David W. Preus Award Ceremony
Monday, Oct. 4, 2004, 5 p.m.,Chapel of the Incarnation, Olson Campus CenterThis year’s David W. Preus award will honor Clarissa Walker, director of the Family Resource Program at Sabathani Community Center in Minneapolis. For more than 30 years, Walker has worked to improve the quality of housing for elderly and low income people in the Twin Cities. Established in 1988, the Preus Award is presented annually to individuals who have demonstrated exemplary servant leadership in community and religious life.
Andrew S. Burgess Lecture on Global Mission
Monday, Oct. 4, 2004, 10 a.m., Chapel of the Incarnation, Olson Campus CenterDr. Dana Robert presents, “What Happened to the Christian Home? Controversies over Gender and Mission in the 21st Century.” Robert is the Truman Collins Professor of World Mission at the School of Theology, Boston University. In her lecture, she explores liberal and conservative views of community and discusses how they affect the church’s approach to mission.The Andrew S. Burgess Lectures in global Mission bring leading scholars in global mission to Luther Seminary each year.
Ventures in Vocation Helps Post-College Professionals Explore Vocations in Lay and Ordained Ministry
Sunday–Monday, Oct. 10–11, 2004, Olson Campus CenterThis annual event for post-college professionals leads participants to reflect on their gifts for ministry and mission, discuss the roles of lay and ordained ministers, examine effective church leadership in today’s world, and learn about the programs offered at Luther Seminary. The conference includes class visits, campus tours and discussions with faculty and students.The cost is $35 per person. Advance registration by Oct. 1 is required. For more information, to request a brochure, or to register, visit www.luthersem.edu/admissions/ventures, call (651) 641-3521, toll-free (800) 588-4373, or e-mail admissions@luthersem.edu.
Reformation Celebration Features Dinner and Singing the Faith
Sunday, Oct. 31, 2004, Olson Campus Center 5:30 p.m.: Festival Dinner; 7:00 p.m.: Singing the FaithThis year’s Singing the Faith service will focus on The Lord’s Prayer and the meanings of the petitions. The service will feature the combined choirs of Roseville Lutheran Church Choir, directed by John Helgen, and St. Michael’s Lutheran Church Choir, directed by Karen Wilkerson. A free will offering will be collected during the service. Proceeds from this event will benefit the Luther Seminary FRIENDS Endowed Scholarship Fund for seminary students. The festival buffet dinner will feature delicious, ethnic-inspired foods. Tickets are $14 per person. Advance registrations for the dinner are required by Oct. 26. Call (651) 641-3419 for ticket information. The Luther Seminary FRIENDS is a group of 200 men and women from Twin Cities congregations that is committed to supporting the seminary through prayer, financial gifts and as volunteers.
Word & World Lectures
Lecture I, Monday, Nov. 15, 2004, 10 a.m.: The Cost of Discipleship: The Story of Gudina TumsaLecture II, Thursday, Nov. 18, 2004, 10 a.m.: The Cost of Discipleship: The Witness of the African ChurchThis year’s Word & World lecture series will focus on world Christianity through the life and witness of the late Gudina Tumsa. Tumsa was an Ethiopian pastor and evangelist who served as the executive secretary of the Mekane Yesus Church. He was abducted and murdered by the Ethiopian government in 1979. His public witness has been compared to that of Dietrich Bonhöeffer.This year’s guest speakers are the Rev. Tasgara Hirpo, pastor to Oromospeaking Christians in Hermannsburg, Germany, and Dr. Andrew Walls, emeritus professor of the history of world Christianity at the University of Edinburgh, Scotland.Hirpo is a former president of the Western Synod of the Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus (1971-1982) and professor at the Mekane Yesus Seminary (1978-82). He worked closely with Gudina Tumsa, then general secretary of the EECMY, to adapt the church’s policies and structures to the Marxist government that came to power in Ethiopia in 1974.Walls has been called the greatest living historian of the missionary dimension of Christian history. His work specializes in the history of Christianity in Africa.Walls has taught mission studies at the University of Edinburgh, Princeton University, the University at Aberdeen and the University of Nigeria at Nsukka. He has authored a number of books and articles and founded the Bulletin of the Society for African Church History and the Journal of Religion in Africa.In addition to the two lectures, this year’s event will include presentation of the Christus Lux Mundi Award to Lensa Gudina, in honor of her father, Gudina Tumsa. The chapel and communion service will begin at 10 a.m.,Wednesday, Nov. 17 in the Chapel of the Incarnation.
Special KAIROS Class: “The Cost of Discipleship: Faith on the Line”
Concurrent with the Word & World lectures, the KAIROS continuing education program at Luther Seminary will offer a week-long class “The Cost of Discipleship: Faith on the Line.” The course will explore how churches can bear faithful witness in difficult times and contexts. For more information, visit www.luthersem.edu/lifelong_learning/kairos.
Get Ready for Mid-Winter Convocation 2005!
Living Out Our Callings in the Workplace, Wednesday–Friday, Jan. 5–7, 2005Living Out Our Callings in the Workplace, Mid-Winter Convocation 2005 will focus on faith at work. This three-day conference includes presentations that will offer a deeper understanding of what it means to live out one’s calling at work. The Convocation is the second in a four-part series that focuses on the Christian’s calling at home (January 2004), work place (January 2005), church (January 2006) and in the community (January 2007).The guest speakers are: David Miller, Executive Director, Center for Faith and Culture, Yale Divinity School; Richard Bliese, Academic Dean, Luther Seminary; and Pam Moret, Executive Vice President, Marketing and Products, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans. Registration will open and materials will be mailed in October 2004. For more information about this event, visit www.luthersem.edu/convo.