WEBVTT 1 00:00:06.700 --> 00:00:08.800 Hello and welcome to Mission Works 2 00:00:08.800 --> 00:00:10.400 Thanks to donors. 3 00:00:10.400 --> 00:00:14.600 The big day is coming April 28th Call Day 4 00:00:14.600 --> 00:00:17.000 and you can feel the excitement on campus. 5 00:00:17.000 --> 00:00:23.200 And there's some anxiety as well. With us to talk about Call Day 2021 6 00:00:23.200 --> 00:00:24.200 is Dr. 7 00:00:24.200 --> 00:00:28.200 Glenn Nielsen Director of Placement here at Concordia Seminary. 8 00:00:28.200 --> 00:00:35.600 There was a time Glenn when we had more candidates than calls. 9 00:00:35.600 --> 00:00:36.600 How is it this year? 10 00:00:36.600 --> 00:00:39.800 Just the opposite. I'll start with vicarage 11 00:00:39.800 --> 00:00:44.700 we have one of our smallest classes ever only 32 out 33 MDiv students 12 00:00:44.700 --> 00:00:48.100 going out and 4 Alternate Route and 5 Deaconess interns. 13 00:00:48.100 --> 00:00:54.400 That's very very small for us. Candidates we'll have 67 across all the 14 00:00:54.400 --> 00:00:55.200 programs. 15 00:00:55.200 --> 00:01:00.300 But when you talk about MDiv, there's only going to be 47 and the seven 16 00:01:00.300 --> 00:01:01.500 Residential Alternate route. 17 00:01:01.500 --> 00:01:05.800 So there's 50, 54 are residential candidates for 18 00:01:05.800 --> 00:01:11.600 the Pastoral Ministry and 6 Deaconess. And then the the distance 19 00:01:11.600 --> 00:01:12.400 programs 20 00:01:12.400 --> 00:01:20.000 we will have seven of those. So the moral of the story is let's encourage 21 00:01:20.000 --> 00:01:21.700 recruitment for Ministry. 22 00:01:21.700 --> 00:01:28.000 Yes. Because it it it is not good without a pastor in a congregation. 23 00:01:28.000 --> 00:01:33.400 Our lay people you all do wonderfully well through a vacancy but you 24 00:01:33.400 --> 00:01:38.400 need is a pastor that the flock needs a Shepherd. Tell us about the 25 00:01:38.400 --> 00:01:39.100 process 26 00:01:39.100 --> 00:01:40.900 would you please? How did this happen? 27 00:01:40.900 --> 00:01:45.100 I mean the old joke is you just throw a dart and then that's where 28 00:01:45.100 --> 00:01:48.200 you end up but I know it's not true. Two things are going on. 29 00:01:48.200 --> 00:01:52.800 First of all, we bathe the process in prayer. Most everyday 30 00:01:52.800 --> 00:01:57.600 I'm out walking our dogs, one of them is Noah a comfort dog, and 31 00:01:59.100 --> 00:02:02.900 just opportunities for prayer for the process inviting prayers for my 32 00:02:02.900 --> 00:02:04.300 campus and the students. 33 00:02:04.300 --> 00:02:07.500 So we're trusting that the spirit is guiding the process. 34 00:02:07.500 --> 00:02:12.100 But at the same time we put much work into this to try to make sure a 35 00:02:12.100 --> 00:02:18.100 student's Ministry skills and interests and some items that might go 36 00:02:18.100 --> 00:02:22.400 on in terms of geography or location because of family concerns are 37 00:02:22.400 --> 00:02:26.400 all taken into account and then the congregation submit documents. 38 00:02:26.400 --> 00:02:28.300 And so we try to match those together. 39 00:02:28.300 --> 00:02:33.500 I interview all the students and their wives. Congregations if they want 40 00:02:33.500 --> 00:02:36.700 a team Ministry can have an opportunity to interview some of our 41 00:02:36.700 --> 00:02:40.700 students 4 or 5 of our students that could be one of their Associates and they 42 00:02:40.700 --> 00:02:46.300 can give their preferences. A Council President is the actual Board of 43 00:02:46.300 --> 00:02:47.500 Assignments for Lutheran Church. 44 00:02:47.500 --> 00:02:49.200 So I recommend 45 00:02:49.900 --> 00:02:53.600 students for varies congregations in their districts and then 46 00:02:53.600 --> 00:02:56.400 they will accept it or not. And most often they will accept it 47 00:02:56.400 --> 00:03:01.600 because I have the bigger picture of the all the districts and all the 48 00:03:01.600 --> 00:03:08.800 students and before me. And I work with Fort Wayne their placement and 49 00:03:08.800 --> 00:03:12.400 vicarage directors the to make sure that we're covering the 50 00:03:12.400 --> 00:03:17.900 congregation's we can. This year 20 congregations won't get a pastor. And 51 00:03:17.900 --> 00:03:19.800 then finally get to Call Day 52 00:03:19.800 --> 00:03:24.600 the Council of Presidents meets the Saturday before Call Day and 53 00:03:25.500 --> 00:03:29.900 they vote and the students are placed or Vicars are assigned. 54 00:03:29.900 --> 00:03:33.100 And then we wait for Call Day. 55 00:03:33.100 --> 00:03:36.700 This year will be on Wednesday the 28th, and we will announce those in 56 00:03:36.700 --> 00:03:40.600 the calling. So a lot of prayer and guidance by the spirit at the same 57 00:03:40.600 --> 00:03:45.000 time lots of work that starts already back in September leading up to 58 00:03:45.000 --> 00:03:49.600 April. And it starts in September, but you have been for what 30 some years the Director of 59 00:03:49.600 --> 00:03:55.200 Vicarage so, you know these students so it might my impression is yes 60 00:03:55.200 --> 00:03:57.400 prayer and the guidance of the spirit. 61 00:03:57.400 --> 00:04:04.000 But wow, this human wise is a very very careful process. Two more 62 00:04:04.000 --> 00:04:07.300 questions one is where can we see this online? 63 00:04:07.300 --> 00:04:13.200 If you go to the Seminary's webpage csl.edu. 64 00:04:13.200 --> 00:04:19.100 We now have a link right in the top banner that says Call Day and you 65 00:04:19.100 --> 00:04:22.900 just click on that and then there are a couple spots on the on the 66 00:04:22.900 --> 00:04:24.500 Seminaries web page where 67 00:04:25.500 --> 00:04:27.100 they can click on the livestream. 68 00:04:27.100 --> 00:04:31.100 We will not have a full Chapel this year because of covid restrictions in 69 00:04:31.100 --> 00:04:31.600 St. 70 00:04:31.600 --> 00:04:34.700 Louis County. Students will be able to have a guest 71 00:04:34.700 --> 00:04:39.100 and we'll have faculty members and District presidents and the vice 72 00:04:39.100 --> 00:04:42.700 president and president of the Synod but it'll be a very small group 73 00:04:42.700 --> 00:04:44.100 this year because of restrictions. 74 00:04:44.100 --> 00:04:48.900 So we're encouraging people to just click on to that live stream. 75 00:04:48.900 --> 00:04:54.200 It's at 3 o'clock in the afternoon for Vicarage and Deaconess internships and 76 00:04:54.200 --> 00:04:57.700 7 o'clock on the 28th for the candidate 77 00:04:57.700 --> 00:04:59.500 calls. Great csl.edu. 78 00:04:59.500 --> 00:05:01.200 My last question. 79 00:05:01.200 --> 00:05:07.000 You've done this for a long long time, especially with the Vicar's what 80 00:05:07.000 --> 00:05:11.300 have been the satisfactions the joys that you had in your long service 81 00:05:11.300 --> 00:05:12.600 with placement. 82 00:05:12.600 --> 00:05:18.100 Well we were talking before hand I've worked with close to 3700 83 00:05:18.100 --> 00:05:25.400 students now. Some of the satisfactions come when you see the smiles 84 00:05:25.400 --> 00:05:31.200 the excitement of the students on Call Day, but to hear back 85 00:05:31.200 --> 00:05:38.100 from them and to say this is was just at the right place for us. Now 86 00:05:38.100 --> 00:05:42.800 another place might have been but this is the one that they jumped 87 00:05:42.800 --> 00:05:48.300 into and to see a student flourish on vicarage to see a candidates 88 00:05:48.300 --> 00:05:53.200 big smile and gleaming. And I'll tell you I got I assigned I 89 00:05:53.200 --> 00:05:55.400 recommended student last spring. 90 00:05:56.200 --> 00:05:59.600 And he's been there for 9 months now eight nine months at his 91 00:05:59.600 --> 00:06:00.300 congregation. 92 00:06:00.300 --> 00:06:04.100 And he sent me a Facebook message and he said Dr. 93 00:06:04.100 --> 00:06:04.400 Nielsen. 94 00:06:04.400 --> 00:06:08.200 I just want you to know this was not our first choice in terms of team 95 00:06:08.200 --> 00:06:12.000 Ministry cuz I've been in five interviews, but you want to know 96 00:06:12.000 --> 00:06:12.400 something. 97 00:06:12.400 --> 00:06:14.500 This is been just the right spot for us. 98 00:06:14.500 --> 00:06:15.300 Everything has gone 99 00:06:15.300 --> 00:06:19.700 so well, I love this congregation and those are moments of real 100 00:06:19.700 --> 00:06:23.700 satisfaction. That's great. You see it in the students faces. That 101 00:06:23.700 --> 00:06:25.000 great to hear and 102 00:06:25.000 --> 00:06:28.500 it's a reason why people do all the work that Dr. 103 00:06:28.500 --> 00:06:32.000 Nielsen the Council of Presidents and others do faculty, staff. 104 00:06:32.000 --> 00:06:34.600 It's also why we pray. So I want to thank you 105 00:06:34.600 --> 00:06:34.900 Dr. 106 00:06:34.900 --> 00:06:37.800 Nielsen for giving us Call Day update. 107 00:06:37.800 --> 00:06:38.900 This is why Dr. 108 00:06:38.900 --> 00:06:44.100 Walther and others establish the Seminary way back in 1839 to provide 109 00:06:44.100 --> 00:06:48.300 pastors to the church and today we provide deaconesses as well. 110 00:06:48.300 --> 00:06:52.300 But we should go back even farther our Lord 111 00:06:52.300 --> 00:06:55.400 Jesus says go into all the world and preach the gospel to 112 00:06:56.200 --> 00:07:04.400 every creature. April 28th 2021 Call Day. Tune in to see what you and 113 00:07:04.400 --> 00:07:08.800 your gifts help make possible. Mission does work 114 00:07:08.800 --> 00:07:10.500 Thanks to Donors.