Rev. Richard Latterner served as missionary-in-residence at Concordia Seminary, St. Louis on Jan. 20-22. The three-day residency program is designed to inform and encourage the Seminary’s students, faculty and staff regarding mission opportunities. Latterner, a missionary to American Indians, is pastor at Grace Lutheran Church in Brooklyn Park, Minn. He has served as missionary-at-large to the White Earth and Leech Lake Reservations.
“The Missionary-In-Residence program enables students to have the opportunity to see missions close up, through the eyes of a seasoned missionary and his spouse,” commented Prof. Larry Rockemann, vice president for student life at Concordia Seminary. “It also enables missionaries to see students being formed for ministry and mission as the Seminary seeks to meet the needs of the church at large.”
As missionary-in-residence, Rev. Latterner served as preacher in the Seminary’s morning chapel service on Tuesday, Jan. 21. He also visited classes, and talked with students concerning mission opportunities in informal settings. On Wednesday, Jan. 22, he lectured on “Outreach to American Indians” as a special convocation address for the entire Seminary community.
Latterner was encouraged during his three-day Seminary residency by the mission fervor he experienced within the Concordia Seminary community. “The mission-mindedness of the campus and the students has been wonderful,” commented Rev. Latterner,
Rev. Latterner is one of two American Indian pastors in The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. He graduated from Concordia University, St. Paul, Minn.(1983), and Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne, Ind. (1993). He was the director of American Indian Leadership at Concordia University, St. Paul, and executive director of Partners in Mission in Minneapolis and St. Paul. Rev. Latterner serves LCMS North American Missions as an adviser for American Indian missions. He and his wife, Caroline, have four sons.
The Missionary-In-Residence program is part of three “in-residence” programs held each year at Concordia Seminary. For three days in the Fall Quarter, a Pastor-In-Residence follows the same general pattern of activities on the Seminary campus. In the Spring Quarter, a Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod district president serves as District President-In-Residence. In 2002, Rev. Benjamin Ball, pastor of St. Luke Lutheran Church in Dedham, Mass., served as the Pastor-In-Residence, and the District President-In-Residence in 2003 will be Rev. William Ameiss from the Northern Illinois District.
For more information, contact Communications, Concordia Seminary, 801 DeMun Ave., St. Louis, MO 63105; 314.505.7374; [email protected] [1].