Pastor Jan Paulsen, world president of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, was re-elected at 11:26 today (June 30) for a five year term.
Paulsen, a Norwegian, has served the Church in this role for the past sixteen months and has extensive pastoral and administrative experience as a missionary, teacher, college principal, and church administrator at the highest levels.
“It is both a privilege and honor to serve the Church and our Lord,” commented Paulsen in his acceptance speech. “God is the one who calls and sustains us. Were it not for that conviction I would run a long way away. But I am reassured by the long-held conviction my wife Kari and I share that God gives guidance to us. We will do our best to discharge the duties you have placed on our shoulders. We will try to do something wonderful for the Church and our Lord. It gives us strength to know that you remember us in your prayers.”
Paulsen’s re-election comes as the first vote of the Adventist World Session on leadership matters. The Session, held every five years, conducts the business of the Adventist Church, including electing leaders, developing policies and programs, reviewing all areas of Church activities, and voting position statements on matters of concern.
Before his current leadership role, Paulsen served as vice-president of the World Church from 1995-99. Prior assignments have included president of the Church’s Trans-European Division based in St. Albans, England, college lecturer and principal in the U.K., and missionary in Ghana and Nigeria. He is married to Kari Trykkerud Paulsen and has one daughter and two sons.
When asked about the major challenges facing the Adventist Church, Paulsen points to the rapid membership growth.
“Accommodating dramatic church growth is a major task,” he comments. “With a million new members joining in just the past year or so is a real challenge for the Church—in terms of providing spiritual nurture, pastoral leadership, and places of worship. Added to that is the need to maintain the togetherness of this family of faith around the world, with all its cultural diversity brought together in the unity of spiritual development.”
The president’s election by the 2,000-strong delegation came after his name was put forward by the Session’s Nominating Committee, composed of 174 members representing a wide range of different parts of the world.
In exclusive comments to the Adventist News Network after his election, Paulsen stressed the importance of the Church maintaining its mission and identity.
“The Church must never forget its mission of spreading the gospel and confronting individuals with God’s offer of salvation,” he said. “We also need to look at ourselves, and make sure that the Church is a place to feel at home—a warm and friendly community of faith. It’s critical that we cultivate the elements that unite us and work to uphold life-giving, not bureaucratic structures.”
Paulsen concluded by saying he looked forward to the future with confidence. “As a Church, our beliefs have a strong future component, and we look forward with confidence as we place all our plans and proposals in the hands of God, who leads this Church.”