Kārlis Gailītis

The Most Reverend Kārlis Gailītis
Archbishop of Riga
Archdiocese	Archdiocese of Riga
Elected	12 April 1989
In office	1989–1992
Predecessor	Ēriks Mesters
Successor	Jānis Vanags
Orders
Ordination	1976
Consecration	3 September 1989
Personal details
Born	(1936-03-03)March 3, 1936 Latvia
Died	November 22, 1992(1992-11-22) (aged 56) Sabile, Latvia
Denomination	Evangelical Lutheran Church of Latvia
Occupation	Lutheran archbishop

Kārlis Gailītis (3 March 1936 – Sabile, 22 November 1992) was a Latvian Lutheran archbishop. He was the archbishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Latvia, from 1989 to 1992, when he died in a car accident.

Life and career

Gailītis was born in a family of teachers. He studied at the Evangelical Lutheran Theological Seminary, from 1971 to 1976. In September 1976, he was ordained a pastor. He started working afterwards at the Luther Church, in Riga, where he would serve until his election as archbishop. He worked as Secretary of the Consistory from 1981. In 1986, he obtained a master's degree in theology. He was a professor of comparative religion in the Theological Seminary for several years.

Gailītis was involved in the "revival and renewal" in the final years of the Soviet Union. He was elected archbishop at the XIV Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Latvia, at 12 April 1989, in Riga. He witnessed the final years of the Soviet Union as Latvia struggled for independence in 1991. In April 1992, he was reelected archbishop, at the XV Synod. He died in a car accident on 22 November 1992.

External links

• Kārlis Gailītis Biography (Latvian)