LCANZ appoints Advocate for Women’s Ministry

As part of the implementation program of the ordination proposals from the 2024 Convention of General Synod, Dr Pauline Simonsen has been appointed as the LCANZ’s Advocate for Women’s Ministry.

This is a voluntary role to provide a primary contact for women of our church who are considering training for the office of the public ministry and women serving as pastors among us. Pauline will serve in this work throughout 2025, after which time the General Church Board and the College of Bishops will review the role.

This is a key role, providing advice and support to LCANZ Bishop Paul Smith and the wider church, including the General Church Board and College of Bishops, as we journey together as the people of God with pastors who are women.

In this role, Pauline will attend to matters such as developing support networks for women who are candidates and pastors, helping to ensure that concerns of women who are candidates or pastors are identified and addressed in a timely way, and ensuring that there is a repository maintained of matters relevant to the support of and guidance for women.

Pauline serves as the dean of Emmaus, a Christian training provider for adults in Palmerston North, New Zealand, where she lives. Pauline is a spiritual director and is also an experienced leader of Christian retreats.

She has served on various committees of the church in New Zealand and Australia. In particular, she served on the Commission on Theology and Inter-Church Relations for more than two decades. Pauline and her husband Roger belong to the Manawatu Lutheran Parish.