For the Life of the World - Volume 27, Number 3

CONCORDIA THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY, FORT WAYNE

For the Life of the World F A L L

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Virtues of the Pastoral Office Geoffrey R. Boyle

Called to Trust His Word

Daniel P. Fickenscher

Celebrating Twenty Years of Deaconess Formation Fall 2023

James G. Bushur1

PRESIDENT FROM THE

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love to read. And I read all kinds of genres. Here at Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne (CTSFW), our students do a lot of reading as they delve into the writings of the early church fathers and glean new insights from today’s best theologians.

Across campus on any given day, you’ll find small groups of students, faculty, and staff discussing what they’ve learned and wrestling with applications for today.

Is God calling you to become

one of His undershepherds or to serve as a deaconess with hands of mercy? If so, let’s start the conversation about next steps.

ctsfw.edu/Admission (800) 481-2155

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One of the benefits of spending time in the great books of the Christian faith and in western civilization, more generally, is the wisdom and broader perspectives we encounter in them. The more you ingest good material, the greater the impact it has on the way you think, feel, and act. Yet virtues are not something you learn entirely from a book. Virtues are modeled and formed. As Isaiah recognized, “But now, O Lord, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand” (Isa. 64:8).

In this issue of For the Life of the World we examine the virtues of pastoral ministry and diaconal service. As St. Paul writes to Timothy in his first epistle, “If anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task” (1Tim. 3:1). It might be easy to read on and think, “I’m not a drunkard or violent. I’m generally respectable and manage my household well” and so consider yourself qualified. If we were honest with ourselves, however, we would, like St. Paul and later Martin Luther, when holding the mirror of the Law before us cry out, “Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!”

(Rom. 7:24-25a) Who is qualified to serve as a shepherd of Christ’s sheep? No one. Yet Christ calls us and, in his mercy, takes us, saint and sinner though we be, and molds us into his undershepherds and workers of mercy to serve his flock. We Lutherans are familiar with this both/and tension: saint and sinner, body and bread, wine and blood, Law and

Gospel, loving and just. As we strive to be more Christlike and live a sanctified life, we become more aware of the depth of our sin and our absolute reliance on Christ.

CTSFW is a tight community. We spend a lot of time together and get to know one another well. We become a family, encouraging and challenging one another.

We strengthen one another where we’re weak, and we knock off the rough corners where they need knocking off. We love one another—sometimes with a little tough love, other times with sweet grace.

Here at CTSFW we are about the business of forming servants in Jesus Christ who teach the faithful, reach the lost, and care for all.

But that formation begins long before any student sets foot on our campus and will continue long after they leave. As members of the body of Christ, we all have a role to play in this formation process. We are so thankful for our many partners who support our students and the work of the Seminary.

Above all, we’re thankful to Christ, the head of the Church, recognizing that “from him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work” (Eph. 4:16).

In Christ,

Lawrence R. Rast Jr. President Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne For the Life of the World

CONTENTS

Volume Twenty-Seven, Number Three

F E A T U R E S 4 Virtues of the Pastoral Office

Presidential Search Underway Dr. Lawrence R. Rast Jr., president of Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne (CTSFW), announced September 28, 2023, that he is retiring from the presidency at the conclusion of the 2023–24 academic year. He will continue to serve CTSFW as a faculty member. To read the full news release, visit ctsfw.edu/news.

A call for nominations for the Seminary’s 17th president will be available this November in Synod publications and at ctsfw.edu.

For the Life of the World PUBLISHER Dr. Lawrence R. Rast Jr. President PUBLISHER ASSISTANT Carrie M. O’Donnell

PRODUCTION MANAGER Colleen M. Bartzsch

EDITOR Kristine S. Bruss

ART DIRECTOR Steve J. Blakey

For the Life of the World is published by Concordia Theological Seminary Press, 6600 N. Clinton St., Fort Wayne, Indiana 46825. No portion of this publication may be reproduced without the consent of the Editor of For the Life of the World by email at FLOW@ctsfw.edu or (260) 452-3153. Copyright 2023. Printed in the United States. Postage paid at Berne, Indiana.

For the Life of the World is mailed to all pastors and congregations of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod in the United States and Canada and to anyone interested in the work of Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne, Indiana.

Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture verses are from the English Standard Version (ESV).

Fall 2023

Geoffrey R. Boyle We want our pastors to be good, Christian men. And our pastoral ministry students at the Seminary want to be such men. They pray for it, confess their failures, and strive for it again and again. But there’s more to being a pastor—more virtues specific to this calling and this office. I’ve tried to sum up various lists of virtues—both general virtues of the “good man” as well as those specific to the pastoral office—into three somewhat provocative admonitions for students: Don’t be weird. Don’t be weak.

Don’t be a jerk. The guys get it.

7 Called to Trust His Word

Daniel P. Fickenscher We’re not called to be indifferent. (The concerned brother of Matthew 18 is far from that. Perhaps just as great as his desire to protect his brother’s reputation is his persistence.)

But we are called to trust that the Word of the Lord will not return to Him empty. It’s not our word. It’s not our wit.

It’s not our personality. It’s the Lord who is going to bring sheep back to His flock, souls into His kingdom. Resting on this truth pastors are free to be self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, sober, gentle, and so on.

10 Celebrating Twenty Years of Deaconess Formation

James G. Bushur Every human being is created to share in the Father’s love for the Son and the Son’s love for his Father. We are made to be loved and to love. “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God . . . because God is love” (1 John 4:7-8). Built on this foundation, deaconess formation boils down to certain fundamental questions.

How do we prepare deaconess students to facilitate the bonds of divine love that bind the church together? How do we form students to love the person in front of them no matter the context or the circumstances?

Also in this issue: Opening of the 178th Academic Year . . . . . . . 16 Faculty Focus: Dr. Carl Beckwith . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Seminary Guild Celebrates 85 Years . . . . . . . . 20 Students Travel to Latvia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 3

Virtues of the Pastor

Photo: Erik M. Lunsford/The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod

Don’t Be Weird. Don’t Be Weak.

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For the Life of the World

oral Office

Geoffrey R. Boyle

Don’t Be a Jerk.

V

irtue simply means “manliness,” or acting like a man (Latin: Vir). Among the ancient Greeks, Plato speaks of virtue as “justice,” what it means to be a good man.

Justice includes wisdom, temperance, and courage, what St. Ambrose later calls the four cardinal virtues. Three theological virtues were added to them: faith, hope, and love (1 Cor. 13:13). And shortly after Ambrose, the Christian poet Prudentius listed seven virtues to counteract the seven deadly sins—these include chastity, humility, patience, kindness, diligence, temperance, and charity. These are the characteristics of a good, Christian man. These are the characteristics of our Lord, Jesus Christ.

We want our pastors to be good, Christian men. And our pastoral ministry students at the Seminary want to be such men. They pray for it, confess their failures, and strive for it again and again.

But there’s more to being a pastor—more virtues specific to this calling and this office. St. Paul lays out some of these virtues in various places, most notably in his first epistle to St. Timothy: The saying is trustworthy: If anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task. Therefore an overseer must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, soberminded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. He must manage his own household well, with all dignity keeping his children submissive, for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God’s church? He must not be a recent convert, or he may become puffed up with conceit and fall Fall 2023

We want our pastors to be good, Christian men. And our pastoral ministry students at the Seminary want to be such men. They pray for it, confess their failures, and strive for it again and again. But there’s more to being a pastor—more virtues specific to this calling and this office. St. Paul lays out some of these virtues in various places, most notably in his first epistle to St. Timothy. (1 Tim. 3:1-7)

into the condemnation of the devil.

Moreover, he must be well thought of by outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace, into a snare of the devil. (1 Tim. 3:1-7) Many of these qualifications overlap with both the ancient Greek virtues from Plato as well as the theological virtues identified by Ambrose and Prudentius.

For example, “sober-minded” recalls both temperance and prudence, and “not quarrelsome” leans heavily upon patience. To “manage one’s household well” requires justice, diligence, prudence, and courage.

These lists of virtues—both the general virtues of the “good man” as well as those specific to the pastoral office—I’ve tried to sum up into three somewhat provocative admonitions for students: Don’t be weird. Don’t be weak.

Don’t be a jerk. The guys get it.

Like pornography, “weird” is easier to spot than define. I suppose its opposite, normal, will help us understand. However, by “normal” I certainly don’t mean by the world’s standard. In dogmatics classes the students learn to see Scripture as the

In dogmatics classes the students learn to see Scripture as the norma normans (“norming norm”) and the Lutheran Confessions as the norma normata (“normed norm”). That is, when it comes to doctrine, Scripture defines what’s “normal”—anything against that “norm” is rightly called “weird.”

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Photo: Erik M. Lunsford/The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod

Our Lord Jesus chooses to reveal His power precisely in weakness (2 Cor. 12:9)! It was while we were weak that Christ died for us (Rom. 5:6).

And it’s in weakness that we reach the weak and make them strong (1 Cor. 9:22; 2 Cor. 12:10). That sort of weakness is certainly virtuous; that’s what our Lord is like.

Our Lord isn’t “nice” or “safe” either.

He’s the King. He alone is to be feared, “lest His wrath be quickly kindled and you perish in the way” (Ps. 2:12). But He isn’t a jerk. His acts are just. His speech is tempered. He knows what to say to whom and when, and “He does all things well” (Mark 7:37). Our students strive for that temperate way of prudence and discretion.

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norma normans (“norming norm”) and the Lutheran Confessions as the norma normata (“normed norm”). That is, when it comes to doctrine, Scripture defines what’s “normal”—anything against that “norm” is rightly called “weird.” So, the pastor judges himself against the “norm” of Christ and His Word in what he says and does, how he preaches and teaches and conducts himself in this world. It’s no wonder that the world will then see him as a bit strange: “For you bring some strange things to our ears” (Acts 17:20).

With Christ as the “norm,” we see what it means to be a good, Christian man as well as a faithful pastor. “Weird” can then be defined by what Christ is not, such as effeminate, unsociable, unduly awkward, unrelatable, and grotesque.

Looking at St. Paul’s list for the overseer, the charge to not be weird includes being “above reproach,” “respectable,” and “being well thought of by outsiders.” A fruitful reading to this end is Rev. Jeffrey Hemmer’s Man Up! The Quest for Masculinity (Concordia Publishing House, 2017). In class we discuss not only how to relate socially among our congregants, but also what this entails for our private lives and our conduct as good, Christian men.

Any admonition against weakness requires careful deliberation and distinction. Our Lord Jesus chooses to reveal His power precisely in weakness (2 Cor. 12:9)! It was while we were weak that Christ died for us (Rom. 5:6). And it’s in weakness that we reach the weak and make them strong (1 Cor. 9:22; 2 Cor. 12:10). That sort of weakness is certainly virtuous; that’s what our Lord is like.

The weakness that I warn students against, however, is the weakness whose opposite is courage. It takes great courage to be and remain “the husband of one wife,” to be “self-controlled,” to “be able to teach” what is true in the face of great adversity, and to suffer the consequences, whatever they may be.

St. Paul encourages Timothy: “God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control” (2 Tim. 1:7). It’s to this spirit that our pastors must cling when confronted with heresy, with a congregant’s request to marry someone of the same sex, with false accusations of bigotry, racism, or any threat from

wokeist talking points. Our pastors must not be weak when a true confession is called for, even as they weakly give their bodies to whatever cross may come.

Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn is our guide in these discussions, urging us in all things to “live not by lies.”

Finally, though it shouldn’t have to be said, it is the necessary temper to the above: Don’t be a jerk. It’s easy to confuse masculinity and courage for unkindness and cruelty. St. Paul says that pastors are to be “hospitable” and “not violent but gentle.” Part of managing one’s own household well includes not exasperating the children by undue use of his authority (Eph. 6:4).

Now, not being a jerk doesn’t necessarily mean pastors are merely to be “nice” or “safe.” In The Chronicles of Narnia, Susan asks about Aslan, “‘Is he-quite safe? I shall feel rather nervous about meeting a lion.’ . . . ‘Safe?’ said Mr. Beaver. ‘Who said anything about safe? ’Course he isn’t safe. But he’s good. He’s the King, I tell you.’”

Our Lord isn’t “nice” or “safe” either.

He’s the King. He alone is to be feared, “lest His wrath be quickly kindled and you perish in the way” (Ps. 2:12). But He isn’t a jerk. His acts are just. His speech is tempered. He knows what to say to whom and when, and “He does all things well” (Mark 7:37). Our students strive for that temperate way of prudence and discretion. To some, they’ll need to cry out with our Lord and the Baptizer, “You brood of vipers!” (Matt. 3:7; 12:34). To others, they’ll speak tenderly, sharing Isaiah’s preaching of “Comfort, comfort” (Isa. 40:1).

It’s not an exhaustive list. That’s okay. The Scriptures lay before us who Christ is and what He’s like. We want to be like Him, as far as we are able. And where we’re not—or simply find that we don’t always want to be—our Lord comes with His Word to convict us and forgive us. And as He gives us to share in that life, we rejoice.

Dr. Geoffrey Boyle (Geoffrey.

Boyle@ctsfw.edu) is assistant professor of Pastoral Ministry and Missions and director of Field Education at Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne.

For the Life of the World

Called to Trust

His Word

Photo: Erik M. Lunsford/The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod

Daniel R. Fickenscher

W

e’re probably all at least somewhat familiar with the list Paul gives us in his first letter to Timothy of qualities that he expects of pastors. He writes, “an overseer must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome” (1 Tim. 3:2–3). He goes on to mention, among other things, the necessity of maintaining a Christian home.

These all seem appropriate for the pastoral office. We need men who serve as examples of what graciously loving one’s neighbor looks like, and we certainly don’t want preachers who put up obstacles to the Gospel through their conduct.

Fall 2023

But as you reflect on these qualifications a bit more, you might realize how incredibly high Paul has set the bar. Given the job description of pastors, one might say that Paul is expecting too much of us. If pastors are entrusted with the eternal care of dozens, hundreds, and sometimes even thousands of souls, how can they also be expected to maintain a decent demeanor? When a guy’s dealing with members turning away from God’s gifts, sexual perversions seeping into his congregation, difficult elders, halfhearted support from the district office, Lutheran schools not playing nice with 7

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produce the same results that Jonah saw in Nineveh and Peter saw at Pentecost.

Jesus lays that out clearly, and that ought to give us pastors a great sense of relief.

We’re not called to be indifferent.

(The concerned brother of Matthew 18 is far from that. Perhaps just as great as his desire to protect his brother’s reputation is his persistence.) But we are called to trust that the Word of the Lord will not return to Him empty. It’s not our word.

It’s not our wit. It’s not our personality.

Jesus makes no mention of changing up the message when you return to the unrepentant brother with the two or three others and then the church. He doesn’t say, “Well, you blew it. Next time you better be more clever, more convincing.”

Presumably each call to repentance is Jesus teaches us to realize that He as the Shepherd doesn’t so much seek out the lost sheep through hidden, mysterious ways but rather through Christians, the brothers, proclaiming the Shepherd’s words of Law and Gospel. As the Shepherd goes in search of sheep, Jesus calls us to “go and tell [the brother] his fault.” We pastors are reminded that while, yes, we do physically go to call straying sinners to repentance, it’s God the Shepherd who is ultimately doing the searching. We’re just servants sent with a task. more or less the same message, just with more witnesses. It’s the Lord who is going to bring sheep back to His flock, souls into His kingdom. Resting on this truth pastors are free to be selfcontrolled, respectable, hospitable, sober, gentle, and so on.

I’ve had the uncommon privilege of returning to my vicarage congregation as a pastor after serving at another congregation for a few years. When I began as a vicar, there was an ongoing conversation with a family over getting an eight-year-old son/grandson baptized, a conversation that began at his birth.

My vicarage year passed with several nudges pointing out the eternal blessings of baptism, but still no baptism occurred.

Nearly three more years, which were peppered with sermons highlighting those blessings, went by, but still no baptism.

When I returned as an associate pastor I wrote two letters, one to the parents and one to the child piggybacking off the Lord’s call to baptize that we had just heard on Trinity Sunday. I laid out several clear baptismal passages: John 3:5; Titus 3:4–7; Galatians 3:27; 1 Peter 3:21; and Acts 2:38. Soon after receiving the letters the family agreed that they wanted the child to be baptized! In the words of Matthew 18, we rejoiced for we had gained our brother! What a joy it was to do that baptism.

With every one of those conversations, sermons, and letters there was a lot on the line; the certainty and comfort of the forgiveness of sins and adoption as sons of God were on the line.

Imagine if it had really been up to me and the other pastors to change the hearts of everyone involved in that decision, to convince them that overcoming the hindrances was worth the blessings of baptism. We would’ve been at our wits’ end. We wouldn’t have been able to sleep. We would’ve been a wreck.

We would’ve been far from what Paul expects from us. Being self-controlled, respectable, and gentle would’ve been impossible. And no doubt our stressed, quarrelsome nature would’ve chased the family away years ago.

There was a need for patient, approachable teaching. We as pastors of this family did not take the hindrances to the baptism lightly, but we also trusted that God’s Word is powerful. It would not and did not return to Him empty.

Working with this certainty, we are free to be the undershepherds that Paul expects us to be.

The Rev. Daniel Fickenscher (pastorfickenscher@ stpaulcolumbus.org) serves as associate pastor at St. Paul Lutheran Church in Columbus, Indiana.

For the Life of the World

Photo: Erik M. Lunsford/The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod

Lutheran churches, hate from outside and inside the congregation, etc., etc., can Paul then be so bold as to demand that the pastor also be friendly?

Of course, behind Paul’s qualifications is the certainty that, ultimately, it’s not the pastor but God who is going to make happen what needs to happen. Yes, the pastor has been given lots to do, but he hasn’t been given the job of changing people’s hearts. It’s not up to him to convince his congregation and community that we deserve God’s temporal and eternal punishment. It’s not left to him to illumine our hearts with the shining Gospel that Jesus is our Savior.

God has simply given pastors, and all Christians, His words of truth that we then repeat and through which He works.

Those of us who use the three-year lectionary heard this fall from Matthew 18:1–20. There’s a lot going on in that text: becoming like children to be great in the kingdom of heaven, cutting off hands and feet to avoid the hell of fire, the Shepherd who leaves the 99 in search of the one lost sheep, telling your brother his fault, and more. One connection we don’t want to miss is that between the Shepherd and telling your brother his fault, Jesus teaches us to realize that He as the Shepherd doesn’t so much seek out the lost sheep through hidden, mysterious ways but rather through Christians, the brothers, proclaiming the Shepherd’s words of Law and Gospel. As the Shepherd goes in search of sheep, Jesus calls us to “go and tell [the brother] his fault.” We pastors are reminded that while, yes, we do physically go to call straying sinners to repentance, it’s God the Shepherd who is ultimately doing the searching.

We’re just servants sent with a task.

As the text continues, the lesson in humility continues. Jesus explains that sometimes the erring brother isn’t going to listen to you or your pastor in that one-on-one conversation. He might even ignore the call to repentance from two or three more brothers and then that of the whole church. Pastors are reminded that we may not get the results we, and maybe our members, expect. Not every sermon, visit, and outreach event will

Fall 2023

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Celebrating Twenty Years of Deaco

Following the “More Excell

Photo: Erik M. Lunsford/The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod

F Like any vocational program, the formation of deaconess students demands attention to both knowledge and skills. Deaconesses need to understand the doctrinal foundations for the church’s confessional, ethical, and moral life. They also need the practical skills required for visitation, counseling, catechesis, leadership, and community building. Yet while knowledge and skills are important, formation for service in the church demands something more. In addition to the instruction of the mind and the training of the hands, there is the need for the formation of the heart. Thus, deaconess formation at CTSFW gives attention to the formation of divine virtues. As Peter exhorts us, “make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue” (2 Pet. 1:5).

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or twenty years, Concordia Theological Seminary has trained women for service in the church as deaconesses.

As director of deaconess formation, I have grown to appreciate the distinctive character of the deaconess vocation and the unique formation it requires. The deaconess vocation is oriented toward a different purpose than the pastoral office. Pastors bear the special responsibility of confessional oversight. They are trained to proclaim the true faith as confessed in the creeds and confessions of the Book of Concord. The deaconess vocation, on the other hand, seeks to facilitate the bonds of fellowship and love that integrate many members into the one body of Christ. “A new commandment I give to you,” Jesus says, “that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another” (John 13:34). This commandment represents the singular purpose of the deaconess vocation.

The claim that love is the purpose of the diaconal vocation may invite the charge of idealism. In our context, love is immediately associated with certain romantic ideals that only exist on the movie screen or in popular novels. This idealism is appealing to some precisely because it offers an escape from the cold, harsh reality of this fallen world.

For the skeptic, love seems too naïve to deal with the world as it is and too weak to defend itself against real evil.

Turning the other cheek appears to be a vain strategy in a world that takes pleasure in violence.

However, for Holy Scripture, true love is neither naïve nor given to a dreamy idealism. Love is not defined by

romantic fairytales but by the biblical narrative of Jesus Christ and him crucified. Early Christians often praised God as the philanthropos, “the lover of mankind.” God’s philanthropy is first expressed when he creates male and female in his own “image and likeness” (Gen. 1:26). Being created in the divine image means that the mystery of God’s philanthropy is hidden in our humanity.

The Son is the perfect image of his Father, and humanity was created to be in the image of the Son. This mystery is unveiled in Jesus Christ, who embodies the Father’s love for mankind. God sends his own Son “in the likeness of sinful flesh,” St. Paul writes, so that we might “be conformed to the image of his Son” For the Life of the World

coness Formation James G. Bushur

Photo: Erik M. Lunsford/The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod

lent Way” (1 Cor. 12:31)

(Rom. 8:3, 29). To be in the image of the Son is to be loved. Thus, Paul concludes that nothing can “separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Rom. 8:39). Similarly, Maximus the Confessor, the seventh-century defender of the Nicene faith, simply concludes, “Love alone, properly speaking, proves that the human person is in the image of the Creator.”1 Fall 2023

Every human being is created to share in the Father’s love for the Son and the Son’s love for his Father. We are made to be loved and to love. “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God … because God is love” (1 John 4:7-8). Built on this foundation, deaconess formation boils down to certain fundamental questions. How do we prepare deaconess students to facilitate the bonds of divine

love that bind the church together?

How do we form students to love the person in front of them no matter the context or the circumstances?

Like any vocational program, the formation of deaconess students demands attention to both knowledge and skills. Deaconesses need to understand the doctrinal foundations for the church’s confessional, ethical, and 11

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philosophies. Rather than ruling the world, Christians are interested in building the church, and the church is not to be a kingdom “of this world” (John 18:36). “The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship,” Jesus tells his disciples, “but not so with you” (Luke 22:25–26). Jesus builds the church to be a fellowship of love and service.

“Let the greatest among you become as the youngest, and the leader as one

Photo: Erik M. Lunsford/The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod

moral life. They also need the practical skills required for visitation, counseling, catechesis, leadership, and community building. Yet while knowledge and skills are important, formation for service in the church demands something more. In addition to the instruction of the mind and the training of the hands, there is the need for the formation of the heart.

Thus, deaconess formation at CTSFW gives attention to the formation of divine virtues. As Peter exhorts us, “make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue” (2 Pet. 1:5).

To speak of “virtues” may bring to mind the philosophical virtues promoted in the ancient Greco-Roman world.

Ancient philosophers taught the four cardinal virtues: wisdom, courage, temperance, and justice. These virtues arise from the philosophers’ interest in the best way to govern the ideal city. Wielding civic power begins with wisdom and the rational deliberation of the mind. Yet the mind is often clouded by the impulses of our passions and desires. The passion of fear, for example, seeks to avoid labor, suffering, and conflict. Courage is the virtue that answers fear and gives the capacity to endure difficulties, confront challenges, and defend against threats. The desire for pleasure, prosperity, and power is countered by the virtue of temperance, which gives the capacity to restrain one’s selfish desires and govern for the good of the city. The final aim of all virtues is justice. The wise use of reason and the virtuous management of the passions work to enact justice for the city.

These philosophical virtues are concerned with the best way to rule the world; they are the virtues of the elite and the powerful. For the philosophers, all the virtues are rational and seek the goal of justice, which is defined as each receiving what he deserves. Within this perspective, love and mercy are not virtues. Clemency may be a virtue when it is shown to one who deserves it.

However, mercy toward the undeserving or love for the unworthy is irrational, unjust, and immoral.

The Christian approach to the virtues is quite different from ancient

The deaconess vocation seeks to facilitate the bonds of fellowship and love that integrate many members into the one body of Christ. “A new commandment I give to you,” Jesus says, “that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another” (John 13:34). This commandment represents the singular purpose of the deaconess vocation. who serves” (Luke 22:26). Thus, for the church, all true virtue originates not in our use of reason but in God’s philanthropy embodied in Jesus Christ, who is among us “as one who serves” (Luke 22:27). Each virtue is simply a different form of God’s love that is needed at a specific moment. To the

victim on the side of the road, Jesus is compassionate; to the Pharisees, he is a defender of the Truth; to Zacchaeus, he is hospitable; to the sinful woman, merciful; to his persecutors, patient; before his Father’s will, humble.

For the Scriptures, the virtues are like genetic traits inherent in God’s own being. God is love. His virtues are living powers passed on to his children through Jesus Christ and the communion of the Holy Spirit. Indeed, the virtues of Christ are at work in the church, preparing us for the good works he calls us to perform. For deaconesses, God’s call to service arises from the needs of the neighbor. Christ is in the hungry calling for our mercy; he is in the prisoner calling for our visitation; he is in the stranger calling for our hospitality; he is in the sick and the suffering calling for our kindness and compassion; he is even present when persecution comes calling for our patience and long-suffering.

For ancient philosophers, virtues aim at the just and equitable exercise of power, but for Christians, the virtues are forms of God’s great philanthropia and therefore give us the capacity to love the one in front of us no matter the context or the circumstances. This year we celebrate two decades of deaconess formation. It has been my delight to see our graduates grow into a community of mercy that facilitates the bond of love that “binds everything together in perfect harmony” (Col. 3:14). While the world seeks power, let us seek “a still more excellent way” (1 Cor. 12:31). “So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love” (1 Cor. 13:13).

Dr. James G. Bushur (James.Bushur@ctsfw.edu) is The Carl and Erna Weinrich Associate Professor of New Testament and Early Church Studies and director of Deaconess Formation programs at Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne.

1 Maximus the Confessor, Letter 2: To John the Cubicularius, in Maximus the Confessor, translated by Andrew Louth (London: Routledge, 1996), p. 86.

For the Life of the World

A Congregation Served by Deaconesses Kevin Loughran

Left to right: Senior Pastor Rev. Kevin Loughran, Deac. Marissa Kroenke, Deac. May Itzcovitch, Deac. Liz Borth, and Associate Pastor Rev. John Kyle.

I

t was at a circuit meeting while I was serving as the associate pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church, Sheboygan, Wisconsin, that I first recognized the importance of the diaconal office. Dr. Arthur Just, then the director of the fledgling Deaconess Studies program at CTSFW, addressed us. His talk was succinct and powerful. Bishops (district or synodical presidents) speak on behalf of the Church to the world, pastors preach the Gospel and administer the Sacraments for local congregations, and deaconesses lead those congregations in their mercy work.

About five years later I was serving as senior pastor at Grace Lutheran Church and School in St. Petersburg, Florida.

When I first arrived Grace was a divided congregation with a variety of wellmeaning groups pulling in many directions, including some that led away from the Lord’s appointed Means of Grace.

About two years into my pastorate, we encountered several challenges that caused us to reflect. The recession of 2008 caused many congregants to relocate, and our day school census dropped significantly. Subsequently, our principal

Fall 2023

retired, our music director left, and the assistant pastor took a call. It was time to re-evaluate the ministry and its staffing through prayer and meditative reflection.

We invited Dr. Just to come and talk to us about the Deaconess Studies program, and the congregation voted to receive a deaconess intern from Concordia Theological Seminary that spring. Our first intern became Grace’s first deaconess, Deac. Amanda (Bundy) Parparian. Deaconess Amanda was with us for six years. During that time, we found that having one pastor preaching plus a

deaconess was a better ministry model for us than having two pastors. Deaconess Amandaʼs calm, patient leadership in the areas of mercy work and hospitality, along with consistent pastoral preaching of the Gospel, began to unite the congregation.

Since then, Grace has come to see itself as a congregation served by deaconesses.

It’s been a subtle shift, but along the way our deaconesses as well as the people with whom theyʼve interacted have completely changed the culture of Grace Lutheran Church and School from one of sheep running astray to a focused flock being led to the green pastures of the Divine Service and then out into the world in Jesus’ name.

We are currently served by two incredible CTSFW graduates. Deaconess May Itzcovitch is our parish administrator.

Deaconess May teaches fifth-grade religion, leads a women’s Bible study, Wine and Whine, in her home, and assists the pastors in teaching confirmation classes. Deaconess Camille Cox serves as our director of youth and parish education.

Along with those duties, she assists me in teaching third-grade religion, assists a called teacher in teaching sixth-grade religion, offers an American Sign language elective for our middle schoolers, and runs with middle school students who are taking a fitness elective.

Throughout its twenty years of existence the deaconess program at CTSFW has been a great blessing to the LCMS. Beyond a doubt Grace’s story is one of many, a great model of how the deaconess office supports the church’s preaching of the Gospel and administration of the Sacraments in the field, for the life of the world. We are thankful for each of our three deaconess interns and six deaconesses, as well as their tenure of service at Grace, St. Petersburg.

The Rev. Kevin Loughran serves as senior pastor of Grace Lutheran Church in St. Petersburg, Florida.

13

Faculty News

Strengthening Confessional Lutheranism in Tanzania

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n August 8–11, Dr. Naomichi Masaki, professor of Systematic Theology, lectured at the Seventh Annual Theological Symposium in Tanzania, a joint effort of Concordia Theological Seminary and the South East of Lake Victoria Diocese of Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania (SELVD-ELCT). The symposium, made possible by the generous support of St. John Lutheran Church in Bingen (Decatur) and the International Lutheran Council (ILC), focused on the ecumenical movement and lay/charismatic movement that continue to challenge the SELVD. “Bishop Dr. Yohana Nzelu of SELVD commented that this was one of the best theological symposiums so far,” said Masaki.

The 155 registered participants included around eighty pastors, forty students in the Concordia Pastoral and Diaconal Training Program (administered by CTSFW and directed by Dr. Masaki), and thirty-five deaconesses and evangelists. Joining Dr. Masaki as a lecturer was the Rev. Peter Brock, pastor of St. John and first vice-president of the Indiana District.

Top: Participants at the Seventh Annual Theological Symposium in Tanzania, held August 8–11, 2023.

Above: Earlier in the summer, Dr. Masaki traveled to Ghana to teach at the Pastoral Seminar of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Ghana (ELCG) in Tamale (pictured) and Accra, June 22–27.

Teaching in South Africa

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rofessor John Pless and Dr. John Nordling traveled to South Africa shortly after CTSFW Commencement in late May to teach intensive courses at Lutheran Theological Seminary in Tshwane (LTS). “It was a privilege to return to LTS to teach an intensive term course on ‘The Pastor’s Devotional Life’ to twenty-three students, plus several pastors who audited the course,” said Pless. His course sought to help students discover the importance of the pastor’s own spiritual life in God’s Word and prayer as essential for faithful ministry. In addition to teaching, Pless also preached several times and led the youth group of St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Pretoria in a study of “The Small Catechism as a Prayer Book.”

Nordling, who also preached on the trip, taught a course on Revelation to thirty students from Congo, Ethiopia, South Africa, and Malawi, along with a few other interested learners.

“I feel that most objectives for teaching Revelation were met: that the students learned to see Revelation as a vision of hope,

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Professor John Pless and Dr. John Nordling with Revelations students at Lutheran Theological Seminary in Tshwane. rather than fear and dread, and that this letter is packed with wonderful reassurances of our Lord Jesus Christ’s victory over the Devil—the Great Red Dragon—the two dreadful beasts, and all the forces of evil that are arrayed against Christ and his church,” Nordling said.

For the Life of the World

Published Works

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r. Detlev Schulz, professor of Pastoral Ministry and Missions, has authored a new book, Theological Anthropology and Sin. The volume, part of the Confessional Lutheran Dogmatic series, was published in September 2023 through Luther Academy.

The second edition of A Small Catechism on Human Life by Prof.

John T. Pless was released this summer by Concordia Publishing House. The revised edition brings the original edition (2006) in alignment with the 2017 edition of the Small Catechism and expands treatment of contemporary issues in ethics in light of more recent developments.

The revised edition also includes an appendix, “Preaching on Ethics,” and an expanded bibliography.

Several CTSFW faculty members contributed to Luther’s Large Catechism with Annotations and Contemporary Applications, released in February 2023 by Concordia Publishing House. Contributors include Prof. John Pless (co-editor and author), Dr. Naomichi Masaki, Dr. Roland Ziegler, Dr. Lawrence R. Rast Jr., Dr. James Bushur, Dr. Detlev Schulz, and Dr. Charles Gieschen.

Also released in February 2023: Lutheran Preaching? Law and Gospel Proclamation for Today, edited by Matthew C. Harrison and John T. Pless. Contributing authors from CTSFW include Pless, Dr. Timothy C. J. Quill, and Dr. Carl C. Fickenscher II.

Fall 2023

Faculty Travels the US for Continuing Education Courses

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ver 500 participants attended CTSFW Continuing Education (CE) courses in the 2023 season, with much of that activity concentrated in the summer months. The CE schedule included forty classes, each of which typically ran for two to three days, with sixteen new offerings in this year’s lineup.

Scheduling for the 2024 season is now underway, with information expected to be available in time for the annual Symposia in January 2024.

Above: CTSFW Provost Dr. Charles Gieschen gathers with participants in his Continuing Education course, “Confronting Current Christological Controversies,” held August 15–17 in Cupertino, California.

Center: On June 26–28, Dr. Todd Peperkorn, assistant professor of Pastoral Ministry and Missions, taught “Advanced Sacramental Preaching” in Shawano, Wisconsin.

Bottom: Dr. Jon Bruss, associate professor of Systematic Theology, teaches participants about “The Seven Ecumenical Councils” in Lawrence, Kansas, June 15–17.

15

178th Academic Year Underway

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oncordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne (CTSFW), marked the opening of the 178th academic year with a special Matins service held at 10 a.m. September 5 in Kramer Chapel. CTSFW President Dr. Lawrence Rast Jr., who served as preacher for the service, declared the year open after the processional hymn, “Church of God, Elect and Glorious.”

Rast preached on the Gospel reading, Matthew 12:22–32, which begins with Jesus’ healing of a demon-possessed, blind, and mute man, then moves to an exchange between Jesus and the Pharisees, who incorrectly attributed the healing to the devil—a good example of going “off the rails,” theologically.

Addressing students, Rast noted, “I’m glad that you are confessional LCMS Lutherans. And my colleagues and I are here to make you better confessional LCMS Lutherans. But that kind of formation is not the goal in and of itself.

Its purpose is not abstract theological

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judgment as the last word. The purpose of pastoral and diaconal formation is rather, ultimately, to help you speak the Gospel—to speak Christ into situations and to individuals who have fallen captive to the great demonic oppressor.

“To put it another way, our job is to enhance your confession—faith seeking understanding, as we like to say it. It is not to guide you into self-satisfied Pharisaism. Rather, it is to shape and lead you, just as we all continue to be shaped and led by Christ into the cruciform form of His life for us.”

The incoming class at CTSFW

For the Life of the World

includes students preparing for pastoral ministry through Master of Divinity, Alternate Route, and Specific Ministry Pastor programs as well as students in the Deaconess Studies program and advanced graduate programs. Seven of those students are international, representing the countries of Brazil, China, Ethiopia, Kenya, Madagascar, Myanmar, and Romania.

Beckwith Installed Another highlight of the annual Opening Service was the installation of new faculty member Dr. Carl Beckwith, who was called last spring by the CTSFW Board of Regents to serve as professor of Historical Theology. The Rev. Peter Brock, first vice-president of the Indiana District of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS), presided over the installation. Beckwith taught at Beeson Divinity School,

Fall 2023

Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama, for sixteen years prior to his call to the Seminary. During that time, he also served as pastor of Hope Lutheran Church in Birmingham (2009–2016) and associate pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church in Hanceville (2016–2023).

“The faculty and students are blessed to have Dr. Beckwith now teaching at CTSFW,” said Seminary Provost Dr. Charles Gieschen. “He comes to this campus as an exceptional scholar with extensive teaching experience in a seminary setting, a skilled historical theologian who has published widely, and a faithful LCMS pastor with fourteen years of parish experience. He will be very influential in the formation of faithful servants in Christ at this seminary in the years ahead.”

You can learn more about CTSFW’s newest faculty member in the faculty profile on pages 18–19 of this issue.

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Faculty Profile: Dr. Carl Beckwith, Profe

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oncordia Theological Seminary’s newest faculty member, Dr. Carl Beckwith, arrived at CTSFW in the late spring of 2023 after serving sixteen years at Samford University’s Beeson School of Divinity in Birmingham, Alabama. During his time there, Beckwith, who was raised in the Church of Christ, colloquized into The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod and served as a pastor in two LCMS congregations.

His service at Beeson prepared him well for his position at CTSFW as professor of Historical Theology. But how did Beckwith, a native of Bangor, Michigan, end up in Alabama? Moreover, how did someone raised in the Church of Christ end up Lutheran? And how did he get to the seminary?

That is the rest of the story.

During Beckwith’s senior year of high school, his family relocated from Michigan to Northfield, Minnesota, home of St. Olaf College. Beckwith chose to enroll there as an undergraduate.

“When I arrived at St. Olaf, I was convinced I was going to be a lawyer,” Beckwith said. A divisive political science class his first semester changed his mind and his major. “It was a disaster,” he said. “The professor asked us on the first day of class if we were 18

liberal or conservative. Only two of us raised our hands and said we were conservative. The professor said to us, ‘Well, by the end of the semester I’ll convince you that you’re not.’”

That experience convinced him that political science was not a viable major.

He soon found a better option during the interim of his freshman year.

“At 7:45 in the morning, in the bitter cold of a Minnesota January, I trudged through heavy snow to take a history class on the Great Depression. I never missed a class. The professor, Erling Jorstad, was my great joy. A master teacher, he kindled an enthusiasm for learning and teaching within me that remains to this day.”

History became Beckwith’s passion.

He signed up for another history course, this time on the Roman Empire.

“I was hooked,” he recalled.

He now knew he wanted to be a history professor with a focus on ancient history. Even though he was only a semester away from completing his world language requirement, Beckwith switched from Norwegian to Latin. “From that point forward, I was enthralled by the ancient world and classics and wanted to know as much as I could about early church history and theology.”

It was at St. Olaf that Beckwith encountered confessional Lutheranism.

He had friends there from the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod and LCMS. The father of one of those friends, an LCMS pastor, gave Beckwith his first catechism. He read it and talked with the pastor about what Martin Luther was teaching through the catechism. “It was then that I began the journey toward the Missouri Synod,” he said.

After graduation, Beckwith pursued a master’s degree in church history at Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland. “It was in Ireland that I discovered I not only wanted to teach, but I wanted to do something far more deliberate within the church itself,” he said.

But what to teach, history or theology? After reading an article by For the Life of the World

essor of Historical Theology

Rowan Greer, professor of Anglican studies at Yale Divinity School, Beckwith contacted Greer, who suggested he apply to Yale. At Yale, Beckwith’s interests came together; he wanted to teach historical theology.

It was also at Yale that Beckwith met his wife Julie, who was studying ethics and political theory. Julie was born and raised Missouri Synod Lutheran and came from a strong confessional family.

“It was such a surprising place to meet a confessional Lutheran,” he said with a smile.

After Yale, Beckwith and his bride moved to South Bend, Indiana, where he earned his PhD from Notre Dame in patristic and medieval theology. During this time, they attended Our Redeemer Lutheran Church, and Beckwith joined the LCMS. He began thinking about pursuing an MDiv, but with a young family, he opted instead to take an academic position.

Beckwith taught at Thiel College in Greenville, Pennsylvania, for two years.

He then accepted a position in patristic theology at Beeson Divinity School, an inter-denominational divinity school on the campus of a Baptist university.

Beckwith became the representative Fall 2023

of Lutheranism at Beeson, teaching doctrine and church history alongside conservative faculty from Presbyterian, Anglican, and Baptist churches.

While serving at Beeson, Beckwith learned about a small LCMS congregation in the area with a pastoral vacancy. He and his family started to attend the church, and in 2008 Beckwith began teaching the Bible class. The congregation eventually asked him to serve as their pastor.

“I explained to them I could not,” Beckwith said, but they were determined and approached the district president.

The DP contacted Beckwith and asked if he was open to pursuing the colloquy program. He was. After several theological interviews in Birmingham and St. Louis, Beckwith was certified for pastoral ministry and ordained in April of 2009. He served Hope Lutheran until 2016, then accepted a call to serve as associate pastor at Trinity Lutheran in Hanceville, Alabama. He served there until being called to CTSFW. Beckwith says he loved Beeson, and he, Julie and their two daughters loved Birmingham and living in the south.

When he was contacted by CTSFW Provost Dr. Charles Gieschen more

Glen Werling

than two years ago about potentially joining the faculty at CTSFW, he began to rethink his future. The prospect of teaching young men pursuing ministry within the LCMS at an LCMS seminary strongly appealed to him.

“Julie and I prayed about it for a long time,” Beckwith said. “It soon became clear to us that God was opening a door to the seminary and closing other doors.

It is very helpful when God closes doors,” Beckwith said with a smile.

“I love to teach. The classroom brings me so much joy,” he said, adding, “the prospect of having Lutheran students in the classroom is exciting. I’ve never had that. I’m eager to be a part of the seminary community, to share in its mission, and to be a part of its outstanding faculty. This is a special place that God has blessed. To be a part of it, in whatever small measure, will be a great joy and privilege for me and my family.”

Glen Werling (glen.werling@ ctsfw.edu) serves as a communications and social media specialist at Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne.

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Celebrating 85 Years!

CTSFW Seminary Guild Sets $8,500 Goal for the Legacy Project

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he Seminary Guild of Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne (CTSFW), is celebrating 85 years of service during the 2023-24 academic year. Throughout these years, individual members and congregational organizations have generously supported Guild projects to positively impact CTSFW students and their families. For that, we are most thankful.

Your support in prior years has provided four industrial microwaves for use by the students, an upright freezer to facilitate distribution of frozen items to students through the Food Co-Op, and four water bottle filling stations.

This academic year, in celebration of our 85th anniversary, the Guild asks that you consider giving your financial support to the Legacy Project.

Contributions to this fund are used to purchase a Pastoral Care Companion (PCC) for each first-year seminarian, first-year deaconess student, and Specific Ministry Pastor (SMP) student. All students use the PCC at their fieldwork congregations, and it continues to be a vital resource during their lifetime of service. Though the book has “Pastoral” in the title, it provides all church workers with prayers, readings, and hymns that

a helping hand. By providing even a small gift, you can be part of an effort to show your support to your future pastor or deaconess in the LCMS. Please send your check, payable to CTS Seminary Guild, to Box 8, 6600 N. Clinton Street, Fort Wayne, IN 46825. Please note on your check that the donation is for Pastoral Care Companions.

You may also donate online at ctsfw.edu/LegacyProject.

You are invited to our monthly meetings, held the second Tuesday of the month at the Seminary. This is a superb time to enjoy fellowship with other Guild members. For more information about the Guild and our service to Seminary students and their families, please visit ctsfw.edu/semguild.

In Christ,

guide them in caring for the people they serve in their respective vocations.

Making a donation to the Legacy Project is a way of reaching out with

Phyllis Thieme Seminary Guild President

Concordia Theological Seminary Guild—Fort Wayne Annual Membership Dues and/or Contribution

Seminary Guild membership runs from September 1 to August 31 each calendar year. An individual membership is $15/year and an organization membership (e.g., LWML, Altar Guild, or other LCMS congregation group) is $30/year.

Name/Organization: ________________________________________________

Contribution: Pastoral Care Companion

$ __________________

Address:

Individual Membership

$ __________________

City, State, Zip ____________________________________________________

Organization Membership

$ __________________

Home Church ______________________________________________________

Contribution: Ongoing Projects

$ __________________

Phone (_____________) ____________________________________________

Total Enclosed

$ __________________

________________________________________________________

Email ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Please send your check, payable to Concordia Theological Seminary Guild, together with this completed form to: Concordia Theological Seminary Guild, Box 8, 6600 N. Clinton Street, Fort Wayne, IN 46825.

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For the Life of the World

Military Project:

From Soldier to Seminarian Jefferson Arnold

Vicar Arnold is holding the blue catechism Chaplain Russ Dewell gave him in 2010. The catechism was sent by the CTSFW Military Project. He is surrounded by the Sunday School class at his vicarage church, with Pastor David Mommens on the far left and deaconess fieldworker Kim Bower to the right.

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n 2009, I was heading to Afghanistan with the Army. I’d just been assigned as G5-Chief of Plans for the 38th Infantry Division Headquarters as they were preparing for their first assignment to an active combat theater since World War II. I’d already served in combat. As an enlisted man I was with the ground assault during Desert Storm. At the time, I wasn’t Christian. I went downrange to a combat theater wearing dog tags identifying my religion as “NONE.” The U.S. Army Chaplain Corps changed all this. As is frequently the case with soldiers returning from war, separation, divorce, and isolation were in my future when I got home. I don’t blame my combat experience for this, but rather my ignorance of Jesus Christ.

When God takes away His hand of protection, the world really has its way with you. But Jesus found a sneaky way to reach me.

In 1993, I was recommended for officer training, and while there I found myself attending chapel services regularly. Our instructors knew they couldn’t make us go to chapel, but they didn’t have to let us sit around on our backsides, either. So it was heavy Fall 2023

calisthenics in the gravel parking lot on Sunday morning for those who didn’t attend. Suddenly, the inside of that chapel didn’t seem so bad after all.

This might not have been the best of motives for attending chapel, but I heard the Word of God, and His Word does not return to Him void. After receiving my commission, I continued to enjoy chapel services in the field, which for many years was my only church home. There was something about simultaneously leaning on my rifle and leaning on God that appealed to me.

My deployment to Afghanistan was going to be different from Desert Storm. I had a new set of dog tags that identified me as “CHRISTIAN PROTESTANT.” About this time, I crossed paths with LCMS Chaplain LTC Russell Dewell. One day, he asked me where I went to church.

I’d tried several churches after becoming Christian but just wasn’t

comfortable in any of them. When Chaplain Dewell asked me if I’d ever been to a Lutheran church, I told him, “I thought you had to be Lutheran to go to a Lutheran church.”

After a quiet chuckle, he gave me a little blue book, Luther’s Small Catechism, and soon we were sitting in a B-hut at Camp Phoenix in Kabul, searching the internet for an LCMS congregation in my hometown.

Liturgical worship suited me well, and after confirmation, my dog tags read “LUTHERAN – LCMS.” Three more deployments and more than ten years later, I retired from the Army and began seminary at CTSFW. Last year, I ran into Deaconess Carolyn Brinkley on campus and discovered that the little blue book Chaplain Dewell gave me had come from her office and the CTSFW Military Project. God works in mysterious ways, and He works miracles through His saints. The Army Chaplain Corps and the CTSFW Military Project are serving the Lord well. Thanks to everyone who is part of their efforts!

Seminarian Jefferson Arnold completed his vicarage at St. John Lutheran Church Columbia City, Indiana, and is now in his fourth year of studies at CTSFW. He will be eligible to receive a call into the Office of the Holy Ministry in April 2024.

How can you help?

Please keep our chaplains and military personnel in your prayers. They are God’s instruments of protection. For information on service projects or how to start a military project please email MilitaryProject@ctsfw.edu or call (260) 542-2140.

Monetary donations can be mailed to: Concordia Theological Seminary Attn: Military Project Coordinator 6600 N. Clinton St. Fort Wayne, IN 46825 21

Blessing Family and Ministry, Now and into the Future!

Timothy Puls

“Power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor and blessing and glory are His.” “This Is the Feast,” Lutheran Service Book, p. 171 “The sea is His, for He made it, and His hands formed the dry land.” Ps. 95:5

T

he media, modern education, and our sinful nature often taint and twist our thoughts. If we believe that money is “our possession” to use in any way we desire, then we fail to trust God and the Holy Scriptures, which say the opposite. Everything is the Lord’s in all creation! God is the source and giver of all good gifts both in heaven and on earth; we are merely stewards or managers of what God has given us. You may have money in a bank account, real estate, stocks, or a 401(k), but the Bible reminds you that no one keeps such things forever. When you are called to your eternal home, where will all those resources go, and whom will they benefit?

St. Paul knew how fleeting life is, which is why he instructed the young pastor, Timothy, with these words: “If anyone does not provide for his relatives and especially for the members his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever” (1 Tim. 5:8).

Do you know how best to provide for those you love after you die? If you already have an estate plan, when was the last time you reviewed your will or trust? If it has been more than five years, you may wish to review it again and see if your intentions are still the same. If you have no plan, now is the

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best time to consider one. Through the planning process, it will become evident how best to provide for your family and the ministries in the Lord’s kingdom you care about, with the side benefit of greatly mitigating taxation now and later.

Fewer than 65% of all people within the US have prepared a will or a trust.

Throughout history, significant people have passed away without an estate plan, including Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King Jr., and Howard

For the Life of the World

Hughes. Aretha Franklin (d. 2018) had a net worth of $80 million and Prince (d. 2016) $300 million, but neither prepared a will or trust. As a result, family members, lawyers, and the federal and state governments have contested ownership of these resources for years while the support of loved ones and charitable intent goes unfulfilled.

At Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne (CTSFW), we want to make the estate planning process easy.

If all you feel you need is the security of obtaining a notarized will within your state, please consider going to our website, ctsfw.edu, and click the Donate button. There you will find a link to “Create a Will.” The entire process can take less than thirty minutes. If you have questions, please contact our Advancement staff at (877) 287-4338.

You may even wish to contact a local trusted Lutheran or Christian estate lawyer.

Another great resource is the LCMS Foundation, which offers philanthropic resources including Charitable Remainder Unitrusts, Charitable Gift Annuities, Donor Advised Funds, and endowments to bless numerous charities in the LCMS. As a CTSFW Advancement officer for twelve years and a partner of the LCMS Foundation for ten, I’ve helped people discuss plans to provide for family and ministries in ways they never thought possible. Trust me, once you have safely navigated this process you will have greater peace, knowing that you are protecting yourself from needless taxation and blessing your family and ministries for years to come.

“Disaster pursues sinners, but the righteous are rewarded with good. A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children, but the sinner’s wealth is laid up for the righteous” (Prov. 13:21–22).

The Rev. Dr. Timothy Puls (Timothy.Puls@ctsfw.edu) is director of Alumni Relations at Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne.

Fall 2023

CTSFW Advancement Officers are here to serve you!

Please contact the representative who serves your area with any questions you might have.

Rev. Mark DeLassus

Email: mark.delassus@ctsfw.edu Phone: (260) 452-2268 CT, IA, ME, MA, MO, NH, NJ, NY, PA, RI, VT

Mr. Lance Hoffman

Email: lance.hoffman@ctsfw.edu Phone: (260)452-2290 FL (Naples area)

Rev. Paul Hopkins

Email: paul.hopkins@ctsfw.edu Phone: (260) 452-2266 FL (general), IL (south and central), MN, NE, ND, SD, WI

Mr. Martin Lewis

Email: martin.lewis@ctsfw.edu Phone: (260) 452-2264 DE, IN MD, NC, SC, VA, WV

Rev. Dr. Timothy Puls

Email: timothy.puls@ctsfw.edu Phone: (260) 452-2260 AZ, CA, CO, ID, IL (north), NV, NM, OR, UT, WA, WY

Rev. David Witt

Email: david.witt@ctsfw.edu Phone: (260) 452-2210 AL, AR, FL (Panhandle), GA, KS, LA, MS, OK, TX

Rev. Larry Wright

Email: larry.wright@ctsfw.edu Phone: (260) 452-2195 KY, MI, MT, OH, TN

23

CTSFW Students Travel to Latvia Content and photo contributions: Benjamin Wessel, Melissa Pflug, Noah Dunsmore, Cory Willweber and Dr. Detlev Schulz

1.

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n late May 2023, nine students from Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne (CTSFW) immersed themselves in the culture of Riga, Latvia, on a three-credit study trip led by Dr. Detlev Schulz, professor of Pastoral Ministry and Mission at CTSFW. The trip, designed to teach students about ongoing mission work in Eurasia and encourage them to prayerfully consider future mission work, was made possible by the LCMS Office of International Mission (OIM) and the Eurasia region mission team in Riga, with administrative/logistical support from Eli James, CTSFW’s coordinator for international students.

“The student study trip to Riga went very well,” said Dr. Schulz. “I thank OIM’s Quintin Cundiff, his wife Lindsay, and Chelsea Irwin for their gracious hosting and for taking us on daily excursions through Riga and the countryside.” The Cundiffs reside in Latvia, where Dr. Cundiff serves as a theological educator; Irwin serves as a missionary coordinator for volunteer opportunities for the LCMS Eurasia region.

While in Riga, tour participants— seven MDiv students and two 24

deaconess students—attended lectures at Luther Academy, the seminary of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Latvia (Latvijas Evaņģēliski luteriskā baznīca, or LELB), an LCMS partner church body. The students learned about the history and work of the LELB, met current Latvian seminarians, and participated in online English-speaking classes for students across the world.

Additionally, the trip featured stops at several LELB churches, including the Riga Cathedral, and included an opportunity to assist with a soup kitchen

operated by a local Lutheran church.

Besides learning about the work of the LELB and current LCMS missionaries in Latvia, the study trip included excursions to historically and culturally significant locations in and around Riga, including a Holocaust museum, the former KGB Latvian headquarters (now a museum), an ethnographic museum, two castles, and the Riga central market. Students had ample opportunities to learn about and experience Latvian culture while gaining greater insight into the workings of the Lutheran Church in Latvia.

“Perhaps the most memorable and moving part of this trip was seeing how the impact of the Reformation significantly marked Latvia, literally establishing the written Latvian language, but also in the miraculously preserved churches and cathedrals that still hold divine services where faithful, confessional Lutherans come together to worship,” said CTSFW student Melissa Pflug.

Latvia has a higher percentage of confessional Lutheran church members than any other country in the world, with roughly 30% of the population claiming membership in the LELB. Riga formally adopted the Reformation in 1522, making it the first city after Wittenberg to accept Luther’s reforms, and making the LELB the oldest confessional Lutheran church body in the world. Through Luther Academy, the LELB continues to raise up servants of the church both for Latvia and for fledgling Lutheran church bodies around the world, including Italy, Pakistan, and Nepal.

CTSFW students will have additional opportunities to travel in the near future, with plans underway for mission immersion trips to the Dominican Republic and Germany.

For the Life of the World

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1. View over Riga Old Town from the bell tower of St. Peter’s Church. The church was destroyed in World War II but rebuilt over a sixteen-year period beginning in 1967.

2. Riga’s Dome Cathedral, which houses the second-largest pipe organ in Latvia. The organ has 6,718 pipes, including one ten meters long.

3. CTSFW mission trip participants arrive in Amsterdam. From left: Benjamin Wessel, Christian Mundorf, Fall 2023

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Zachary Wessel, William Ebel, Haley Randolph, Melissa Pflug, Dr. Detlev Shulz, Paul Mroczenski, Noah Dunsmore, and Cory Willweber.

4. Location of Luther Academy; entrance on the right. This is a typical cobblestone street in Old Town.

5. Future LCMS pastors (and possible missionaries) and Dr. Detlev Schulz pose on “pastors bridge” (Pastoorsbrug) in Amsterdam.

6. Sunday worship service at St John’s Lutheran Church in Riga, Latvia. The students attended on Pentecost and sang “Come, Holy Ghost, Creator Blest” in Latvian. “It’s wonderful to worship with confessional Lutherans across the world,” said Pflug.

7. St. Peter’s Church, where the Reformation in Latvia started in 1522.

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Live from Café Concordia: Joint semi Faithful models. Jonah stories. Second

careers. Doors closed and opened. These are just a few of the stories captured on video at the joint seminary booth at the 68th Regular Convention of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod, held in Milwaukee, Wisconsin July 29-August 3. During the convention, representatives of both Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne (CTSFW) and Concordia Seminary, St. Louis (CSL) paired up for short conversations about how they got into ministry (if ordained), the importance of strong formation, and the need for pastors in the LCMS.

Their stories are unique, but they share a common theme: Everyone has the potential to plant a seed and encourage someone to pursue ministry. Pastors are almost always part of the story, but they often aren’t the whole story.

You can find the conversations in the “Café Concordia” playlist on CTSFW’s YouTube channel. Watch them yourself, use them to start a discussion in your congregation, or share them with someone you know who would be a great church worker.

Excerpts from Live at Café

Seminary Faculty

Dr. Todd Peperkorn, Assistant Professor of Pastoral Ministry and Missions; Director of Vicarage at CTSFW Dr. William “Mart” Thompson, Associate Professor of Practical Theology; Director of the Specific Ministry Pastor Program at CSL TP: “Up until I was ten or eleven, I was baptized, but we really didn’t go to church. We had just come back to the church, and I got a very serious disease called osteomyelitis, which is a bone marrow disease. It was really not fun. I was in the hospital for three weeks with high fevers, and in the middle of all these fevers, a part of what I remember from that time was it seemed like every time I opened my eyes, there was this guy there talking to my parents. And this was our pastor. Looking at it afterwards after being a pastor, I’m sure he was not there for three weeks in a row, but that was the impression that he gave to this young kid—that he was there. He showed up. And that planted a seed.”

MT: “Back in third grade, my parents sent me to the pastor to ask questions about creation and evolution. They knew I had honest questions, and that I had doubts. He did the best that he could at that time, and I remained faithful in the church. But it was in college, when I was at a Lutheran campus ministry [that I started thinking about the ministry]. We had just gotten a campus pastor. We were without a pastor—just area pastors helping. I had a lot of in-depth conversations with him. It was through those conversations that some light bulbs came on.”

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For the Life of the World

nary videos highlight paths to ministry Concordia: What led you to become a pastor?

LCMS Staff/ Second-Career Pastors

District Presidents/ Seminary Board of Regents

MW: “I don’t even remember the name of the person who first influenced me, but I was a student in a Lutheran school. It was during a time when my parents were going through a divorce, and the Lutheran teacher took some interest in me. I was new to the school because we had moved to a new community, and he just showed interest in me. I thought, ʻMaybe being a church worker is something I’d be interested in doing.ʼ And I saw how the pastors served us, and that was really the beginning, though it was really just an ember. It took many, many years— decades—before it became a flame, but it all started there.”

RP: “It was before I was five years old. We were at my grandfather’s funeral, and being good Lutherans, everybody was downstairs having the potluck dinner. And I was upstairs with the pastor, and we started talking. I said, ʻI don’t understand why everybody is crying, because Grandpa is with Jesus.ʼ And he said, ʻThat’s difficult for people to understand.ʼ He had just lost a son about two months before that. And he said, ʻWe went through the same thing.ʼ And I said, ʻBut all of us understand that Jesus is waiting for us.ʼ And he said, ʻYou know what? I think you’re going to be a pastor.ʼ And fortunately, he was around many, many years later when I was admitted to seminary.”

JM: “For me it was a lot later in life. After my wife and I were married, we started working with the youth in our church, and through that process, people from my home church that I had been a member of for twenty-six years before I went to seminary, encouraged us and said, ʻHey, thanks for working with our youth. You do a great job with that. It’s a real blessing to have somebody like you in their life.ʼ And that got me thinking. Once I started verbalizing those thoughts, a lot of the people at my home church said, ʻYou’d be great at that. That would be wonderful.ʼ”

LH: “I always talk about how important a Lutheran school was, the support of a Christian home, my father, but actually the first person to speak about it was a professor from Fort Wayne. It was my home congregation. We were hosting Vacation Bible School, and the professor was there in Louisville, Kentucky, to visit the pastor, and he met me as a teenager. A few days later I received a letter in the mail from him encouraging me to consider preparing for pastoral ministry. He was the first person to ever plant that seed, that even someone like me could prepare to be a pastor in the church.”

Dr. Mark Wood, Manager of Church Planting, Renewal, and Support Rev. Jonathan Manor, Director of Post-Seminary Applied Learning and Support and Continuing Education

Dr. Lee Hagan, LCMS Missouri District; CSL Dr. Roger Paavola, LCMS Mid-South District; CTSFW

Scan the code to view the Café Concordia playlist Fall 2023

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Symposia Series 2024 39th Annual Symposium on Exegetical Theology

Luther Hostel

The Christian Spiritual Life: Worship, Scripture, Prayer, and the Fruits of Faith November 1–3, 2023

Courage and Encouragement: Exhortation from the Prophets and Apostles January 16–17, 2024

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47th Annual Symposium on the Lutheran Confessions Seminex at the Half-Century January 17–19, 2024

For more information and to register scan the QR code or visit ctsfw.edu/LutherHostel.

For more information go to ctsfw.edu/Symposia.

For more information contact Deaconess Katherine Rittner: n ctsfw.edu/Events n CTSFWTours@ctsfw.edu n (260) 452-2119

IN THE STEPS OF PAUL 12 Days in Greece & Turkey Hosted by Dr. and Mrs. Charles Gieschen

June 10–21, 2024 For more information please scan the QR code.

Christ Academy 25th Anniversary Trip

LANDS OF LUTHER 11 Days in Germany

Hosted by Dr. Todd Peperkorn and Rev. Matthew Wietfeldt

July 9–19, 2024 For more information please scan the QR code.

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For the Life of the World

EVENTS SCHEDULE OCTOBER

Seminary Guild

Seminary Donation Day

Information: ctsfw.edu/SemGuild or (260) 485-0209

Tuesday, October 10, 10:00 a.m.

Kramer Chapel Information: ctsfw.edu/SemGuild or (260) 485-0209

Prayerfully Consider Visit October 12–14

Information and registration: ctsfw.edu/PCV Contact: Admission@ctsfw.edu or (800) 481-2155

Christ Academy: College October 27–29

Information and registration: ctsfw.edu/CAC Contact: ChristAcademy@ctsfw.edu or (800) 481-2155

NOVEMBER Luther Hostel: The Christian Spiritual Life: Worship, Scripture, Prayer, and the Fruits of Faith November 1–3

Information: ctsfw.edu/LutherHostel Contact: (260) 452-2204

Good Shepherd Institute: The Living Tradition November 5–7

Information and registration: ctsfw.edu/GSI Phone: (260) 452-2204

Organ Recital

Sunday, November 5, 4:30 p.m.

Kramer Chapel

Choral Vespers

Sunday, November 5, 7:30 p.m.

Kramer Chapel

Hymn Festival

Monday, November 6, 7:30 p.m.

St. Paul’s Lutheran Church 1126 S. Barr St., Fort Wayne, IN Fall 2023

Tuesday, November 14, 1:00 p.m.

DECEMBER Advent Candlelight Evening Prayer Saturday, December 9, 4:00 p.m.

Kramer Chapel

Seminary Guild

Tuesday, December 12, 1:00 p.m.

Information: ctsfw.edu/SemGuild or (260) 485-0209

JANUARY 2024 Lenten Preaching Workshop

Monday, January 15, 8:30 a.m.–4:00 p.m.

Information and registration: ctsfw.edu/LPW

Symposia Series January 16–19

Information: ctsfw.edu/Symposia

Epiphany Evening Prayer with the Kantorei

Tuesday, January 16, 5:00 p.m.

Kramer Chapel

Hymn Festival with Schola Cantorum Wednesday, January 17, 5:00 p.m.

Kramer Chapel

Vespers and Organ Recital

Thursday, January 18, 5:00 p.m.

Kramer Chapel For more or current information, visit our events webpage at ctsfw.edu/Events or call (260) 452-2100. Events are subject to change. Services and lectures will be livestreamed online at

ctsfw.edu/DailyChapel or facebook.com/ctsfw.

24th Annual Conference

Good Shepherd Institute The Living Tradition November 5–7 Plenary Speakers Bryan Spinks Contextualizing Luther’s Formula Missae and the Roman Canon Missae Then and Now, and Some Possible Implications

James Bushur “Blessed are the Merciful”: The Theology of Mercy in an Age of Humanism

Paul Grime You Mean They Weren’t All in Agreement?—The Making of The Lutheran Hymnal

Visit ctsfw.edu/GSI for more information or to register.

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Photo: Erik M. Lunsford/The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod

IN THE WORD

Christian Collegiality in Theological Discussion: Speaking the Truth in Love Charles A. Gieschen

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ue to the presence of sin around us and in us, we all know that controversies are not just present in the ungodly world but also arise among Christians within the church. It is clear from the New Testament documents that were all written within a few decades after Jesus’ earthly ministry, as well as the subsequent history of the church for almost 2000 years, that there was never a “golden age” where controversies did not exist among Christians. Great confessions such as the Nicene Creed and the Augsburg Confession arose in the midst of controversies between fellow Christians about the truth that the Scriptures teach. The question, therefore, is not whether challenges or controversies will arise among Christians, but how Christians should address the challenges or controversies that arise among themselves, especially among individuals who share the same confession such as fellow Lutherans within The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. In short, how can we practice Christian collegiality in theological discussion and debate with those who share our confession?

I. What Is Our Goal in Theological Discussions: Unity or Division?

The Apostle Paul dealt with, and wrote about, many different situations in new congregations, including situations that involved conflict or division about Christians. Read Ephesians 4:1–6. What does Paul urge these Christians to maintain? __________________________________________________ __________________________________________________ What language does he use to emphasize this theme of “the unity of the Spirit”? __________________________________________________ __________________________________________________ 30

Why does he repeatedly use the word “one”? __________________________________________________ __________________________________________________ Paul uses the language “to walk” (Eph. 1:1) to describe how we are to live with fellow Christians in daily life, including how we are to interact with them. What are the characteristics of this “walk” with fellow Christians that Paul highlights (Eph. 1:2)? __________________________________________________ __________________________________________________ If applied to theological discussions, how do these characteristics seek to promote unity rather than division? __________________________________________________ __________________________________________________ Read Ephesians 5:1–2. How does Paul here further define what he means by “walk in love”? __________________________________________________ __________________________________________________ How does Christ’s sacrifice enlighten our understanding of “love” in theological discussions? __________________________________________________ __________________________________________________ II. Succinct Guidance for Theological Discussions: Speak the Truth in Love The truth of God’s Word is important! Paul does not want Christians advocating false teaching or leading others astray (e.g., Eph. 4:14). But before we speak to others, especially when we are seeking to correct them, it is important that For the Life of the World

we ourselves listen! First, it is vital that we ourselves listen carefully to the Word of God so that we truly understand it.

Second, it is vital that we have listened to those with whom we are in a theological discussion or debate so that we truly understand them.

Read Ephesians 4:11–16. What gifts has Christ given to the church? __________________________________________________ __________________________________________________ What is the purpose of these gifts? __________________________________________________ __________________________________________________ What theme is Paul continuing to emphasize here that was stressed earlier (Eph. 4:13; cf. 4:3)? __________________________________________________ __________________________________________________ How does Paul’s teaching about “speaking the truth in love” serve as a helpful guide for theological discussions and debates? __________________________________________________ __________________________________________________ Our goal in a theological discussion should be to promote unity of understanding with regard to the Word of God, not winning a debate. Read Galatians 6:1–2 and Ephesians 4:32. If your theological discussion with fellow Christians reveals the error of another, how should you act towards him in light of Paul’s teaching here? __________________________________________________ __________________________________________________ III. What about Anger in Theological Discussions?

When we are convinced that the position a fellow Christian is holding is in clear conflict with the Word of God, are there times when showing disappointment and concern with stronger emotions is justified? Read Matthew 16:21–23. Jesus had just warmly commended Peter’s confession of him as “the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matt. 16:13–20), but here he confronts Peter bluntly as speaking “the things of man” with the voice of Satan. Why did he respond so strongly to Peter’s words? __________________________________________________ __________________________________________________ Why can we consider this to be righteous anger? __________________________________________________ __________________________________________________

Read Matthew 5:22 and James 1:19–20. What warnings do Jesus and James share about human anger and righteousness? __________________________________________________ __________________________________________________ Read Ephesians 4:25–32. What does Paul mean when he writes, “Be angry and do not sin”? __________________________________________________ __________________________________________________ Unlike Jesus, what huge challenge do we face when we react with uncontrolled emotions to the theological position of a fellow Christian, even if it may be erroneous? __________________________________________________ __________________________________________________ In light of Ephesians 4:32, what characteristics should dominate our interactions with fellow Christians, even in the midst of serious theological debate? __________________________________________________ __________________________________________________ Conclusion As noted above, the Apostle Paul provides wonderful guidance for theological discussion and debate among Christians with his simple and clear teaching in Ephesians 4:15, “speaking the truth in love.” Both aspects of this wise guidance are important. First, we are to speak confidently the truth revealed to us in the Word of God during theological discussion and debate, even when there may be disagreement and especially in response to the expression of error. Second, we are also to speak this truth in a manner that demonstrates love for our neighbor.

Of these two, speaking “in love” is the bigger challenge for all of us due to our own sinful condition. We often do not hesitate to speak the truth in theological discussions, but emotions of anger and frustration take over as we are speaking or firing off a response via social media, causing us to no longer speak “in love.” If we are honest, we will recognize that much of our anger is not righteous and justified! When that happens, let us humbly confess our sin and seek the forgiveness of God and our fellow Christian. Then let us continue “speaking the truth in love” (Eph. 4:15), seeking “to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (Eph. 4:3).

Dr. Charles A. Gieschen (Charles.Gieschen@ ctsfw.edu) serves as provost and professor of Exegetical Theology at Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne.

Understandably, there are many words of caution in the Scriptures about showing anger. Read Proverbs 15:18 and 16:32. What wise caution about anger does Solomon share here? __________________________________________________ __________________________________________________ Fall 2023

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For the Life of the World

NON-PROFIT MAIL U.S. POSTAGE PAID BERNE, IN 46711 PERMIT #43

Concordia Theological Seminary 6600 N. Clinton St. @ Fort Wayne, IN 46825-4996

REGISTRATION NOW OPEN! Christ Academy High School: June 16–29, 2024

Timothy School (for young men): CTSFW.edu/cats @ Phoebe School (for young women): CTSFW.edu/caps

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Scan the QR code to watch a short video about CAHS. For the Life of the World