On the 21st of August 2013, the public interview called Mission-Faith was held on the Latvian TV with the representatives of the 4 biggest Christian denominations in Latvia, mainly, the Archbishop of the Catholic Church Zbigņevs Stankevičs, the Metropolitan of the Latvian Orthodox Church, Alexander (Kudryashov), the bishop of the Union of Baptist Churches in Latvia Pēteris Sproģis and the bishop of the diocese of Liepaja of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Latvia Pāvils Brūvers. The Archbishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Latvia in the last moment refused to appear in the TV program.
On the jouranlist question about the situation with women pastors in Latvia, bishop Pāvils Brūvers replied: „The are still women pastors in our midst.. However, we consider that it is the mistake of the previous bishops, archbishops and they [women pastors] are not guilty of that.”
Since the election of the present Lutheran Archbishop Jānis Vanags about 20 years ago, there has been no woman ordained in Latvia. The women pastors have been sent to “a vocation” for the indefinite period of time. Most of the women pastors have left the country and serve in another parts of the world.
There are reluctancy from the Church Archbishop and the Church officials to engage in any constructive discussion on the issues of the identity of the Lutheran Church in Latvia, as well as the women ordination issue dispite the agreement with the agreement with the Latvian Evangelical Lutheran Church Abroad to constructively hold discussions about women ordiantion.
The Evangelical Lutheran Church of Latvia oficially speaks of the way to the “structural unity” with the Roman Catholic Church. The issue about going to a structural unity the Lutheran bishop Brūvers also confirmed in the abovementioned interview.
Alesja Lavrinovica, the redactor