Carmen Schuster has been elected the first curator of the Evangelical Church of the Augsburg Confession in Romania, becoming the first woman in its 400-year history to hold the position.
Carmen Schuster, an ethnic German was born into a Saxon family from Cincșor in Transylvania, northwest Romania and emigrated to Germany during the communist regime, returning after the 1989 revolution.
She restored several buildings in her native village, including the 800-year-old church, the parish house and a former collective farm.
She also repurposed the former school, which she transformed into a reputable guest houses and has been visited by King Charles III.
Her election was announced on Wednesday by Ovidiu Ganţ, a lawmaker from the German Forum of Romamia: „For the first time in church history of more than four centuries, a woman, Dr. Carmen Schuster, was elected first curator. I wish her success and I look forward to working with her.”
According to church statute, the curator of the church community is a lay person and a deputy of the priest supporting him in his role. The curator represents the community, when the priest is unable to do so or when the post is vacant.
Carmen Schuster restored the former Evangelical School and the former Parish House into guest houses, where “the old blends with the new, traditional and modern and everything is so natural and beautiful!”
The Evangelical Church of the Augsburg Confession in Romania is a German-speaking Lutheran church in mainly based in Transylvania.
