Concordia Lutheran Seminary blog

While the primary activity of the seminary is the formation of future pastors for LCC, the faculty of CLS frequently engages in broader "extension" activity for the purpose of supporting the work of the members of synod. Between final exams and Sacred Convocation, Dr. Zeuch and Dr. Kettner will travel to two different churches in the Central District to serve as instructors in the Central District Theological Lay School.
Dr. Zeuch shares two days of the weeklong program at Epiphany Lutheran Church in Thunder Bay, Ontario. His module, one of three, is "Ethics for Daily Life".
Dr. Kettner teaches a three day "Catechism for Daily Life" module as part of the weeklong course at Beautiful Savior Lutheran Church in Winnipeg, Manitoba.
Other instructors include Rev. Mark Dressler (CLS '01), Rev. Garry Heintz (CLS '02), and Rev. Cam Schnarr (CLTS '10).
The goal of the Central District theological Lay School (formerly known as the Lay Leadership Scho…

One year ago today, CLS held an inaugural pastoral gathering. Invitations went out to pastors who lived within several hours' drive from the seminary, even as far as British Columbia and Saskatchewan. In April of 2010, twenty-two pastors attended, eager for conversation with their brothers on topics of unique interest. The goal of this gathering was not to be polemical, but to dialogue within a safe, fraternal environment. The gathering discussed uniformity in pastoral practice, pastoral education standards, and the church as leaven in the world, among other interesting topics. The feedback from these LCC pastors was unanimous, they said, “Please provide this opportunity again!”.

The faculty of CLS also felt that the event should be continued, and are hosting the 2nd Annual CLS Pastoral Gathering on Tuesday, May 17 at 2:00pm. Once again, pastors of LCC are invited to gather with CLS faculty to discuss topics of common interest. It is to be a safe place of sharing and mutual edifi…

When you think Mexico, do you think of an all-inclusive beach vacation in sunny Cancun or Cozumel? Seven members of the CLS community will spend just over a week in Mexico this May, but rather than a chartered plane and a taxi to the hotel, they will enter Mexico in a 15 passenger van from one of the poorest counties in the United States, crossing the border between El Paso, Texas and Jaurez, Mexico.

As part of the seminary's Missionary For Lunch program, started by Rev. Dr. Ed Lehman in 1997, Rev. James Avery (Mission Study Centre Director and CLS Alum '07) invited Chris Hill and Erin MacKenzie of Yselta Lutheran Mission to make a presentation to the seminary community on April 15, 2011. Chris and Erin spoke with passion about the work that God has given them to do, "People are lost and hurting all over... our mission field is the US/Mexico border". As lunch turned into mid-afternoon, they taught the small group helpful Spanish phrases, and talked about things to ex…

Read the Canadian Lutheran article on seminary online education here.

Excerpt:
[Rev. Anthony Cook] said that “…pastoral formation is not about the delivery of knowledge, attitudes and skills, but it is the formation of the seminary student into pastoral ministry as a way of being.” Rev. Cook reminded faculty members that they are training men to be in this world in a peculiar and different way. “This is not business school where we’re learning procedures. However, we can’t say ‘education doesn’t work online’ because we know it does. What we can say is we’re not sure that the whole process of formation can be done without considerable reflection and work.”
He encouraged the seminaries to pursue online classes that bring students together  (synchronous delivery) not as a way to slash budgets, but as a plan for learning and applying the highest educational standards to the on-campus formation program. While little financial benefit is expected, faculty could gain valuable experi…