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The view from the Dean's Office
 The past ten years have offered me the opportunity to witness, on a daily basis, the dedication and skill of the LSTC administration and staff; the "regular," emeritus, and auxiliary faculty and teaching assistants; the students of all LSTC's degree programs; the leadership boards and generous donors of the seminary. I have rejoiced to serve as Dean in a place where I have
- worked in an office suite with colleagues who are at once competent and caring, serious and playful
- served with staff colleagues who give so abundantly out of their love for this school and the various ministries they shepherd
- been inspired by how every leadership group does its work grounded in prayer and faces challenges with a "roll up your sleeves and get to work" attitude
- taught in a school where the students, coming from so many corners of this land and around the world, are blessed with intelligence, heartfelt faith, and abundant gifts for leadership
- witnessed faculty members pursue their commitments to scholarly and teaching excellence with passion for the church's gospel witness to a suffering world and endangered earth
- seen how colleagues in the JKM Library, the Information Technology Team, and the LRWC who face the demands of serving two schools have made it a point to take part in the joys and sorrows of each school, and who have contributed so much to life together at LSTC
- served under a President who has collaborated with and conveyed confidence in the leadership of his senior administrative team, and who has led us through times of feast and famine with strength and care
- observed the incredible dedication of my colleagues on the Cabinet, who serve long hours and bear heavy burdens with vitality, competence, and humor
- been inspired by the generous giving of time, talents, and treasure by all, in particular those who serve on the leadership boards of the school.
Everyone in an organization "sees" from a unique vantage point and place. What a gift to come to the end of ten years and to be able to truthfully say that what I have witnessed during these years from the place I have occupied has increased my love for LSTC and my confidence about what LSTC has to offer the world of theological education and the ministry of the church, particularly the ELCA.
As I take another kind of place in another corner of the building (one door down from where I began my service as an assistant professor 17 years ago) I carry with me unforgettable memories of the past decades and fervent hopes for LSTC's future. It will be a privilege to serve under the leadership of Dean Michael Shelley, who will bring great gifts to the office of Dean, and I hope to be half as good a predecessor as Ralph Klein was to me. With all my heart, I thank you, President Jim Echols, for giving me the opportunity to serve in this role, and for all I have learned serving under your supervision.
May you all abound in hope, and may God bless and keep you all. You will be in my prayers during my sabbatical leave in 2009-10 and I look forward to returning to LSTC.
Grace and peace,
Kadi Billman
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Planning your legacy
As we begin the final year of our comprehensive campaign, please hear a sincere word of thanks for your partnership in this ministry of theological education. Because of the steadfast, generous, and growing gifts of alumni/ae and friends, we have experienced significant growth in annual support and substantial growth in endowments for scholarships and faculty chairs. Because of the unusual economic changes of the last few months 2009-2010 will be a pivotal year for many colleges and seminaries and LSTC will be no exception.
It is absolutely critical that we all give as much as possible to the Annual Fund this year, to support our core mission and to make up for a portion of what the endowment will not provide until our investments recover further. Please give this your prayerful attention. We especially appeal to those who are in a position to increase giving, since there will surely be those who will have to reduce giving.
Finally, as we complete our campaign, we invite all of you to consider a legacy gift. If you have an ELCA pension, you can gift it (or a portion of it) to LSTC or other ministries you care about. Look for the article about this opportunity in the Summer Epistle you will receive in a few days. At a minimum, most of us could endow our annual fund giving. Simply multiply times 20 to arrive at the approximate size of the gift you would need to continue your current support in perpetuity. For example, if you give $1,000 a year to the Annual Fund, an estate gift of $20,000 at a 5% spending rate would provide Annual Fund support in your name over time. Many of you have been setting your sites higher, establishing endowments of $100,000 or more and we are grateful!
Mark Van Scharrel
Vice President for Advancement
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Inauguration of Gordon A. Braatz Chair in Worship & Lecture by Gordon Lathrop
 Benjamin M. Stewart will be installed as the Gordon A. Braatz Assistant Professor of Worship on Wednesday, September 23, 11:00 a.m., in the Augustana Chapel at LSTC.
Renowned scholar of worship and liturgy, the Rev. Dr. Gordon Lathrop, Charles A. Schieren Professor Emeritus of Liturg at the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia, will present a free lecture, "On the Four Gospels and the Christian Assembly" at 2:00 p.m. in the LSTC Common Room. A reception follows the lecture.
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Adult education and LSTC
When you plan adult education programs for your congregation, consider inviting an LSTC faculty member to lead a class. You can find their areas of expertise at http://www.lstc.edu/people/faculty/
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Save the dates for compelling, captivating, and challenging events at LSTC
If you're looking for ways to deepen your faith, add new dimensions to your ministry, or connect faith and world, there's something for you at LSTC. Many of LSTC's annual lectures and conferences will take up the seminary's Earth Year theme during 2009-2010.
- Lutheran Heritage and caring for creation, "Waiting for the Lutherans," a lecture by Dr. Larry Rasmussen (November 5, 2009)
- The Epic of Creation -- our origins from scientific and religious perspectives (free lectures every Monday, mid-September - early December)
- "Green" your congregation (Leadership Conference, February 9 -10, 2010)
- New stewardship practices for your congregation (April 2010)
- The science and theology of caring for Creation (free lectures every Tuesday, February - May 2010)
- How different faiths care for creation - Interfaith Ecology Conference (March 18-19, 2010)
- Improve how you preach about stewardship (March 13, 2010)
- How the next generation of theologians looks at science and spirituality, Student Symposium on Science and Spirituality (April 16, 2010)
- Learn from members of LSTC's international community during weekly "Global Table Talks" (noon, every Monday during the school year)
- Discern how God is calling you to minister in the church and world, Seminary Sampler (October 25-27, 2009 and March 14-16, 2010)
Arts events at LSTC include
- Noontime organ concerts given each month by internationally renowned musician, Thomas Wikman (each first Tuesday at 12:20 p.m.)
- Monthly Chapel Music Series concerts of sacred, classical, and jazz music, usually free and usually in the Augustana Chapel at LSTC
- "Unveiled," a play about Muslim women in the post 9-11 world (November 12, 2009)
We'll be posting all the details on www.lstc.edu and sending you a brochure of upcoming events. LSTC has a wealth of resources for you to learn from and enjoy. Are there opportunities you wish LSTC would offer? Tell me at jboden@lstc.edu. | |
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Reunions
LSTC hosts
Seminex at 35 reunion
On June 23-25, 2009, LSTC celebrated the 35th anniversary of the birth of Christ Seminary-Seminex with a reunion event. Approximately 200 Seminex students, faculty, spouses and friends met to celebrate the history, theology and living legacy of Seminex. Stay tuned... next month's edition of the E.pistle will contain more information about the Seminex event! In the meantime, we are collecting manuscripts of presentations given at the event. [ Read more. ]
Classes of 1960
The Classes of 1960 will join at LSTC on May 15 and 16, 2010, during Commencement Weekend.
Mark your calendars and watch for more information to come.
Make a Gift to LSTC
Just by using Goodsearch LSTC receives donations!
GoodSearch.com is a Yahoo-powered search engine that donates half its advertising revenue, about a penny per search, to the charities its users designate.
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A number of international students who begin degree programs this fall at LSTC, McCormick or Catholic Theological Union are here preparing for their studies through a five-week Summer Language Institute. 
