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REVEREND DR. KONRAD RAISER
Konrad Raiser and Jana Krajcirikova at the ENYA Ecumenical Youth Assembly 2004
"Churches that sanction violence are rendering a counter witness to the gospel of Christ who has risen from the dead. But churches that refuse to be drawn into the spiral of violence, to lend their religious and moral legitimation, that do not agree that war and the use of violence can today be an act of justice, thereby become sources of hope."
"For centuries young men have been trained to be soldiers. We need to train young people to become mediators of reconciliation, which needs as much training, competence, experience, sustained presence and public support as hitherto our armed forces have received."
Reverend. Dr. Konrad Raiser is a member of the Evangelical Church in Germany.
He was born on 25 January 1938 in Magdeburg, Germany. He grew up in Schwerin, Göttingen, and Bonn-Bad Godesberg. After graduating from high school in 1957 in Tübingen, he worked in a steel mill in Dortmund in a programme organized by the Evangelical Study Department Villigst.
Konrad studied Protestant theology at the Eberhard-Karls-University in Tübingen, Kirchlichen Hochschule in Bethel, Ruprecht-Karls-Universisty in Heidelberg and the Protestant Theology Univerity in Zürich, Switzerland. He received his first degree in Tübingen in 1963, was ordained in 1964. He was assistant pastor in the Evangelical Church in Württemberg from 1963 -1965, with short periods in Berlin (Industrial and Social Chaplaincy) and Stuttgart.
In 1965-66, he studied sociology and social psychology at Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA. In 1967, he married Elisabeth Freiin von Weizsäcker. They had four sons: Martin, Ulrich, Simon and Christoph and now have numerous grandchildren.
From 1967-69, he was assistant in Practical Theology at the Evangelical Theological Faculty in Tübingen. There he also did his dissertation on the social philosophy of George Herbert Mead and earned his doctorate in theology in 1970.
In 1969, he joined the staff of the World Council of Churches (WCC) in Geneva, Switzerland and worked in the Commission on Faith and Order. In 1973 he was appointed Deputy General Secretary and was also the Moderator of the Unit on Justice and Service.
From 1983 to 1993, Konrad was the Professor of Systematic Theology / Ecumenics at the Protestant Theological Faculty of the University of the Ruhr in Bochum (Germany) and Director of the faculty's Ecumenical Institute.
In 1993, Konrad and Elisabeth returned to Geneva, Switzerland and Konrad took up the very difficult and challenging post of General Secretary of the World Council of Churches. During this period, he bravely led the WCC, its member Churches and the ecumenical movement towards a radical redefinition the ecumenical 'Common Understanding and Vision', and helped faciliate a fundamental review of the participation of Orthodox member churches with very positive results.
He finished his term as General Secretary in 2003. Konrad and Elisabeth then moved to Berlin, Germany where they are currently living. Konrad is still involved in many cross cutting initiatives. One of them is with the Institute of Ecumenical Studies in Ukraine who are offering a Distance Learning Master's in Ecumenical Studies.
Konrad celebrated his 70th birthday in January 2008. Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia the current WCC general secretary spoke for many of us when he said:
"With his analytical mind, great theological knowledge and deep engagement for the unity and common witness of the church, which was always combined with his passion for justice and peace, Konrad Raiser has made significant and remarkable contributions to the development of the World Council of Churches and the ecumenical movement in the last four decades."
Konrad has written seven books and over 200 significant articles and essays on theological and ecumenical subjects.
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