Commencement exercises for the Concordia Seminary, St. Louis graduating class will take place Friday, May 17. The public is invited to attend.

The day's events begin at 10 a.m. (CDT) with the Theological Diploma Service in the Chapel of St. Timothy and St. Titus on the Seminary's campus. Theological diplomas will be presented at this service to all graduating students eligible to receive a call as a pastor or deaconess in The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS). Provost Dr. Douglas Rutt, professor of Practical Theology, will deliver the sermon.

Commencement will take place at 7 p.m. (CDT) outdoors in the Seminary's Main Quadrangle. Academic degrees and honors will be presented during this ceremony. U.S. Rep. Larry Bucshon, congressman for the Eighth District of Indiana and a Commencement honoree, will deliver the Commencement address. Six special honors also will be given:

• Christus Vivit Award: Dan and Marti Huss of Cincinnati, Ohio.
• Distinguished Alumnus: Dr. Samuel Nafzger of Washington, Mo.
• Honorary Doctor of Divinity: Archbishop Jānis Vanags of Riga, Latvia.
• Honorary Doctor of Letters: Dr. Werner Rudolf Albert Klän of Oberursel, Germany.
• Honorary Doctor of Laws: U.S. Rep. Dr. Larry Bucshon of Evansville, Ind.
• Honorary Doctor of Laws: Dr. Melissa Salomón of Chula Vista, Calif.

To read biographies of the honorees, visit csl.edu/commencement.

This year's graduates will be joining more than 7,000 called leaders of the LCMS around the world and more than 12,500 individuals who have received degrees from Concordia Seminary, St. Louis in the school's 180-year history.

Commencement exercises will be available via live stream starting at 6:30 p.m. (CDT) May 17 at csl.edu/live.

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.