Bishop Pedro M. Suárez

The Rev. Pedro Suárez was elected bishop on Oct. 13, 2017 and installed in a service held on Jan. 20, 2018. At the 2023 Synod Assembly, Bishop Suárez was re-elected to a six-year term.

The Bishop is the Pastor to the Synod Community and exercises the church’s power to ordain and consecrate the Rostered ministers of this church. The Bishop is also responsible for strengthening the unity of the Church, exercising leadership in the mission of the church, and overseeing and administering the general work of the synod and staff. The mission of the Office of the Bishop is to shepherd and resource rostered ministers and congregations as they proclaim Christ to the world.

Bishop Suárez served as Pastor of St. Stephen Lutheran Church in Pompano Beach and as interim Director for Evangelical Mission for the Florida-Bahamas Synod. He also served in Texas, Illinois, and Wisconsin.

Born in Venezuela, Suárez earned the equivalent of a bachelor’s degree from the Seminario Evangelico Associado in Venezuela in 1980. He earned an MDiv from the Lutheran School of Theology in Chicago (LSTC) in 1992. Bishop Suárez is married to ELCA Deacon Aura Suárez. They have 2 adult children and 5 grandchildren.