The United Reformed Church (URC) has welcomed the appointment of Dr Susanne Schenk as the next General Secretary of The Communion of Protestant Churches in Europe (CPCE).
The CPCE is a global communion of protestant churches, with 96 Lutheran, Methodist, Reformed and United Churches from more than 30 countries in Europe and South America, representing around 50 million Protestants.
The Revd Dr John P Bradbury, General Secretary of the URC, and a former President of CPCE, said: “I’m delighted to congratulate Dr Schenk in her appointment as General Secretary of the Communion of Protestant Churches in Europe.
“The Communion is an important expression of our membership of the Church Catholic, and brings us into fellowship with siblings in Christ across our continent.
“The United Reformed Church has worked within the Communion in many ways, including until last year my term as one of the Presidents. It is therefore a particular pleasure for me to welcome this appointment.
“We will uphold Dr Schenk as she prepares to take on this key role within the CPCE, and look forward to our joint working in the years to come.”
Dr Schenk, 53, currently serves as a theological advisor to Bishop Ernst-Wilhelm Gohl and as an ecumenical officer of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Württemberg.
She will take up her new post on 1 March 2026, succeeding Dr Mario Fischer who will take up the post of Director and Officer for Catholic Issues at the Institute for Confessional Studies in Bensheim, Germany.
Reflecting on her new role, Dr Schenk said: “I am delighted to have been elected General Secretary, and I am grateful for the trust placed in me by the members of the Council and the Presidium.
“I value the CPCE as a church communion that is rooted in the shared experience of reconciliation in word and sacrament. It draws from this both its mission and the courage to open up perspectives for reconciliation, both within the communion when dealing with differences and issues of dissent, and in contributing to social coexistence in Europe.
“I look forward to working with the team, the Presidium and the Council to further develop the CPCE as a network of understanding and reconciliation across Europe, and to strengthen its profile within the member churches and congregations.”
Rita Famos, Executive President of the CPCE, said: “The role of General Secretary of the CPCE has become more complex over the past seven years.
“I am therefore very pleased and grateful that we have been able to recruit Susanne, a seasoned church historian and ecumenist with many years of experience and a long-standing association with the CPCE, whom we trust to perform this task. We look forward to working and supporting her.”