Dr. Anssi Simojoki, Pastor Tapani's father, preached
The ordination of Tapani Simojoki
The Revd. Dr. Reg Quirk, Chairman of the ELCE, presided
The ordination of Jaime Kriger
The laying on of hands
The blessing from the Revd. Kurt Van Fossan, Tapani's curacy supervisor
Pastor Van Fossan was also the last vacancy pastor of Our Saviour
A father's blessing
The placing of the stole, the yoke of office
Tapani was also installed as pastor of Our Saviour Lutheran Church
Pastor Tapani flanked by his father Anssi and his cousin, the Revd. Juhana Pohjola of Luther Foundation Finland
The gathered congregation
The congregation of Our Saviour Lutheran Church with her new pastor
Family Simojoki
"We have a pastor!" Our Saviour chairman Mike Covington
The first communion service at Our Saviour with her new pastor on Palm Sunday. Pastor Juhana assisted.
The congregation and visitors after the Palm Sunday service