Programme Officer on Freedom of Religion & Belief and Human Rights – CEC, Brussels

Primary work location: Brussels
Starting date: 1 February 2026 at the latest
Working Activities: Full time
Contract: Permanent
Responding to: General Secretary

Conference of European Churches

The Conference of European Churches (CEC) is a fellowship bringing together 114 churches of Orthodox, Protestant, and Anglican traditions from all over Europe for dialogue, advocacy, and mutual encouragement.

CEC emerged as a peace-building effort in 1959, building bridges between Eastern and Western Europe during the Cold War. This original mission carries us forward today as we continue to build bridges between people, churches and European institutions.

CEC offers an international, collaborative and dynamic work and peer environment with a new organisational strategy under implementation.

CEC Mission

CEC’s mission is to claim and safeguard space for Christian faith as a legitimate element in the European political discourse, and to support churches navigating in this context. To strengthen its existing team and its presence in Brussels and Strasbourg, the Conference of European Churches is looking to hire a Programme Officer on Freedom of Religion & Belief (FoRB) and Human Rights.

Job Overview

This position has the fascinating opportunity to dialogue with European institutions and to be part of an ecumenical European fellowship of churches.

The Programme Officer on Freedom of Religion and Belief (FoRB) and Human Rights works in the CEC Advocacy & Dialogue programme. Together with the CEC Theology & Studies programme, the post serves the CEC Call & Witness Strategy, in accordance with the CEC constitution for today.

The two programmes make up the core of CEC’s programmatic activities. The primary responsibility of the Programme Officer is to advocate for Human Rights, especially for FoRB, firstly within the institutions of the European Union and secondly within the Council of Europe and the Organisation of Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). Part of the advocacy work is concerned with European legislation, including the implementation of Art 17 TFEU. The Programme Officer may also be tasked with issues in European legislation which concern the relationship of church and state in the EU Member States.

Coordination and cooperation between the two work areas as well as with the CEC administrative support team are essential to fulfilling CEC’s mission

Responsibilities and Duties

Develop the CEC Advocacy on Freedom of Religion & Belief (FoRB) and Human Rights towards the EU institutions, with a secondary responsibility towards the Council of Europe and the OSCE.
Initiate, establish, develop and maintain a network amongst CEC Member Churches to support advocacy on FoRB and Human Rights.
Contribute to one of the goals of the CEC flagship programme “Pathways to Peace” to support the protection and reconstruction of holy sites and worship places.
Build partnerships and coordinate work with other networks and create alliances to maximise the chance of securing advocacy wins.
Report to CEC Member Churches on programme developments.
Organise thematic debates and conferences to create opportunities for dialogue and discussion for the Member Churches and/or with the European institutions.
Respond to questions on European legislation concerning the relation of church and state in the EU Member States.
Maintain and advance the day-to-day cooperation between the CEC work areas.
Document activities and resource allocation, reporting to the CEC General Secretary.
Cooperate with the person in charge of fundraising to raise funds for the work area, and submit activities budget plans in collaboration with the Finance Desk and General Secretary.

This job description gives a general outline of the main tasks and responsibilities and is not exhaustive. The Conference of European Churches is aware that fulfilling these responsibilities and duties will need time and the support of the office.

Qualifications and Experience

Essential:

Master’s degree or above in European or International Law with a good command of EU mechanisms.
A specialization on Human Rights and especially on Freedom of Religion & Belief is an advantage.
Minimum five years’ experience in advocacy and networking at national and/or European level.
Proven ability to develop and implement advocacy strategies and proven experience with churches’ role in society.
Network builder, developer and manager, with the ability to dialogue with politicians and high-level civil servants.
Excellent written and oral communication skills.
Fluent in English language.
Proven ability to develop consensus positions on a topic and write high-quality policy papers.
Ability to represent the organisation in a variety of fora.
Capability to work in a small, diverse and international team.
Good interpersonal skills and team player abilities.
Innovative, energetic, solution-orientated approach to work.
IT literacy within Office 365, Teams and SharePoint, any additional IT capacities.
Flexible, available and able to travel across Europe and beyond, and robust mindset.

Desirable:

International experience with ecumenical interaction and dynamics.
French, German or any other European language skills.
Ability to understand project finances.
Experience in a non-profit, church or ecumenical organisation is an advantage.

CEC offers:

An international working environment in a committed team, located in Brussels, Rue Joseph II 174, 1000 Brussels, at walking distance from the European Commission, the European Parliament and the Council of the EU.
A unique opportunity to work in ecumenical and international issues.
A competitive salary package.

CEC is an equal opportunities employer.

To apply

Send:

your application letter, detailing your motivation for the position and the matching with your skills, passion, experience and educational background,
your Curriculum Vitae – both in English;
and 3 (at least 1 from your church representative) recent reference letters in German, English or French.

The complete application file should be addressed to the CEC General Secretary Rev. Frank-Dieter Fischbach under the e-mail address: vacancy@cec-kek.be. Reference code CEC-FoRB by 30 September 2025.
For questions please contact Ms Véronique Engels to schedule a phone call with the General Secretary: cec@cec-kek.be

All applications will be kept confidential.

Interviews will be conducted in English and held in Brussels at the following address:

Conference of European Churches
rue Joseph II, 174
1000 Bruxelles.