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Welcome to Mission Works thanks to donors.

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I'm Dale Meyer.

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We have a great episode for you today

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but first let me explain this. For some years

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now members of our Concordia Seminary Community have had our head

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shaved to help fight childhood cancers.

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The program is called Saint Baldrick's. Volunteers who have their head

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shaved are supported by donations from people who join us in this

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effort to end childhood cancers.

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Now, it's my great pleasure to introduce to you our donors the 11th

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President of Concordia Seminary, Rev.

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Dr.

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Thomas Egger.

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Thank you Dale.

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Congratulations.

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Thank you.

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We're so thrilled about your election.

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How do you feel about it?

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Well, it all feels very new and it's a complete complete shift of

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focus really from in terms of just my my daily rhythm and work from

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Old Testament professor in the classroom to the steep learning curve

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of all of the things that are involved with this but what I've

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especially been feeling lately is just very supported.

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So much encouragement from from from people across the church from

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my own personal life and an especially at the Seminary. So many people

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coming alongside and saying, alright, let's talk through this area the

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seminaries life and this area of

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Seminaries life and so even though I haven't officially met yet begun.

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I'm already getting the whirlwind tour and and know that I know that I

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will it really enjoy and value of working with the people who I will

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be working alongside, here. That support will continue looking let me tell

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you from experience.

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I used to go visit

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Dr.

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Dennis Golden, the President of Fontbonne University, and he said

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once and jelled at my mind.

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Nobody knows what it's like to be in your shoes.

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I mean, there's a couple of us who do. Yeah. But that support support will

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continue.

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Tell us about yourself.

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Well, I'm originally from Iowa my wife Tory also originally from

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Iowa.

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I'm a product I guess you would say of this Seminary.

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I came here in 1993 to begin my studies to be a pastor started in

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summer Greek with Doctor Voelz in 1993.

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And then was a pastor in Northwest Iowa for 5 years, Zion Lutheran

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Church in rural Storm Lake. And in 2005

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I came back to the Seminary was called back to the Seminary to teach

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Old Testament and that's been my main focus for the last 16 years is

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teaching classes in Hebrew and the books and Theology of the Old

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Testament. You've had a number of administrative positions during these

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fifteen years.

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Yeah.

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I've had a number of involvements both at the Seminary and and for the

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larger church, I really value the years that I spent on the

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ministerial formation committee here at the Seminary. I served

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with that important collaborative work with others here for I

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think my first nine years or 10 years. I served as the academic advisor

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to first-year students for a number of years for the last

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year-and-a-half

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I've been the chairman of the Exegetical department. And in the

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broader church

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I've been involved with a committee Commission on Theology and Church

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Relations for several years and currently serve on but will probably

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have to step back from my role on the Board of Regents at Concordia

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University Chicago, which I've really enjoyed.

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So those are all experiences by which the Lord in his mysterious way

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was preparing you for this new position, new challenge things are going

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to come at you from every every which way, But I suspect that you have

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the gift of listening taking it in and then

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a little prayer a little thought and always calm optimism.

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Yeah.

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Well that's a that's a good description of what's needed for the task.

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So yes absolutely. It's not fair for us,

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it's not fair for any of us to ask you programmatically

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what are you going to do,

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what are you what are you going to address. But tell us in a general

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way about your hopes for your tenure?

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Yeah.

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Well it was it was hard for me clear back when I took the call to

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return to the Seminary to teach it was hard for me to step out of

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pastoral Ministry. I loved the privilege of bringing God's word into the

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lives of God's people. And I hope that the Seminary's focus will

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always be on that very practical valuing of the bringing of God's word

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into the lives of of God's people and and the people who have

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yet to learn of the gospel. And so a clear focus on the word of God,

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the heritage of our Lutheran doctrinal treasures that have been given

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to us that help us to focus

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the church's life on Christ and on his love and comfort. And

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hopefully to continue to encourage this place to be a place of warm

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community where people get to know one another and love one another

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and serve one another. This is a special place, you know, Diane and I look back

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at our service and it was kind of like a dream of a real dream. Now

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there were some days when it was a nightmare we all have that but but

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this is a very special place in the in the world of theological

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education.

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When are you going to start?

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I start March 15th and Interim President Daniel Preus is going to

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continue on through graduation just as assistant to the president just

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as a as a resource here.

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I thought it would be very nice since he's been the president for

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these fourth-year students during their fourth year.

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He was still a presence here as as they reach as we're getting

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close to graduation.

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So I'm grateful that he's agreed to do that.

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But I will I will assume the duties of President on March 15th.

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Will there will be many people I among them who will help carry the

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weight. I appreciate that. As you asked.  We're so glad and and you have our support and and I know

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that all of you are donors share optimism about the future in our

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confidence in the leading of our Lord Jesus Christ.

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The Seminary has another program called Word and Work and Intersection

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and you can see a more extended interview with Dr.

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Egger on Word and Work at csl.edu.

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It is indeed a great time to be at Concordia Seminary. Mission Works.

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Thanks to Donors.