Advocate for LGBT issues and abortion, opposes Trump admin. policies
The first female presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America is slated to retire later this year after serving two terms as head of the liberal Mainline Protestant denomination.
The Rev. Elizabeth Eaton, who was elected in 2013, is not going to seek a third term as presiding bishop, noted an announcement from the ELCA last week.
Eaton’s term will end on Sept. 30, an ELCA spokesperson told The Christian Post on Monday. Eaton could have served more than two consecutive terms.
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According to the announcement, the ELCA General Assembly will take place from July 28–Aug. 2 at the Phoenix Convention Center in Phoenix, Arizona, with the theme being “For the Life of the World.”
As part of the proceedings, General Assembly attendees will vote on a new presiding bishop and a new secretary, as Deacon Sue Rothmeyer will also retire at the end of her term.
In 2013, the ELCA Churchwide Assembly elected Eaton as the first female presiding bishop, with her getting 600 votes while incumbent Mark Hanson received only 287 votes.
Eaton, who was serving as the bishop of the Northeastern Ohio Synod when elected, explained in her remarks following her election that she wanted to increase diversity in the denomination.
“We are a church that is overwhelmingly European in a culture that is increasingly pluralistic,” said Eaton at the time. “We need to welcome the gifts of those who come from different places, that is a conversation we need to have as a church.”
During her time in office, Eaton openly advocated for LGBT ideology and abortion, and has been critical of the Trump administration.
Earlier this month, for example, Eaton released a statement denouncing the passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, claiming that it included “provisions that will harm the well-being of local communities and the lives of many individuals for decades to come.”
Eaton was reelected overwhelmingly in 2019 at the ELCA Churchwide Assembly in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in which she received 725 votes out of the 897 votes cast on the first ballot.
Like many other religious communities in the United States, the ELCA has experienced a considerable decline in recent years, including during Eaton’s time as presiding bishop.
While the ELCA reportedly had over 3.9 million members in 2013, the figure eventually dropped by over 1 million to 2.79 million baptized members in 2023.
In November 2023, Eaton began a several-month-long leave of absence from her position for undisclosed reasons, which was approved by the ELCA Church Council Executive Committee. During that time, the Rev. Michael Burk, former bishop of the ELCA Southeastern Iowa Synod, served as “Presiding Bishop Pro Tem.”
“We give thanks for Bishop Eaton’s tireless dedication and leadership and pray for her during this time of rest and rejuvenation,” the ELCA stated in the 2023 announcement.
