Registration is open for the 2024 Multiethnic Symposium, “We Believe in One Holy Catholic Church: Reclaiming Our Catholicity Through the Multiethnic Church,” set for April 30-May 1, on the campus of Concordia Seminary, St. Louis. The symposium will delve into what it means to be one holy catholic church in the 21^st century.  

“The Nicene Creed reminds us that God’s creating, redeeming and purifying work culminates in a holy people called out from all the nations, peoples, tribes and tongues of humanity,” said Dr. Ely Prieto, the Lutheran Foundation Professor of Urban and Cross-Cultural Ministry. “In this we joyfully proclaim the one true God’s whole truth for the whole world. And that is what we mean when we confess that the church is catholic — it has been given God’s whole saving truth for the whole tapestry of humanity.”

This annual symposium, which brings together missional leaders including pastors, congregational lay leaders and others from across The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS), explores what it means and what it will take to become a truly multiethnic church.

Plenary speakers include:

• Dr. Jeffrey Kloha, Chief Curatorial Officer, Museum of the Bible, Washington, D.C.
• Dr. Larry Vogel, Associate Executive Director, Commission on Theology and Church Relations, The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod, St. Louis, Mo.
• Dr. Thurman Williams, Director of Homiletics, Covenant Theological Seminary, and Pastor, New City Fellowship – West End, St. Louis, Mo.

The 18th Annual Lecture in Hispanic/Latino Theology and Mission also will be held during the symposium. Dr. Leopoldo A. Sanchez M., the Seminary’s Werner R.H. Krause and Elizabeth Ringger Krause Professor of Hispanic Ministries, will present “Mi casa es su casa: Hispanic/Latino Insights on Being the Church Catholic in an Age of Migration.”The response will be given by Dr. Laerte Tardelli Helwig Voss, missionary director for the Lutheran Mission Society in San Diego, Calif.

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

Participants are encouraged to extend their stay and attend the Multi Asian Gathering, set for May 1-2 on the Seminary campus. The admission fee for the Multi Asian Gathering is $25.

Registration closes April 14. The admission fee for the Multiethnic Symposium is $80, but free for students and faculty. For more information, visit csl.edu/multiethnic or contact Continuing Education at 314-505-7286 or [email protected].

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 csl.edu.