Church parliament wants to review Kurschus' resignation

Synod meeting - Church parliament wants to review Kurschus' resignation

The Synod of the Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD) wants to take a critical look at the circumstances surrounding the resignation of EKD Council Chair Annette Kurschus. The President of the Synod, Anna-Nicole Heinrich, said this on Tuesday at the digital continuation of the Synod meeting, which began in Ulm. Kurschus resigned as EKD Council Chairwoman and President of the Regional Church of Westphalia on November 20. The background to this were allegations made in a newspaper report that she had known many years ago about suspicions of sexually abusive behavior against a former church employee in the Siegen church district.

Kurschus denies the allegations, but said that she did not want to harm the victims of sexualized violence with headlines by remaining in office. "The days in Ulm and afterwards were extremely stressful for everyone involved," said Heinrich. "We will have to find a way to deal appropriately with possible accusations of this kind in the future." The right lessons must be learned. A clear priority in this regard is the continued process of coming to terms with and supporting those affected by sexualized violence.

Both Heinrich and the acting chair of the EKD Council, Kirsten Fehrs, thanked Kurschus for the trusting cooperation. "For us as a Council, this resignation means that we are committed to continuing on the path we have taken in dealing with and preventing sexualized violence. And we will do this with the utmost determination," Fehrs announced. She is also the bishop of the Hamburg and Lübeck diocese.

In the ensuing discussion, members of the church parliament criticized that the circumstances surrounding the resignation had damaged the church. There had been no transparency as to who in the church leadership knew what and when about the accusations against Kurschus.

According to the EKD, the synod meeting in Ulm had been interrupted on November 15 due to the announced warning strike at Deutsche Bahn. A new council chairperson will not be elected until the synod in November 2024. The EKD is the communion of 20 regional churches, to which 19.2 million Protestant Christians belong.

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1. The Synod meeting in Lower Saxony, led by the President of the Synod from Hanover, Anna-Nicole Heinrich, aims to scrutinize the circumstances surrounding the resignation of Annette Kurschus from her roles in both the EKD Council and the Regional Church of Westphalia.
2. The controversial resignation of Kurschus, which took place on November 20, was triggered by allegations of her prior knowledge of sexual misconduct accusations against a former church employee in the Siegen church district, as reported in a newspaper.
3. In Ulm, Kurschus, who denies the allegations, explained her decision to step down to avoid causing further distress to the victims of sexualized violence through media headlines.
4. The Synod, which was interrupted on November 15 due to a warning strike at Deutsche Bahn, will not elect a new council chairperson until the synod in November 2024.
5. Kirsten Fehrs, the acting chair of the EKD Council, praised Kurschus for her trustful cooperation and expressed the Council's commitment to continuing their efforts in dealing with and preventing sexualized violence.
6. Critics at the church parliament questioned the lack of transparency regarding who in church leadership was aware of the allegations against Kurschus and when.
7. The Synod meeting in Westphalia, being part of the Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD), is responsible for reviewing and learning from such critical incidents to ensure appropriate handling of similar situations in the future.

Source: www.stern.de