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LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 2026, Page 28

Scan: The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod

Transcription machine transcription, uncorrected

OFFICER, BOARD, AND COMMISSION REPORTS

to more than 3,500 warriors, retirees, and VA patients around the
globe, because man does not live by bread alone but by every word
that comes from the mouth of God—and that Word made flesh has
risen from the dead. Christ is risen, indeed!
Our LCMS Operation Barnabas project is the church saying,
“We will not forget our veterans.” Over 18 million American veterans walk among us; many sit silently in our pews or live in the
shadow of our steeples, wounded in body and soul. Through 637
(and soon, Lord willing, 1,000) Operation Barnabas congregations,
we are training the Church to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and to declare that the same Jesus
who conquered death is mighty to save every veteran from despair,
addiction, and the lingering echo of war.
Adopt-A-Chap links congregations directly to deployed or serving chaplains so that even in the loneliest outpost, a pastor knows
his church back home is praying, writing, and standing with him as
he proclaims the resurrection hope.
And through the Doctor of Ministry in Military Chaplaincy, we
sharpen these shepherds so that they can feed the flock with deeper
wisdom while never leaving the battlefield. This is the mission: that
every warrior, every veteran, every military family would hear and
know the shout that changed the world forever—Christ is risen,
indeed!
And because He is risen, there is hope beyond the grave, healing
beyond the wound, and a peace the world cannot give. Pray for our
chaplains. Adopt a chaplain. Join or start an Operation Barnabas
congregation. Send us the names of your sons, daughters, grandchildren, and neighbors in uniform. Because the tomb is empty, the
mission is urgent, and the victory is already won.
Christ is risen, indeed! Alleluia!
Cory J. Rajek, 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 Pastoral Formation Committee
(Bylaw 3.10.4.6).

A. Set Apart to Serve
Set Apart to Serve (SAS) is a culture of forming, encouraging, and recruiting our youth and adults—from infancy through
adulthood—to consider a full-time church work vocation in every
LCMS congregation, home, school, district, and entity. To sustain
this culture until the Lord returns, it is vital that every pastor, commissioned church worker, parent, and layperson intentionally forms
and encourages our youth and adults to consider full-time church
work and walks with them through that journey.
The purpose of the church forming and recruiting boys and
2026 Convention Workbook

men to preach and teach the Word of Christ as pastors and to form
and recruit youth and adults to teach and share the Word of Christ
as LCMS commissioned church worker vocations is because it is
through the Word of Christ they teach that the Holy Spirit creates,
nourishes, and sustains saving faith for their life and salvation.

A.1. Research and Measurables
Having something become part of the culture of the LCMS,
with its magnitude and wonderful complexity, takes the commitment and ownership of everyone across the Synod. The same is
true for SAS. Ongoing research helps us measure our short-term
impact and long-term trajectory. In our fourth annual youth survey,
SAS learned conversations with church workers remains the most
important trigger for youth who self-reported they are considering church work. Youth are also stating that the top obstacle for
considering church work—real or perceived—is the cost of tuition
and expected salary upon graduation. From this research, SAS is
strengthening its communication with influential adults as they play
a most significant role in the increase in church workers. SAS is also
strengthening its communication about the many ways the church
has made church work programs more affordable.
The 2025 annual influencer survey revealed SAS awareness has
gone from zero to 91 percent in the last six years among ordained
and commissioned workers and continues to rise among lay leaders
to 58 percent. The survey also revealed a 10 percent increase in
respondents reporting they are more prepared to talk about church
work than the previous year. Also, ordained and commissioned
workers reported that 74 percent of them are having one or more
conversations with youth about considering church work, an increase of over 25 percent since SAS began. Through pilots, focus
groups, presentations, stakeholder engagements, and more, SAS is
striving to move these increases even higher.
The 2025 annual congregation survey, focusing primarily on
laypersons, revealed that the proportion of laypersons having at
least one conversation with youth about church work has increased
from 19 percent in 2023 to 30 percent in 2025. Yet, 15 percent of
laypeople stated they are uncomfortable initiating church-work
conversations but would be more comfortable with good resources
and instruction. Therefore, SAS is working on improving current
resources and developing new ones to meet this need.

A.2. Collaboration
Individuals and entities across the Synod are involved in making church work formation and recruitment become a part of our
Synod’s culture. Leaders from eight districts are helping develop
ways and sharing best practices for all the districts to focus on
church work recruitment. Circuit visitors from thirteen districts are
helping develop turnkey tools for circuit visitors to promote church
work formation and recruitment in winkels, circuit gatherings, and
interactions with the congregations and schools they serve. Education executives from six districts are partnering with SAS for a
Facebook advertisement campaign targeted at public school educators, encouraging them to consider teaching at an LCMS school.
The first phase, working with the Minnesota South and South Wisconsin Districts, elicited nearly 400 responses from people who requested more information. Also, a theology professor from each of
the Concordia universities and seminaries met with the SAS team
to discuss how professors are forming the next generation of influential adults who will form and recruit church ordained and commissioned church workers. These conversations will help develop a
turnkey resource for all our theology faculty.