Capitol Ministries

International Ministries 37 Valeriu Ghiletchi European Union Parliament Ministry Leader V aleriu Ghiletchi, a seminary-trained Baptist pastor and former Moldovan parliamentarian who has a history of making disciples in the political arena, has been appointed full-time ministry leader to the European Union (EU). In this position, Pastor Valeriu will be tasked with build- ing discipleship Bible-study ministries to members of the European Union Parliament (EP), which is the EU's legisla- tive branch. e EU is a political and economic union that governs common economic, social, and security policies of its 27 member states. When the EP is not in session, Pastor Valeriu will be working closely with Slavik Rimski, CapMin's global director for Eastern and Western Europe to plant and build ministries throughout nations across the continent. As with Slavik, Pastor Valeriu holds freedom very dear, having suffered religious persecution while growing up in Moldova, which at that time was a Soviet Bloc nation. His grandfather became the first Christian in their village and established a strong Christian foundation upon which the family built their faith. "I was born into a Christian-influenced family, and while I grew up under the Soviet regime, God has been good. He protected me and blessed me," he said. While his nation was under Communist rule, Pastor Valeriu studied engineering in Odessa, Ukraine and became an electronics engineer. When the Soviet Union fell, he traveled to Romania to study at Emmanuel University where he earned a Bachelor of Divinity degree. He has served as the dean of the college of eolog y and Education in Chisinau, as president of the Baptist Union of the Republic of Moldova, and as president of the European Baptist Federation. As a member of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Coun- cil of Europe (PACE), Pastor Valeriu was the chairperson of the Committee on the Election of Judges to the European Court of Human Rights. He was also the rapporteur of sev- eral reports adopted by the PACE, one of which was: "Tack- ling intolerance and discrimination in Europe with a special focus on Christians." He served as a member of the Moldova Parliament from 1998–2001 and again from 2009–2019. "If I am correct, I am the first Evangelical to be elected to the Parliament in the former USSR Bloc," he said. "When I was in Parliament, I always had in mind the call to be salt and light. One of the things I did was to form a prayer group in the Moldovan Parliament. I believe as Christians, we must be present in every sphere in society, and it is important for the Christian message to be heard in the public square. ere must be a Christian witness there. I pray and ask the Lord to open a door for this ministry in the European Parliament and other national parliaments." European Union flag against parliament in Brussels EUROPEAN UNION PARLIAMENT Eastern and Western Europe Training Conference Brussels, Belgium June 26–29, 2023 Coming Up

• Cover