LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 2023, Page 25

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OFFICER, BOARD, AND COMMISSION REPORTS
congregation on the challenges and opportunities of military service. Within months of announcing this program, 72 of our activeduty and Reserve chaplains were adopted by LCMS congregations
throughout the country.
The Doctor of Ministry (DMin) in Military Chaplaincy was initiated in 2005 and is designed exclusively for our military chaplains
to enable them to complete a DMin degree while remaining on active duty.

In the summer of 2019, this team developed a SAS strategic
plan. During the last three years, SAS has pursued two primary
goals:
1.

Immediately increase fruitful engagement between
youth influencers and youth who might embark on
journeys toward professional church work vocations.

2.

Significantly increase the number of individuals
enrolled in church worker formation tracks at our
Concordia University System institutions and LCMS
seminaries to ensure that the LCMS continues to
proclaim and teach the Gospel of Jesus Christ in our
congregations and communities in the coming decades.

Christian J. Boehlke, Interim Executive Director
R1.2.3

Office of Pastoral Education
The Office of Pastoral Education (PED), supervised by the Chief
Mission Officer (CMO), assists the President in executing responsibilities related to pastoral formation and care that are assigned to
him: “The [CMO] shall, on behalf of the President, provide leadership, coordination, and oversight for pre-seminary education programs, seminary education, and post-seminary continuing education, and by providing advocacy for pastoral education and health
within the Synod” (Bylaw 3.4.3.8). The PED Executive Director
is responsible for facilitating the prior-approval process for initial
appointments to seminary faculties (Bylaw 3.10.5.7.3[a]) and is
a nonvoting advisory member of the Synod’s Pastoral Formation
Committee (Bylaw 3.10.4.7).

A. Set Apart to Serve (SAS)
The 2019 Convention adopted Resolution 6-01, “To
Support and Participate in the Comprehensive Church Worker
Recruitment Initiative.” This resolution resolved “that all
constituents of the LCMS be encouraged to commend, financially
support, and directly participate in this comprehensive, multiyear church worker recruitment initiative with . . . the following
objectives:
1.

identifying, catechizing, encouraging, and supporting
young boys and girls for church worker vocations;

2.

instilling church worker vocations as sacred and
joyful, a ‘calling from God,’ vocations of integrity and
fulfillment, grounded in Christ and baptismal salvation;

3.

developing the ‘whole person’ throughout this
formation process: spiritually, in character,
confessionally, physically, emotionally, synodically,
and intellectually;

4.

supporting, encouraging, and caring for existing
church workers, for the welfare of the workers, for
the proclamation and witness of the Gospel, and for
workers to be healthy advocates of next-generation
workers.”

SAS Team and Goals. Following the 2019 convention,
SAS expanded our relationship with Standing Partnership, a St.
Louis-based marketing and communications firm. Five experts
from Standing Partnership dedicate their time to Set Apart
to Serve, along with three persons from the LCMS Office of
Pastoral Education (Dr. James Baneck, Mr. Glenn Rollins, and
Ms. Robyn Armbrust), and the LCMS Communications team
(Dr. Kevin Armbrust, Ms. Jennifer Duffy, Ms. Stacey Egger).
These individuals make up the core SAS leadership team, while
incorporating collaborators and subject-matter experts from across
the Synod, including congregations, schools, universities, camps,
RSOs, and other Synod institutions.

25

Giving this initiative a name was also a first priority. LCMS
youth, church workers, and laity were polled to provide input for
naming and messaging this initiative. Set Apart to Serve was the
clear choice.
Messaging and Branding. Key messaging was also developed that would be used in SAS materials, communications,
presentations, and more. The goal is for all Synod stakeholders
to hear consistent language as we talk to our youth about opportunities to become church workers. Hearing this same messaging
from our seminaries and universities, congregations and schools,
RSOs and corporate entities, LCMS Communications and auxiliaries, congregations and schools, and pastors and all church workers reduces confusion and makes it more likely for young people
to understand the opportunities to become future church workers.
SAS branding, logo, and messaging is currently used in
seminary and Concordia University literature, promotional
materials, videos, and websites. It is also used in district materials
and websites, congregations, schools, and more.
Subject Matter Experts (SMEs). SMEs provided unique
expertise that informed the launch of SAS. Their experiences
in the LCMS and insights as church workers and leaders in the
Synod guided the initial direction of SAS.
SMEs were assigned to our three core audiences: preCatechism (infant Baptism–6th grade), Catechism (7th–8th
grade), and post-Catechism (9th–12th grade). They gave us
direction in two fundamental areas: (1) how to identify potential
for a vocation in church work, and (2) guides to creating critical
experiences of youth. SMEs are named in the SAS 2022 annual
report (files.lcms.org/file/preview/sas-annual-report).
Pilot Program. In January of this year, we launched the
SAS pilot program. There is a pilot program congregation and/
or school in every district, plus one NLOMA camp. Special
thanks to all 35 district presidents for nominating and helping
secure these pilot sites. The pilot program supports and equips
congregation leaders so they can identify, nurture, and encourage
youth in their congregation who aspire to humble, selfless service
to others, honoring Christ and the Church above all else. The pilot
program establishes an intentional structure, tools, and training
for congregations around the essential experiences that youth
need to successfully pursue church work. Pilot sites will serve the
Synod in three significant ways:
1.

They will evaluate SAS resources, such as conversation
guides and experience-building toolkits, as they use
them to develop an intentional structure of formation
and recruitment of their youth.
2023 Convention Workbook