Schultz elected CEO of Concordia Publishing House

Jonathan D. Schultz speaks on June 25, 2021, at the 39th biennial convention of the Lutheran Women’s Missionary League in Lexington, Ky. Schultz was recently appointed the president and CEO of Concordia Publishing House. (LCMS/Erik M. Lunsford)

On Jan. 19, the Concordia Publishing House (CPH) Board of Directors announced that Jonathan D. Schultz will serve as the publisher’s 9th president & CEO. CPH is the official publishing house of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS).

Schultz came to CPH in 1998. He has been serving in the role of interim president & CEO since May 2021. During that time, he “has demonstrated a relentless commitment to the mission and vision of CPH,” said Dr. Mark Bender, chair of the CPH Board of Directors. “The board is confident that Jonathan will lead CPH in a manner that remains fervently committed to the Scriptures and Lutheran Confessions. We pray God’s richest blessings upon Jonathan and all who serve at CPH.”

Schultz previously served as vice-president and corporate counsel for CPH. In that role, he coordinated all legal activities of the corporation and directed the human resources and contracts/rights/permissions departments.

For the last two decades, Schultz has held various leadership positions on the boards of directors of Christ Community Lutheran School, Kirkwood, Mo., and the Lutheran High School Association of St. Louis. He currently serves as board chair for the Lutheran Foundation of St. Louis, an LCMS Recognized Service Organization that is committed to “seeing the improved care of hurting people in the greater St. Louis metropolitan region.” He is a graduate of Concordia University Chicago, River Forest, Ill., and Loyola University School of Law, Chicago.

Schultz and his wife, Sue — an LCMS schoolteacher — previously served as long-term volunteer missionaries in Guatemala for the LCMS. The Schultzes have three children — Thomas, married to Allison; Mollie; and Abigail.

“For 152 years, CPH has been the publishing arm of the LCMS,” Schultz said following his election as CEO. “And I would contend that our mission has never been more critical to the church and her people than it is now. …

“Thanks be to God that we are indeed a lighthouse, shining the pure light of the Gospel of Jesus Christ in this dark world with resources faithful to Scripture and the Lutheran Confessions.”

The Rev. Dr. Matthew C. Harrison, LCMS president, said, “Jonathan brings many strengths to his appointment. He knows the business of Christian publishing and CPH like few others, and he’s committed to continuing the trajectory of CPH as the world’s foremost publisher of confessionally Lutheran resources for the congregations of the Synod and for friends all over the world. This sacred trust requires our fervent prayers for Jonathan and ‘the house.’”

Posted Jan. 28, 2022