牧师的信. Dr. 乍得轮辋谈LTSS迁往Hickory

牧师的信. Dr. 乍得轮辋 to LTSS alumni about the move of the seminar to the Lenoir-Rhyne University in Hickory.

Friends in Christ, grace and peace be yours in the name of Christ.

The next stage in Southern’s long history of pilgrimage is beginning.

在虔诚的, careful discernment of the headwinds we face across the broader landscape of theological education, the Lenoir-Rhyne University board of trustees has made the decision to move 南方路德神学院 to the university’s main campus in Hickory in January. The move will become official when the LR board takes final action at its March meeting.

当全球网赌十大网站做出这个决定时，大学校长Dr. 弗雷德?威特, 董事会主席玛德琳·达索, and I have held many thoughtful discussions with one another and with other leaders and stakeholders, 包括九区的主教和ELCA教会的主要工作人员. We agree the reasons for this decision are clear: The budget deficits that we face are insurmountable considering current enrollment and broad national trends in theological vocations. 把神学院搬走，全球网赌十大网站可以省下2美元.1 million per year in operating costs and eliminate significant deferred maintenance costs on the seminary campus, 这比全球网赌十大网站目前的项目需要的要大得多. While many have faithfully and valiantly guided our seminary through difficult years, including the psycho-social and financial pressures of the COVID-19 pandemic, 是时候认识到，如果没有大胆的行动, 神学院的使命是不可持续的.

有了这个动作, we can sustain the next chapter of our beloved seminary as a living laboratory for public ministry, where students will have opportunities to build their capacity for ministry with a vibrant formation and community life, interdisciplinary opportunities in Spanish language; business; counseling; environmental and health sciences; and other disciplines that provide context and grounding for pastors called to ministry in today’s church. It will be possible to create new pipelines that encourage theological studies and vocations for the next generation of pastors and theologians. It will be possible to have more creative and robust lifelong learning opportunities for lay and clergy leaders, 为全球网赌十大网站的学生提供更丰富的校园体验. 同时, 全球网赌十大网站的图书馆将和全球网赌十大网站一起搬到山胡桃, ensuring that our students continue to have access to the best resources available for us to strengthen our call to engage in transformative theological education and formation.

这个消息中既有悲伤，也有希望. 全球网赌十大网站所爱的神学院将会改变, and we will bid farewell to some of the places where we have learned, 崇拜, 形成了. My great-grandfather was part of the class entering in 1911 when Southern first opened in Columbia. 一代又一代忠诚的领袖已经形成, 在这里接受教育或服役, entrusting this tradition of theological education to our current generation of students, 教职员工. But our mission — to prepare leaders for the Church’s public ministry — will remain unchanged. Embedded on a campus with a long and rich history of Lutheran higher education, we will be more able to fulfill the seminary’s strategic plan that guides the way in which we nurture, educate and form leaders for public ministry in today’s world.

We have shared the news of our move to Hickory with the LTSS Advisory Council and 校友 Board. 全球网赌十大网站得到了他们的支持、问题和想法. 在接下来的几周里, we will want to hear from you about the ways we can memorialize the seminary’s history in Columbia. We will mark our pilgrimage with liturgies of thanksgiving for this sacred ground and the places that have been sanctified with our study, 敬拜, 奖学金, 和服务. 通过这些礼拜仪式, 全球网赌十大网站会带一些教堂的碎片和其他文物, 向此刻的悲痛和可能致敬. I will be in touch soon to share more information, updates and let you know how you can participate. In the meantime, you can find answers to frequently asked questions on our website.

As we journey from Columbia to Hickory, we will undoubtedly face challenges. 即使全球网赌十大网站在考虑搬家的实际情况, I am committed to helping all of us at Southern keep our eyes on the larger trends we are facing — trends in higher education, 主流教会的趋势, and trends in Lutheran vocations — so we can face them with creativity, 创新教与学, 充满活力的形成和充满活力的伙伴关系.

在此过程中，我鼓励大家关注2030年.  This year will be the 200th anniversary of the seminary’s founding in Pomaria, South Carolina. 2030 will also be the 500th anniversary of the Augsburg Confession. Making this move will ensure that we are celebrating the 200th anniversary of the seminary in a way that looks to the next 200 years. And we will be embodying the genius of the Lutheran tradition that emerged from the nexus between the church, 学院和公共空间. 永远reformanda. This move can position LTSS to be a flagship of the next stage in this faithful tradition.  

I look forward to celebrating those anniversaries by welcoming new classes of students who are formed for ministry in the world. Our move to Hickory will make that goal, and many others, possible.

愿你平安，

牧师. Dr. 乍得轮辋
校长和院长
南方路德神学院