Protestant church
EKD Council Chairwoman Kurschus is resigning from her position
Steps down: Annette Kurschus. photo
© Stefan Puchner/dpa
Annette Kurschus, chairwoman of the EKD council, is resigning from her position. The background is allegations that she knew about suspicions of sexually assaultive behavior against an ex-church employee.
The chairwoman of the council Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD), Annette Kurschus, resigns from her position. The 60-year-old announced this in a personal statement in Bielefeld.
Kurschus did not admit any errors in the processing of a suspected case. “I’m at peace with myself about this,” said the 60-year-old. “I acted to the best of my knowledge and belief at all times.” For more than a week, Kurschus criticized that a conflict has been fueled in public between those affected by sexual violence and her as a public official. She cannot and will not resolve this conflict publicly.
“I am resigning from both church leadership positions”
Accusations had been made against her that she had allegedly known many years ago about suspicions of sexually assaultive behavior against a church employee at the time. “I am resigning from both church leadership positions,” said Kurschus. In addition to her voluntary work at the head of the EKD, she has been president of the Westphalian regional church since 2012. She is also giving up this position.
At the synod in Ulm almost a week ago, Kurschus emphasized that she emphatically rejected the “hints and speculations” made against her in the “Siegener Zeitung”. The Siegen public prosecutor’s office is investigating several suspected cases against a former church employee who, like Kurschus, worked in the Siegen church district in the 1990s. According to the public prosecutor’s office, it is still unclear whether the man’s behavior was criminally relevant. For Kurschus, the core question is what the clergy knew about the accused’s alleged misconduct and when.
The pressure on Kurschus had increased enormously
The pressure on the EKD chairwoman, who represents around 19.2 million Protestant Christians, had grown enormously.
Those affected in the EKD’s Sexual Violence Participation Forum had recently distanced themselves from the EKD council chairwoman. Their credibility is in question and “clear, complete and independent clarification” is required. A committee spokesman described Kurschus as no longer acceptable. The president of the synod, Anna-Nicole Heinrich, also kept her distance.
Kurschus had asserted that she had only known about the Siegen case since the beginning of 2023, when an anonymous complaint was received against the person now accused. “I had no prior knowledge of any acts of sexual violence committed by this person.” The alleged incidents are said to have occurred primarily in the 1990s and the accused is now retired.