Registration opens for Multiethnic Symposium

Participants at the 2017 Multiethnic Symposium at Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, take part in a roundtable discussion. (Concordia Seminary)

Registration is now open for the Multiethnic Symposium, sponsored annually by Concordia Seminary on its campus in St. Louis.

This year’s event is set for May 1–2, with the theme “Many Peoples, One Savior, Jesus: Affirming a Multiethnic Church.”

The symposium brings together pastors, congregational leaders and others from throughout the Synod to explore “what it means and what it will take to become a truly multiethnic church,” according to a seminary news release.

“We are blessed to have this annual Multiethnic Symposium for the Church,” said the Rev. Kou Seying, chairman of the symposium planning committee, Lutheran Foundation Professor of Urban and Cross-Cultural Ministry and associate dean for Urban and Cross-Cultural Ministry.

“It is a place where theology and mission meet learning from world-renowned scholars and missional leaders. It also is a place to develop a network of personal relationships for the mission of God and a place to celebrate, affirm and validate each other’s ministry as we, the church, together embrace the 21st–century America that is rapidly increasing in cultural and ethnic diversity.”

Delivering the symposium’s keynote will be the Rev. Dr. Mark DeYmaz, founding pastor of the Mosaic Church of Central Arkansas, Little Rock, and author of the award–winning book Building a Healthy Multi-Ethnic Church.

The respondent will be the Rev. Dr. Victor Raj, the seminary’s Buehner–Duesenberg Professor of Missions and assistant director of the Institute for Mission Studies.

Plenary and sectional speakers from throughout the LCMS will share their perspectives and the multiethnic impact in their respective fields of ministry.

Also featured will be a Festival of Nations and a Festival Service with Holy Communion.

Included in the symposium is the 13th Annual Lecture in Hispanic/Latino Theology and Missions, “What’s Love Got to Do with It? Reading Luther from the Margins,” presented by the Rev. Dr. Alberto L. Garcia at 1:15 p.m. May 1 in Werner Auditorium. Garcia is a theologian, author and pastor.

Responding will be the Rev. Dr. Gerhard Bode, dean of Advanced Studies and associate professor of Historical Theology.

The lecture, sponsored by the seminary’s Center for Hispanic Studies, is free and open to the public.

Other events to be held in conjunction with and preceding the symposium include the North American Mission Endeavor/NAME conference, language-specific ministry forums, the Hmong Symposium and the Lutheran Society for Missiology annual meeting.

For information about those events, contact the specific organizations.

Registration for the Multiethnic Symposium is $50 and includes meals and some pre– and post–symposium events. On–campus housing is available for an additional fee.
Register for the Multiethnic Symposium
For more information, contact the Continuing Education department at 314-505-7286 or ce@csl.edu .

Posted March 8, 2018