Balance sheet interview with church president Volker Jung – EKHN

Table of Contents

• 0.1 Mr. Jung, you took office in 2009 under the motto that you wanted to remain a pastor as a church president. After 15 years, how much pastoral care remains in the one who holds the high office?
• 0.2 What does pastoral care look like in the leadership office?
• 0.3 What moments have surprised you the most as a church president?
• 0.4 Are you thinking of a specific situation?
• 0.5 Were there any specific issues of the heart in your career?
• 0.6 However, the commitment to refugees was also very controversial among the public.
• 0.7 How did you deal with the criticism?
• 0.8 For example?
• 0.9 What gives you strength in such borderline situations?
• 0.10 Her term in office was accompanied by upheaval and great events. You already mentioned the refugee crisis. What are some select, impressive “secret” developments that you were particularly involved in as a church president?
• 0.11 To what extent were you, as the church president of the EKHN, able to help set the course or give impetus to the development you identified?
• 0.12 What would you say are your most important career achievements?
• 0.13 Now the EKHN is in the middle of the biggest transformation process in its history. Now go. How does that feel?
• 0.14 After ten and a half years in office, would you like to take a prophetic look at the EKHN and what it will look like in 15 years?
• 0.15 The change of office celebration is scheduled for January 26, 2025. After that, what’s the most important point on your calendar?
• 0.16 Looking back, if you could give some tips to Volker Jung, who was recently elected president of the church in 2008: What would they be?
• 0.17 What would you like to say to EKHN church members at the end of your term in office?
• 1 How ​does Volker Jung view the role‌ of transparency in the financial reporting of the church’s ​balance sheet?

Mr. Jung, you took office in 2009 under the motto that you wanted to remain a pastor as a church president. After 15 years, how much pastoral care remains in the one who holds the high office?

Volker Jung: I said back then that I wanted to be the president of the church as a pastor and to be a pastor as the president of the church. I wanted to express that I see the office of the president of the church as a parish service with a specific function and function. I still see myself as a minister whose church services, meeting and going with people mean a lot.

What does pastoral care look like in the leadership office?

Volker Jung: Pastoral care is something that is challenging in my profession. I always have to ask myself: When is it a pastoral conversation, when is it a conversation in a better situation? But a certain basic attitude is always important to me: I try to listen to people and accept what is important to them. I often take this into account as motivation for further work.

What moments have surprised you the most as a church president?

Volker Jung: That was always when people told me what their faith meant to them or where the church had particularly helped and supported them.

Are you thinking of a specific situation?

Volker Jung: I really enjoyed a conversation with a couple who received asylum with a community. How grateful they were that people from the church community came to their side and gave them a place that protected them. And then of course there are a wealth of other encounters where people have trusted me with their faith and their life stories. I remember that fondly.

Were there any specific issues of the heart in your career?

Volker Jung: Yes of course. Above all, look at the people who – for whatever reason – have a hard time finding a good place for themselves in life. I am always touched when people suffer from poverty – especially children. It horrifies me when people have experienced violence and struggle with it throughout their lives. And I am moved by the fate of the refugees. I then think: How would you feel if you were in such a situation? I am convinced that the Gospel commands us to pay special attention to people who are suffering.

However, the commitment to refugees was also very controversial among the public.

Volker Jung: Yes, there were levels of serious criticism of the commitment to refugees. But there was also criticism of my commitment to the rights of homosexuals and later also transgender people. The contact with Islam was also often accompanied by strong conflicts. We have taken a good path together.

How did you deal with the criticism?

Volker Jung: I would say something is wrong if the criticism is directly on my back and I dismiss it. There were times when it was very hard and when I struggled for strength myself.

For example?

Volker Jung: There was a big shitstorm on the internet when I asked him to bring in refugees from Africa. And there was a mixture of criticism, for example when we equated the blessing of homosexual couples with the wedding ceremony. There were also several personal allegations. The fact that people wished me ill was still harmless.

What gives you strength in such borderline situations?

Volker Jung: For me it is always important to draw from religious sources. I have developed my own form of spiritual life, which is anchored in me every day. How can I imagine that? For example, I deal with the daily solution every morning. Theological work is always a source of strength for me when I prepare intensively for a sermon and deal with biblical texts. At the same time, sport is also a part of it for me. It also helps me manage stress and mobilize my own energy reserves. After a long time, I would often come up with amazing ideas that I could then implement.

Her term in office was accompanied by upheaval and great events. You already mentioned the refugee crisis. What are some select, impressive “secret” developments that you were particularly involved in as a church president?

Volker Jung: When I became president of the church, we were in the midst of a global financial crisis. Then came the nuclear disaster in Fukushima and the subsequent withdrawal of nuclear power from Germany. Climate change and the question of necessary transformation was a constant theme, as was Israel and Palestine. Then, unfortunately, there were always new crises and wars. I will just mention the main words: Greece, Brexit, Corona, Afghanistan, Iran, Ukraine. A lot has changed in our society: the image of the family, the greater visibility of minorities and people who are discriminated against. Digitization is changing many things with great force. I am very concerned that anti-rightist forces in particular have become stronger and with them anti-Semitism, Islamophobia and racism.

To what extent were you, as the church president of the EKHN, able to help set the course or give impetus to the development you identified?

Volker Jung: All these events also affected us as a church. It is always about people and as Christians we participate in the lives of others. We are not left unaffected when people suffer. We pray for people and we ask what we can do so that people can live well, justly and peacefully together.

Where were we able to set the course or provide momentum? I especially think that, thanks to many committed people, we have helped, together with others, to ensure that many refugees have good support and integration – and continue to do so. We may also have contributed to making families more enjoyable in their diverse constellations. We are committed to equal rights for women and men. And together with others, we have brought about positive change in the perception of homosexuality and transsexuality.

What would you say are your most important career achievements?

Volker Jung: First, there are things on the organizational level that I consider to be successful. Continue with the reform of the deans, for example. We have reduced their number to 25, almost half since I took office. They have become important design spaces. I also always wanted to strengthen cooperation between church communities. This added to the fact that we have now created neighborhood spaces. It was always important to me that we didn’t just see the changes as organizational changes. We change because we want to shape the church so that the gospel reaches people as a life-shaping force. I also think that we are on the right track in terms of communication with members. And then there were many church services and events that I would, looking back, say were successful.

Now the EKHN is in the middle of the biggest transformation process in its history. Now go. How does that feel?

Volker Jung: It is important to understand in good time that in my career you will never reach a point where you can say: Now you have completed something. As a church, we are always in a process of development and further development. That must be so. But I am sure that we have taken the right path together over the past few years.

After ten and a half years in office, would you like to take a prophetic look at the EKHN and what it will look like in 15 years?

Volker Jung: I generally find that predicting the future is very difficult. For the EKHN, I believe we will work together in even bigger contexts. In addition, we have to part with many things that mean a lot to us. This includes, above all, the extensive building stock. But we will be present in many places and we will continue to be there for people in the future.

The change of office celebration is scheduled for January 26, 2025. After that, what’s the most important point on your calendar?

Volker Jung: To be honest, I had a bit of a moment when I looked at next year’s calendar. Admittedly, there are not as many meetings as there used to be. I felt a mixture of relief but also a little fear about it. But a very important date has already been set at the end of January: my wife and I will be moving back to Vogelsberg, to Lauterbach.

Looking back, if you could give some tips to Volker Jung, who was recently elected president of the church in 2008: What would they be?

Volker Jung: I would advise him to remain definitely a listener himself. A church president has to talk a lot. To do this, it is necessary to listen to yourself – to God and to people. And then I would advise him to learn quickly how to deal well with criticism, attacks and praise.

What would you like to say to EKHN church members at the end of your term in office?

Volker Jung: The EKHN is a church blessed by God with many diverse people who are often very committed. Even with declining membership and resources, there will still be many opportunities if he does not lose confidence in the power of God working among us. That is why I would like to say to the members of the EKHN church and to others: Trust in what Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount: “Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and these things shall be all yours. ” (Mt 6:23)

Thanks for the chat!

Volker Rahn and Rita Haering asked the questions