The Lutheran World Federation Council has elected Estonian theologian Rev. Anne Burghardt as the next General Secretary of the global communion of Lutheran churches. Photo: Erik Peinar
Election marks first woman and first Central and Eastern European pastor to head global communion of churches
(LWI) - The Lutheran World Federation (LWF) Council has elected Estonian theologian Rev. Anne Burghardt as the next General Secretary of the global communion of Lutheran churches. The 45-year-old Burghardt is currently serving as Head of Development for the Estonian Evangelical Lutheran Church’s (EELC) Institute of Theology and advisor to the church for international and ecumenical relations.
Burghardt will take over as LWF’s new General Secretary at the beginning of November, succeeding Rev. Dr Martin Junge who has led the communion of 148 member churches for the past eleven years. She will be the first woman and the first Central Eastern European to hold this leadership position.
Following the announcement, Burghardt said:
"I am humbled by this great honor and deeply grateful for the confidence that the Council members have shown in me. In accepting this very special responsibility in the communion, I pray for the guidance of God’s Spirit. I rejoice in having the possibility to work with the Council, with member churches, and with different partners, as the LWF continues to participate in God’s holistic mission. May God bless our communion so that it may be a blessing to the wider church and to the world."
I am humbled by this great honor and deeply grateful for the confidence that the Council members have shown in me. In accepting this very special responsibility in the communion, I pray for the guidance of God’s Spirit. I rejoice in having the possibility to work with the Council, with member churches, and with different partners, as the LWF continues to participate in God’s holistic mission. May God bless our communion so that it may be a blessing to the wider church and to the world.
Congratulating Burghardt on her election, LWF President Archbishop Dr Panti Filibus Musa said:
“I congratulate Rev. Burghardt on the election. She will be taking up a vital role in the leadership of our global communion of churches, helping to shape its ongoing journey and witness to the gospel, working for peace, justice, and reconciliation. Rev. Burghardt brings her valuable experience and gifts into the position, and I look forward to work with her.”
I congratulate Rev. Burghardt on the election. She will be taking up a vital role in the leadership of our global communion of churches, helping to shape its ongoing journey and witness to the gospel, working for peace, justice, and reconciliation. Rev. Burghardt brings her valuable experience and gifts into the position, and I look forward to work with her.
At the EELC Institute of Theology she has worked on strengthening Lutheran theological education as an integral part of the sustainability of the church. She brings deep experience on ecumenical relations, having also served as Study Secretary for Ecumenical Relations at the LWF’s Geneva Communion Office from 2013-2018. Rev. Burghardt was content coordinator for the LWF Twelfth Assembly, held in Windhoek, Namibia in 2017, and for the 500th anniversary of the Reformation. She also serves as a governing board member of the Conference of European Churches.
Rev. Burghardt studied theology at the University of Tartu in Estonia, at the Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg in Germany, and at the Humboldt University in Berlin. She has a Master of Theology and is currently finishing PhD studies in the field of Orthodox liturgics. She is married to Rev. Arnd Matthias Burghardt, also an ordained pastor of the Estonian Evangelical Lutheran Church and they have two children.
Rev. Burghardt and Zimbabwean pastor Rev. Dr Kenneth Mtata were shortlisted for the position earlier this month by a search committee appointed by the LWF Council, which elected her on 19 June.
Rev. Anne Burghardt received 28 votes (58%), Rev. Dr Kenneth Mtata received 20 votes (42%). A total of 48 votes were cast. There were no abstentions.
Rev. Burghardt will be available for an online press briefing at 11:30 am (CET) on Monday 21 June.
The Lutheran World Federation is a global communion of 148 churches in the Lutheran tradition, representing over 77 million Christians in 99 countries. The LWF acts on behalf of its member churches in areas of ecumenical and interfaith relations, theology, humanitarian assistance, human rights, communication and the various aspects of mission and development.
The General Secretary of the LWF carries out the decisions of the LWF Assembly and Council. He or she is the Chief Ecumenical Officer for the LWF. The Council elects the General Secretary for a term of seven years.
The 18 to 23 June LWF Council meeting will take place online, in view of restrictions imposed because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The LWF Council normally meets in person every year, and is the highest authority of the LWF between assemblies. It consists of the President, the Chairperson of the Finance Committee, and 48 members from LWF member churches in seven regions.
