SHE has worked in a variety of settings and worshipped in a variety of denominations. So the Rev Daniela Eisentraeger feels well suited to her new role as vicar of St Luke’s, Southsea.

Daniela has been appointed by Bishop Jonathan as the new vicar of St Luke’s, Southsea, subject to DBS. The church serves the city centre including students, welcoming those who eat in its café and those who use its building as a workspace and the wider community.

Originally from East Germany, she came to the UK in 2013 intending only a short stay, but God had other plans.

“I originally wanted to improve my English,” she said, “but one evening I was Googling for a Bible school and came across the Christian language school in Christchurch. I quit my job as a medical engineer in Germany and joined.”

Her faith journey began in her late 20s in a Lutheran church, followed by time in Baptist, Pentecostal, and Free Evangelical communities. She studied theology at Moorlands College, became a lay minister at a church in Bournemouth, before God called her to discern ordained ministry. She was eventually confirmed into the Church of England by Bishop Jonathan and later trained for ordination at St Mellitus, London, where she did her Masters in church leadership.

Sher served her curacy at St Alban’s and St Mary’s, in the parish of Swaythling, Southampton, and switched in May 2025 to be interim associate priest at All Saints and St Peter’s, Maybush, also in Southampton.

“Since ordination, I have served in two benefices located on the edges of the city, ministering within communities shaped by social housing and estate life,” she said. “It has been a privilege to do life alongside those in these estates, and to see how God works in amazing ways among the people. Because I’ve also worked with international students, I do feel that God has been preparing me for a role such as this one, serving those who live in the city centre.

“I’m really looking forward to the journey ahead at St Luke’s. To build on the amazing work already done, I would like the church to continue to be a sacred place of welcome, hope and healing, where radical hospitality and genuine inclusivity is lived out.”

St Luke’s Church has been developed over the past few years to include a café that is open daily, as well as a co-working space in the nave for lone workers who want to find a base away from home. It also hosts conferences and community activities.

Daniela is also pleased that the role involves working closely with the neighbouring secondary school Charter CofE Academy, as well as exploring the idea that the church might become a Dolling Centre – named after Fr Robert Dolling, who ministered in the deprived parts of Portsmouth in the Victorian era. The centre may become a hub for training, spirituality and social action. “It sounds exciting, and I’d love to explore what that would actually look like,” she said.

Bishop Jonathan hopes to license Daniela at St Luke’s Church on Tuesday 27th January, 2026, at 6pm.