Rola Sleiman

Rola Adel Sleiman, B.Th.C.E.[1] (born 1975)[2] is a Lebanese-Syrian female pastor, the first woman to be appointed to the Christian ministry in the Arab world.[3] She was ordained on 26 February 2017.[4]

Sleiman was born in Tripoli, Lebanon, to a Syrian father and Lebanese mother. She was brought up in the Evangelist Presbyterian Church of Tripoli, located in Rahibat Street,[2] and studied theology under the sponsorship of the National Evangelical Synod of Syria and Lebanon, a church that has only 3000 members altogether.[5] She began to officiate at services in Tripoli when the regular pastor was away during 2006, and replaced him permanently in 2009.[4] The Synod eventually voted by a majority of 23 to 1 to ordain her as his replacement so that the church could host baptisms and other services that could only be presided over by an ordained minister.[6] She stated that she had needed "a lot of silence, patience and effort" to succeed in her vocation.[7]

In May 2017 a controversy arose when the UK government refused Reverend Sleiman's request for a visa in order to allow her to visit the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, at which she had been invited to speak.[8] The Home Office's decision was overturned a few days later, following representations from the Church of Scotland, but Sleiman was still not allowed to board a flight from Beirut to the UK.[9]