Eleven Concordia Seminary, St. Louis students celebrated vicarage assignments and call placements to serve congregations of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS). The students were recognized in chapel Friday.

One Master of Divinity student, Jeremiah Gensch, has a placement pending.

Two Residential Alternate Route (RAR) students receiving calls were:
Michael Apfel, Trinity Lutheran Church in Fort Scott, Kan., LCMS Kansas District
Joshua Wiley, Redeemer Lutheran Church in Kimberly, Idaho, LCMS Northwest District

“Michael and Joshua will serve in traditional congregational settings, while Jeremiah is pursuing institutional chaplaincy along with congregational ministry,” said Dr. Glenn Nielsen, director of Placement and director of Vicarage and Deaconess Internships. “These calls illustrate the range of ministry settings for which Concordia Seminary provides pastoral candidates.”

Five Ethnic Immigrant Institute of Theology (EIIT) students received vicarage assignments:

Albert Bakat, Resurrection Lutheran Church in Sioux Falls, S.D., LCMS South Dakota District
Isaac Baroi, Living Faith Lutheran Church in Cumming, Ga., LCMS Florida-Georgia District
Anthony Johnson, First Lutheran Church in Hot Springs, Ark., LCMS Mid-South District
Joseph Lewis, Lamb of God Lutheran Church in Landover Hills, Md., LCMS Southeastern District

Andrew Petajan, Christ Lutheran Church of the Deaf in Silver Spring, Md., LCMS Southeastern District

Two Cross-Cultural Ministry (CMC) students received vicarage assignments:

Brian Barlow, Our Savior Lutheran Church in Arcadia, Calif., LCMS Pacific Southwest District
Jose Villalobos, St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Pomona, Calif., LCMS Pacific Southwest District

One Center of Hispanic Studies (CHS) student received a vicarage assignment:

Sergio Puente, Peace Lutheran Church, Columbus in Nebraska, LCMS Nebraska District

“The eight vicarage assignments will have students from our distance education programs serving Hispanics, African-Americans, African refugees, Liberian immigrants, people struggling with Gender Dysphoria and people in the deaf culture,” Nielsen said. “Providing pastoral candidates in these different contexts is a reflection of the increasing diversity of America’s population.”

The Seminary celebrates assignment services throughout the year for students enrolled in special programs such as EIIT, CMC, CHS and others. The Seminary’s primary Call Day is held in April when students receive their first calls to ministry as well as assignments for vicarage and deaconess internships. Call Day is set for April 24, 2018.

About Concordia Seminary
Concordia Seminary, St. Louis provides Gospel-centered graduate-level theological education for pastors, missionaries, deaconesses, scholars and other leaders in the name of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS). To learn more, visit www.csl.edu.