​CHICAGO ― The Rev. Timothy M. Smith was reelected June 3 to serve a second six-year term as bishop of the North Carolina Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). The election took place during an online synod assembly.

Smith was reelected on the first ballot, with 289 votes. A total of 268 votes was needed for election.

Smith has served as bishop of the North Carolina Synod since 2015. Prior to becoming bishop, he served as senior pastor of the Lutheran Church of the Redeemer in Atlanta from 2010 to 2015; as senior pastor of Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church in Boone, N.C., from 1993 to 2010; and as pastor of St. Paul Lutheran Church – Startown in Newton, N.C., from 1986 to 1993.

He earned a bachelor’s degree in religion from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in Chapel Hill, N.C., in 1982 and a Master of Divinity degree from the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg (now United Lutheran Seminary) in Gettysburg, Pa., in 1986. United is one of seven ELCA seminaries. Smith earned a Doctor of Ministry degree from Drew University Theological School in Madison, N.J., in 1992.

Information about the North Carolina Synod is available at www.nclutheran.org/.

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About the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America:
The ELCA is one of the largest Christian denominations in the United States, with 3.3 million members in more than 8,900 worshiping communities across the 50 states and in the Caribbean region. Known as the church of “God’s work. Our hands.,” the ELCA emphasizes the saving grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ, unity among Christians and service in the world. The ELCA’s roots are in the writings of the German church reformer Martin Luther.

For information contact:
Candice Hill Buchbinder
773-380-2877
Candice.HillBuchbinder@ELCA.org