The World Evangelical Alliance has appointed Advocate Botrus Mansour as its new Secretary General and Chief Executive Officer, marking the first time an Arab Christian leader will head the global body representing more than 600 million evangelicals in over 148 countries.
Mansour, an Arab-Israeli of Palestinian heritage from Nazareth, will formally assume office at the WEA’s upcoming General Assembly in Seoul, South Korea, scheduled for Oct. 27–31, 2025. The gathering, held under the theme “The Gospel for Everyone by 2033,” will be the first global assembly since 2019, when the WEA last met in Indonesia.
The appointment concludes a six-month international search process that began with 25 applicants and narrowed to three finalists before Mansour was selected by a majority vote of the WEA’s International Council. The WEA has been without a permanent Secretary General since March 31, 2023, when former leader Thomas Schirrmacher resigned for health reasons. Since April 2023, Council Chair Dr. Goodwill Shana has served in an interim capacity.
Shana described the process as “a journey marked by diligence, transparency, and prayer” and said Mansour would bring “servant leadership and strengthen collaborative efforts” across the evangelical movement.
Mansour, whose first name Botrus is Arabic for Peter, said he was “deeply humbled” by the appointment and committed to advancing the WEA’s vision.
“I am deeply humbled by the IC’s choice and trust in me and I am acutely aware of the immense responsibility it carries. I am keenly aware that this will need hearts, minds and hands to join together across the global WEA family,” he said.
“With God’s grace, I will work relentlessly with others to remove any obstacles that may seek to hinder our unity. I will be reaching out to my brothers and sisters around the world so that together we may rally behind the vision ‘The Gospel for Everyone by 2033.’ Your prayers and support will go a long way in making this vision a reality. Our beloved Savior, Jesus Christ, is worthy of us glorifying Him. His Gospel of peace, justice and righteousness is the true solution for our aching world. Let us allow nothing to stand in the way of proclaiming this life-changing message.”
Born in Nazareth in 1965, Mansour lived as a child in Jerusalem, Oxford in the United Kingdom, and later again in Nazareth. He came to Christian faith during his high school years. After graduating from Nazareth Baptist School, he studied law at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, graduating in 1991. He was admitted to the Israeli Bar Association in 1993 and practiced law in Haifa and Nazareth. In 2009, he completed an MBA in nonprofit management at Haifa University.
Since 2004, Mansour has served as director of Nazareth Baptist School, continuing in that role to the present. He co-founded the Local Baptist Church in Nazareth in 1996 and was ordained as an elder in 2001. His leadership roles include chairing the Convention of Evangelical Churches in Israel, serving as secretary and chair of the Alliance of Evangelical Conventions in Jordan and the Holy Land, and acting as deputy chair of the Nazareth Village board. He has also been a member of the Global Council of Advocates International and co-chair of the Lausanne Initiative for Reconciliation in Israel-Palestine.
The Convention of Evangelical Churches in Israel, which Mansour once chaired, is one of three national member bodies of the WEA in the Holy Land, alongside the Evangelical Alliance of Israel and the Council of Local Evangelical Churches in the Holy Land, which represents the Palestinian territories.
Beyond administration and advocacy, Mansour has lectured widely in churches, universities and conferences worldwide on faith and Middle Eastern issues. He has published articles in Arabic, Hebrew and English in outlets such as Christianity Today and Haaretz, and authored several books, including When Your Neighbor is the Savior (2011) and Looking from the Precipice (2021), as well as titles in Arabic.
He and his wife, A’bir, have three adult children and live in Nazareth.
Founded nearly 180 years ago, the WEA serves as a platform for evangelical unity, mission and advocacy, uniting national and regional alliances and partner organizations around the world.
