As the world approaches the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation, seven professors from Concordia Seminary [1] in St. Louis will travel to Wittenberg, Germany, this weekend for the dedication service of the International Lutheran Center at the Old Latin School, which establishes a distinctly Lutheran presence in the very cradle of the Reformation.
The project is a joint effort between The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod [2] (LCMS), the Independent Evangelical—Lutheran Church of Germany, and the International Lutheran Society of Wittenberg. Its goal it to provide the place, the opportunity, and the inspiration for people of all walks of life to gather and learn about the Gospel Luther preached in Wittenberg. The center seeks to be a unique venue, attractive to all existing and emerging LCMS partners worldwide, to help Lutherans share the Gospel that Luther rediscovered in the 16th century.
“The message of the Reformation is not one merely for half a millennium, but one for all time,” says Dr. Gerhard Bode [3], associate professor of historical theology, archivist for Concordia Seminary, and one of the seven faculty members attending the dedication. “The message of the Lutheran Reformation—centered in the Gospel of Jesus Christ—is not a message merely for Wittenberg, but for all places, for the world. And it is into the world that this message has been proclaimed and will, by God’s grace, continue to be proclaimed.”
In addition to Bode, the other Concordia Seminary faculty members attending the dedication service are:
- Dr. Andrew Bartelt [4], professor of exegetical theology
- Rev. Thomas Egger [5], assistant professor of exegetical theology
- Dr. Jeffrey Kloha [6], professor of exegetical theology and provost
- Dr. Robert Kolb [7], professor emeritus
- Dr. Jeffrey Oschwald [8], associate professor of exegetical theology
- Dr. Robert Rosin [9], professor of historical theology
The dedication service will be Sunday, May 3, 2015, at 8 a.m. CDT, in St. Mary’s City Church in Wittenberg. The service can be viewed live online at http://livestream.com/thelcms/wittenberg [10]. An archived version will be available at the same link following the event.
“The event will be unique in that it gathers representatives of Lutheran churches from across the globe to the place where Luther ignited the Reformation nearly 500 years ago,” says Bode. “It also looks ahead to future efforts among these churches as they work together to train up the next generation of believers in Christ.”
More information about the International Lutheran Center is available at http://thewittenbergproject.org/ [11].
About Concordia Seminary
Concordia Seminary provides Gospel-centered graduate-level theological education for pastors, missionaries, deaconesses, scholars, and other leaders in the name of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod [2] (LCMS). Since its founding in 1839, Concordia Seminary has equipped more than 12,000 graduates to serve Church and world. Today, a world-renowned faculty teaches more than 600 students in the classroom, off-campus, and online. Learn more at www.csl.edu [1].