Residential Alternate Route (RAR)
The Residential Alternate Route (RAR) is the alternate route most closely parallel to the M.Div. Program. Students in this program study alongside those in the M.Div. Program, including the study of the New Testament on the basis of its original language, Greek. The key differences from the M.Div. Program are a reduced number of courses and Old Testament studies are carried out on the basis of the English language.
Like the M.Div. Program, these alternate routes seek to further the spiritual, academic and personal development of men to equip them for the Holy Ministry of Word and Sacraments in the LCMS. Unlike the M.Div. Program, these alternate routes do not lead to either an academic or a professional degree. Instead, the student who successfully finishes one of these programs receives a certificate indicating that a prescribed course of studies has been completed and a theological diploma that certifies eligibility for ordination.
The RAR includes a two-year academic program and a one-year vicarage. The RAR program provides a comprehensive theological education with extensive grounding in both theology and practice, exegetical skills based on the Greek language, and ministerial formation leading to certification as a general pastor. Compared to the M.Div. Program, the RAR program requires fewer courses and Old Testament studies are carried out in the English language. Upon completion of the program, RAR students receive a certificate and theological diploma certifying for eligibility for ordination.
RAR students participate in Resident Field Education and also serve a vicarage, which typically follows the completion of the student’s resident coursework. The place where a student serves a vicarage often becomes the place of their first ordained ministry.
Admissions Standards
Admission to the RAR ordinarily requires that the applicant be a member of a congregation of the LCMS. Each applicant must meet the criteria of one of the following categories:
- Men who are graduates of an LCMS college/university, whose names appear on the LCMS roster of Commissioned Ministers and who have accumulated at least eight years of successful experience as Commissioned Ministers of the LCMS.
- Men who ordinarily are at least 35 years of age at the time of application, who ordinarily have accumulated at least 10 years of significant experience related directly to Word and Sacrament ministry within the LCMS (elder, lector, evangelism caller, Bible class teacher, etc.) and who ordinarily have completed successfully at least 60 semester hours of college-level course work.
For more information, review the Academic Catalog and Entry Level Competency Exam requirements.
Curriculum
Residential Alternate Route (RAR) Credit Distribution
| PERSONAL AND PASTORAL FORMATION | 12.5 HOURS |
|---|---|
| PRA506 Introduction to Pastoral Ministry | 3 hours |
| Personal and Pastoral Formation Labs | 2 hours |
| Resident Field Education (noncredit) | |
| Vicarage | 7.5 hours |
| EXEGETICAL THEOLOGY | 13 HOURS |
|---|---|
| EXE507 Interpreting and Communicating the Word | 3 hours |
| EXE522 Synoptic Gospels | 2.5 hours |
| EXE525 Pauline Epistles | 2.5 hours |
| EXE708 Old Testament I | 1.5 hours |
| EXE709 Old Testament II | 1.5 hours |
| EXE5031 and EXE5033 NT Reading Labs | 2 hours |
| BIBLICAL LANGUAGES (Pre-Seminary) | 6 HOURS |
|---|---|
| Greek* | 6 hours |
| PRACTICAL THEOLOGY | 23 HOURS |
|---|---|
| PRA507 Introduction to Practical Theology | 1.5 hours |
| PRA511 Homiletics | 3 hours |
| PRA512 Worship and the Word | 3 hours |
| PRA513* Teaching the Faith | 3 hours |
| PRA514 Pastoral Care and the Word | 3 hours |
| PRA515 Reading and Preaching the Word | 3 hours |
| PRA516 Introduction to Pastoral Leadership | 2 hours |
| PRA517 Pastoral Leadership and Theology | 3 hours |
| PRA528 Homiletics preaching elective | 1.5 hours |
| SYSTEMATIC THEOLOGY | 13.5 HOURS |
|---|---|
| SYS507 Introduction to Systematic Theology | 3 hours |
| SYS511 Creeds and Confessions | 3 hours |
| SYS512 Systematics I | 3 hours |
| SYS513 Church and World | 3 hours |
| SYS514 Systematics II | 1.5 hours |
| HISTORICAL THEOLOGY | 9 HOURS |
|---|---|
| HIS507 Introduction to Historical Theology | 3 hours |
| HIS508 The Reformation and the Lutheran Church | 3 hours |
| HIS559 Lutheranism in America | 3 hours |
| FREE ELECTIVES | 3 HOURS |
|---|
| TOTAL CREDIT HOURS FOR RAR | 74 HOURS |
|---|
Credit Distribution
Please see Page 42 of the Academic Catalog.
Residential Field Education
The Resident Field Education program consists of:
- pre-vicarage and post-vicarage congregational field education
- institutional field education
- cross-cultural field education
- evangelism (during vicarage experience)
- course-related work
Congregational field education begins with assignment by the director of Resident Field Education to a congregation in the St. Louis area. The student is placed under the supervision of the pastor of that particular congregation. The program is designed to give the student experience with the role and functions of the pastor of a congregation.
During his first year of studies, the student completes the institutional and cross-cultural modules of Resident Field Education, being assigned to a specific module for a term. Each module requires approximately half of the student’s field education time. The student will maintain as much Sunday contact as possible with his field education congregation.
Resident Field Education normally should involve a maximum of eight hours per week for first-year students and 10 hours per week for second-year students. Participation is limited to Sunday morning and an average of one other time period per week.
Orientation seminars for the various modules are conducted at the beginning of the academic year. Time spent in Orientation counts toward meeting Resident Field Education time requirements. Field education also is correlated with courses such as PRA506 Introduction to Pastoral Ministry, PRA507 Introduction to Practical Theology, PRA512 Worship and the Word and PRA511 Homiletics.
For more information, contact the Residential Field Education office at 314-505-7113 or rfe@csl.edu.
Vicarage
A vicarage “is required of all Seminary students before graduation, ordinarily in the second year before graduation” (2016 Handbook of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod, Bylaw 2.8.1 d)
The vicarage consists of one year (12 months) of in-service education, normally in a parish situation. The Evangelism Module of Resident Field Education takes place during the vicarage year. To begin vicarage, a student must have taken all the courses that are specific pre-vicarage requirements, and a minimum cumulative curriculum GPA of 2.35 is required to receive a vicarage assignment.
Vicars are considered students at Concordia Seminary during the course of the vicarage. Periodic reports are made by the student and the supervising pastor to the Director of Vicarage and Deaconess Internships. A total of 7.5 credit hours is granted to the student upon successful completion of the vicarage.