New CTE President

12 June 2024

The Fourth Presidency Group of Member Churches have nominated Bishop Paulina Hławiczka-Trotman to succeed Dr Anna Krauss as their President for Churches Together in England.

Bishop Paulina is the head of the Lutheran Church in Great Britain. She will serve as a CTE President for the remainder of the term of the Council of Lutheran Churches.

CTE General Secretary, Bishop Mike Royal, said: “Churches Together in England is delighted at the appointment of Bishop Paulina Hlawiczka-Trotman as a CTE President by the Fourth Presidency Group. Bishop Paulina has a proven track record of ecumenical engagement and an unswerving commitment to CTE’s Racial Justice Working Group. As the first female Polish Bishop in the UK, she is a trailblazer. We are excited about the ongoing journey with our Lutheran sisters and brothers”

Bishop Paulina Hlawiczka-Trotman said: “I’m honoured to have been appointed as the CTE President representing the Fourth Presidency Group, to serve God and His church across the ecumenical family. I look forward to this challenge and the opportunities it promises, particularly at a critical time in our history in Britain and beyond. Thank you for your confidence expressed in this call to mission and ministry. It is with humility and joy that I come to the task together with you!”

The Fourth Presidency Group said: “We are very happy to welcome Bishop Paulina as our new President and look forward to journeying together with her on our ecumenical path. The Fourth Presidency Group is a diverse set of churches strongly committed to this journey. Bishop Paulina’s work on racial justice will add yet another layer of knowledge and ability to build bridges to our group.”

The Fourth President is nominated by the Church of Scotland (Presbytery of England), the Council of Lutheran Churches, the Evangelical Lutheran Church of England, the Synod of German-Speaking Lutheran, Reformed, and United Congregations in Great Britain (Evangelische Synode Deutscher Sprache in Großbritannien) and the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers in Britain).

Dr Anna Krauss has stepped down from the Presidency to take up the post of Director of the Lutheran World Federation’s (LWF) Centre in Wittenberg, Germany. She said: “I have very much enjoyed my time as a CTE President. It was encouraging to see a young lay woman embraced so warmly by this diverse group of Christians. I was able to be involved in CTE’s Working with Diversity Group which remains an important topic for the Fourth Presidency Group who continue to carry the experience of Hannah’s empty chair. Most of all I would like to thank my brothers and sisters in the Fourth Presidency Group who have truly grown to be my ecumenical family and I will greatly miss our fellowship.”