On February 9, 2020, the Inkeri Academic Choir of The Church of Ingria visited the Holy Trinity Lutheran Congregation in Chalna, Karelia. The choir sang for the divine service and then performed a recital for the church members and guests. The choir’s program included songs in Russian, Finnish, Latin, Estonian, and Norwegian. The recital was an important event for the congregation as they don’t often have a chance to host such activities: the last recital took place in this church at its 20th anniversary three years ago. The audience included workers of the village’s Dom kultury (“house of culture,” a community center). The congregation leaders and the Dom kultury workers negotiated collaboration between the community center and the church, specifically, they agreed to have a joint celebration of John the Baptist Day. A special thank you goes to choir member Irina Kolomainen, a member of the Lutheran congregation in Petrozavodsk, for helping organize the recital!
Report and photo by Deacon Anton Rudoi