New director at ELM

Holger Siebert will become the new Director of ELM on November 1, 2025.

Holger Siebert will become the new director of the Evangelical Lutheran Mission in Lower Saxony (ELM) on November 1, 2025. The theologian, who also holds a degree in finance, succeeds Dr. Emmanuel Kileo. The Governing Board, the highest decision-making body of the ELM, unanimously elected the 57-year-old on October 8, who served as Acting Director in the interim period.

Bishop Ralf Meister of Hanover, Chairman of the Governing Board, says: "With Holger Siebert as our new director, we are gaining a well-known expert in the field of ecumenism who has been associated with the ELM for many years. International relationships broaden our horizons and remain of great importance for the church. I'm really looking forward to working with him."

After completing his training with the Finance Administration of the German federal state of Hesse and studying theology in Bethel and Marburg, Holger Siebert initially served as a pastor in the Protestant Church of Kurhessen-Waldeck (EKKW). On March 1, 2025, he moved to the Hanover Regional Church to take over as head of the Department "Faith in Global Perspective" at ELM.

His first contact with mission work dates back to his early work in the Marburg church district, where he was involved in a cooperative project with the Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus. From 2021 to 2024, he accompanied the work of ELM as a member of the Governing Board, delegated by the EKKW.

Siebert, who hails from Rotenburg an der Fulda, gained further ecumenical experience while working in the German Church in Charlotte, North Carolina (USA). He worked as representative for mission, ecumenism, and global responsibility in various church districts with partnerships in Ethiopia, Namibia, South Africa, and Italy. He also served on committees of the EKKW's ecumenical department.

"In my view, international ecumenical relations are a great treasure for our Churches. They help us to find new answers to the questions and problems we face in our church," says Holger Siebert. "I am very excited to work on this in my new role with the highly qualified team at ELM and to be able to build strong international relationships in our churches in different ways."

Holger Siebert is married to Maria Christina Siebert, a pharmacist; they are parents to four children between the ages of 18 and 25. In his spare time, he plays the bass trombone and enjoys cycling.

The carrier churches of ELM include the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Hannover, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Brunswick, and the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Schaumburg-Lippe. ELM is also affiliated with the Union of Protestant Churches in Alsace and Lorraine. Internationally, ELM has long-standing relationships with 20 non-European partner churches with more than 18 million Christians.