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Thomas de Maizière (archive image): »The Kirchentag is on the way to a renewal«
Photo: Kay Nietfeld / dpa
Former Federal Minister of the Interior Thomas de Maizière (CDU) is the new President of the German Evangelical Church Congress.
The 67-year-old was introduced in Nuremberg as the successor to Bettina Limperg, President of the Federal Court of Justice.
De Maizière will lead the preparations for the Evangelical Church Congress from June 7th to 11th, 2023 under the slogan "Now is the time" in Nuremberg.
After 1979, the event is taking place in the Franconian city for the second time.
Many people felt "that we might be living in something like a global turning point," said de Maizière.
Climate change, digitization and the threat to human rights are just some of the challenges that we want to talk about - also with young people.
"The Kirchentag is on the way to a renewal," said the 67-year-old.
"Some of it will be on display in Nuremberg."
De Maizière was head of the Federal Chancellery from 2005 to 2009, and later Federal Minister of the Interior and Minister of Defense.
After the coalition negotiations between the SPD and CDU / CSU, he left the federal government at the beginning of 2018.
According to a statement, Thuringia's Environment Minister Anja Siegesmund (Greens) and Wittenberg's Lord Mayor Torsten Zugehre were also elected to the board of the Kirchentag presidium.
The two are also President-elect and President-elect of the Kirchentage 2025 and 2027.
bbr / dpa
