Bruss Installed as Seventeenth President of Concordia Theological Seminary
FORT WAYNE, Ind., Sept. 10, 2024 — Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne (CTSFW), opened its 179th academic year with a new president at the helm, the Rev. Dr. Jon Steffen Bruss, who was installed as the seventeenth president of CTSFW during the service. Bruss succeeds the Rev. Dr. Lawrence R. Rast Jr., who retired as president in May after thirteen years of service.
“God has given our seminary a great gift in Dr. Bruss,” said Rast, who has returned to the faculty as a full-time professor of historical theology. “I am so thankful that we have a faithful president to lead us into a bright future.”
Gathered worshippers, including first-year students (front rows, pulpit side), sing the processional hymn “Praise, My Soul, the King of Heaven” (LSB 793).
The Rev. Dr. Matthew C. Harrison, president of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS), served as preacher for the service, focusing on the exhortation in Ephesians 6 to put on the “whole armor of God.” Near the end of his sermon, Harrison voiced a concern about the dangers of thanklessness for the Gospel, then called attention to reasons to be thankful.
“We are not perfect. We never will be. But we have so much to be thankful for. And today, Jon Bruss, we’re thankful for you. We’re thankful for this seminary, for the blessings it has brought to so many of us for so long. We’re thankful for the faculty. We’re thankful for all our seminaries. We’re thankful for St. Louis. We’re thankful for Tom Egger. We’re thankful for our presidents of our universities and the theological faculties. We’re thankful for the strong public confession of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. We’re thankful that this faith dwells among us.
“And believe me, I travel internationally as much as anybody else, and the fidelity of this seminary and the Missouri Synod is a beacon for millions around the world.”
The Rev. Dr. Matthew C. Harrison, president of The Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod, preaches the sermon for the Opening Service and Installation of Dr. Jon Steffen Bruss.
The Rev. Dr. D. Richard Stuckwisch, president of the LCMS Indiana District, presided over Bruss’s installation. Several CTSFW faculty members read Scripture verses on the Office of the Holy Ministry, including a passage from 2 Timothy 4, from which the Seminary’s motto, “Preach the Word,” is drawn. After Stuckwisch read a full description of the Seminary’s mission, Bruss offered his solemn promise to “instruct and guide the students of this seminary in accord with its mission.”
In his first official act as president, Bruss declared the opening of the 179th academic year at CTSFW. Shortly thereafter, he presented a presidential address on the meaning of the name of the Seminary, Concordia, in which he noted the inseparable nature of faith and confession.
“Faith simply can never be apart from confession,” said Bruss. “‘I believe.’ That’s faith. Saying it out loud? That’s confession. Faith and confession go hand in glove.”
The Rev. Dr. D. Richard Stuckwisch, president of the LCMS Indiana District, installs the Rev. Dr. Jon Steffen Bruss as president of Concordia Theological Seminary.
Bruss concluded his “small apologia” for the Lutheran Confessions with implications for the seminary he now leads.
“Let us never, ever tire of our Confessions, our Book of Concord, our Concordia. Instead, as a seminary, let’s press into it. Because the more we press into our Book of Concord, the more will we press into the Scriptures. And the more that we press into the Scriptures, the more will we find in our Confessions the deposit of faith and the pattern of sound words.”
To watch a recording of the installation and opening service, visit our CTSFW Youtube channel at ctsfw.edu/youtube.
President Bruss with family members Peter and Ingrid Funk and Kristine Bruss; Bruss with CTSFW President Emeritus Dr. Dean Wenthe (left) and President Emeritus Dr. Lawrence R. Rast Jr. (right); representatives of CUS universities, Concordia Lutheran Theological Seminary, St. Catherines, Ontario, CTSFW, and Concordia Seminary, St. Louis.
Founded in 1846, Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne, forms servants of Jesus Christ in a vibrant, Christ-centered theological community that engages and resources the church and the world, domestically and internationally, with distinctively Lutheran teaching, practice, and worship. To learn more, visit ctsfw.edu.
