Jānis Šmits (1 April 1968 - 23 September 2019) was a

Latvia Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

and

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched th ...

pastor A pastor (abbreviated as "Pr" or "Ptr" , or "Ps" ) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and ...

. He was a member of the

Latvia's First Party The Latvia's First Party ( lv, Latvijas Pirmā Partija) was a socially conservative, Christian-democratic right-wing political party in Latvia. It merged with Latvian Way to form Latvia's First Party/Latvian Way in 2007. It was founded on 25 M ...

and a

deputy Deputy or depute may refer to: * Steward (office) * Khalifa, an Arabic title that can signify "deputy" * Deputy (legislator), a legislator in many countries and regions, including: ** A member of a Chamber of Deputies, for example in Italy, Spai ...

of the 8th and 9th

Saeima The Saeima () is the parliament of the Latvia, Republic of Latvia. It is a unicameral parliament consisting of 100 members who are elected by proportional representation, with seats allocated to political parties which gain at least 5% of the po ...

(Latvian Parliament). He was a member of parliament from March 18, 2004 to January 15, 2009. From 2009 he was a member of the

Rīga Riga (; lv, Rīga , liv, Rīgõ) is the capital and largest city of Latvia and is home to 605,802 inhabitants which is a third of Latvia's population. The city lies on the Gulf of Riga at the mouth of the Daugava (river), Daugava river where ...

City Council. He was well known for his outspoken conservative stance regarding the defense of

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

values and criticism of

homosexuality Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" to peop ...

. Šmits graduated from the

University of Latvia University of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Universitāte, shortened ''LU'') is a state-run university located in Riga, Latvia established in 1919. The ''QS World University Rankings'' places the university between 801st and 1000th globally, seventh ...

Faculty of

Theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

in 1997 and subsequently served in a number of Latvian Lutheran churches. From 1994 to 1996 he was one of the military chaplains of the renewed Republic of Latvia Defense Forces. From 1997 to 2004 he was President of the “ Lutheran Heritage Foundation” publishing house. In 2002 he was one of the initiators in the creation of the LPP. Following the creation of the party he became one of the members of the executive board and advisor to the Deputy Prime Minister on Religious affairs. He was also Secretary to the Council of Religious Affairs and actively promoted the re-establishment of laws regulating church and state relations. In 2004 he became as a member of Parliament, Secretary General of Saeima as well as the Chairman of the National Security Commission. From 2005 to 2006 he was also Chairman of the LPP fraction in Parliament. In 2006 he was again elected as a member of the 9th Saeima, and then elected to serve as Chairman of the Human Rights and Social Affairs Commission. Šmits' election to this post resulted in criticism by many liberal organizations. On January 15, 2009 he lost his seat as a member of Parliament. Since 2009 Šmits has been a member of Rīga City Council and the Chairman of Rīga City Collegium of Christian Congregations.

Sources

Informācija par deputātu
1968 births Politicians from Riga Latvian Lutheran clergy Latvia's First Party politicians Latvia's First Party/Latvian Way politicians Honor to serve Riga politicians Deputies of the 8th Saeima Deputies of the 9th Saeima University of Latvia alumni 2019 deaths Clergy from Riga {{Latvia-politician-stub