Maryland-based, Ghanaian-born Dr. Casely Essamuah has .been selected as the next Secretary of the Global Christian Forum which brings together traditional ecumenical, evangelical and Pentecostal churches.

After a February meeting at the Taizé Community in France, the Global Christian Forum Committee said on Feb. 12 Essamuah was chosen to serve in the central role of its Secretary, the person who leads the alliance of Christians on a daily basis.

Essamuah will take up the position on July 1, following the retirement of the Rev. Larry Miller, a Mennonite, who has led the GCF for the last six years, the forum said in a statement.

Originally ordained in the Methodist Church, Ghana, Essamuah has worked for the last 13 years as Global Missions and Local Outreach Pastor of the Bay Area Community Church, Annapolis, MD in the United States.

Essamuah describes himself as "evangelical and ecumenical."

Coming originally from Africa and now ministering in North America, he views himself as a "bridge-builder" between the churches in the global North and global South.

"In a time when the majority of the world's Christians now live in the southern hemisphere, creating new tensions and challenges in the life of world Christianity, Dr. Casely Essamuah is uniquely equipped to serve the cause of unity in the global body of Christ in the role of Secretary of the Global Christian Forum," said Rev. Wes Granberg-Michaelson, co-chair of the Search Committee.

The Global Christian Forum brings together leadership from all streams of world Christianity.

It including the full support of the four primary global church bodies, namely, the World Council of Churches, the World Evangelical Alliance, the Pontifical Council for Church Unity (Catholic Church), and Pentecostal World Fellowship.

Dr Essamuah said his initial reaction to his appointment was one of "humility and surprise".

"I thought I would never come this far in the process, and had to come to a place of surrender: if this is what the Lord wants me to do with my life, I found myself saying, 'I'm ready to do it'."

Rev. Nicta Lubaale, the other co-chair of the Search Committee, said, "From 27 highly qualified candidates, and among seven candidates called for personal interviews, Casely Essamuah emerged as our unanimous choice through a process of discernment that was inspiring to us all."

He received his Th.D. from the School of Theology at Boston University in 2003 and has written a book titled, "Genuinely Ghanaian: History of the Methodist Church Ghana, 1960-2000."

Essamuah will be presented as "Secretary elect" to the third global gathering of the GCF, which occurs in Bogota, Colombia April 24-27, 2018. http://www.globalchristianforum.org/bogota.ht