Räsänen has been characterized as a conservative. In 2004, she authored a small theological booklet concerning sexual related topics. In 2020, the head of a church body which distributed the booklet was investigated for incitement under 2011 changes to a minority protection law. On October 12, 2010, Räsänen was one of the participants on a live TV debate on Ajankohtainen kakkonen's Homoilta special, with the topic of same-sex marriage and LGBT rights. The program was followed by an unprecedented exodus from the Evangelical Lutheran Church — in a few weeks, nearly 40,000 members left the Church through the website eroakirkosta.fi. Räsänen was on the show representing her party and herself as a Christian individual along with five other opponents of gay marriage, but the resignations were specifically attributed to her by the media in general and then-Minister of Culture and Sports Stefan Wallin. Räsänen thinks homosexual acts are a sin and she herself does not consider her views "specifically extreme". When interviewed by Ylioppilaslehti on October 29, 2010, Räsänen said that she would favor Christians over Muslims when selecting asylum seekers to Finland due, in her opinion, to Muslims' "difficulties to adjust to the Finnish culture". Her comments were condemned as "incomprehensible and merciless" by then-Minister of Migration and European AffairsAstrid Thors and then-Minister of Culture and Sports Stefan Wallin. Räsänen responded to the criticism, saying her comments were misinterpreted, since she did not consider religion as the main criterion for asylum seekers' admissions, but instead she wanted to highlight the benefits of refugees' integration through religious connections. In practice, as minister in charge of immigration affairs Räsänen has advocated for increasing the number of refugees taken in by Finland, especially from Syria. In September 2012 Räsänen appointed a religiously conservative applicant, considered less qualified by the media, among six candidates to Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Interior Affairs, which created considerable debate, especially as she had previously condemned political appointments of government officials. In 2019 she was investigated for incitement after criticizing the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland's official participation in Pride celebration events.
Stance on abortion
She is pro-life on abortion. She has made statements on the matter, since she is Minister of the Interior, that led a number of Finns to leave the Lutheran church of Finland via an online service in July 2013. Räsänen contrasted abortion law to animal protection law saying that the latter gives better protection for animals than the former does to humans :
"The law on animal protection gives better protection to an animal about to be put down than the law on abortion does to an unborn child. It is forbidden to cause the animal pain when slaughtering it, but no one dares to even discuss the painfulness of abortion. Abortion is defended on the grounds that the fetus is not a human person, even though it is a biological human individual from the moment of conception."
In total 6,500 persons left the church in the first six days following the controversy, while the average number had been 70 persons a day prior to it.
Personal life
Räsänen is married and has five children. She lives in Riihimäki. Räsänen is a physician and holds a Licentiate of Medicine.
