2026 April — CTSFW Announces Calls and Assignments

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: CTSFW Communications, communications@ctsfw.edu

CTSFW Announces Calls and Assignments

FORT WAYNE, April 30, 2026—Students at Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne (CTSFW), learned where they will be serving as pastors, vicars, and deaconess interns in two special services held April 28 and April 29 in Kramer Chapel. The Seminary announced 67 assignments, internships, and placements in 22 of the 35 districts of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS).

Pastoral ministry students called to serve

At the April 29 call service, 34 pastoral calls were announced for 30 Master of Divinity (MDiv) students, three Alternate Route (AR) students (including one SMP to AR completion), and one graduate of Concordia Lutheran Theological Seminary in St. Catherines, Ontario, Canada. Pastors-elect will be serving LCMS congregations throughout the US.

One of those students, Joshua Bieri, has been called as a church planter by the LCMS South Wisconsin District, where he’ll continue the work he’s been doing for the past year as a vicar.

“Church planting is different in the sense that you don’t have the standard things that an established congregation has, but the job is the same,” said Bieri. “You visit people, if you’re doing it right. You’re not sitting behind your computer all day long. You’re out meeting people.

“It’s been refreshing to talk about Christ crucified, unapologetically, and see what comes from it. Jesus made it simple, and we like to complicate it. You just go out and do it.”

The Rev. Dr. William A. Harmon, president of the LCMS Southeastern District, delivered the sermon at the service. He told a story about a hardworking parishioner who, as she lay dying in a hospital bed, asked him, “Have I done enough?” He then told the future pastors that there will be times when they, too, ask, “Have I done enough?”

Rev. William A. Harmon, president of the LCMS Southeastern District, preaches at the call service April 29.

“The answer will be no,” said Harmon. “But there’s One who has. And He has promised not to leave you as orphans but to send His Holy Spirit to be around you and in you to provide for you the gifts and the fruits you need to serve Him. … There is One who has— who shoulders your sins, who dies your death, and provides for you that resurrection victory because you are precious in His sight.”

After Harmon’s sermon, Dr. Jeffrey H. Pulse, director of Certification and Placement, provided information about this year’s call process, noting that the number of calls exceeded the number of seminary candidates available.

But he had good news to share. “While we might wring our hands and declare this ‘the worst of times,’ you should be aware that the incoming class at each seminary is significantly higher,” said Pulse. “The Lord WILL take care of His Church.”

Dr. Jeffrey H. Pulse, director of Certification and Placement, addresses those gathered before announcing pastoral ministry calls April 29.

At the conclusion of the service, CTSFW President Dr. Jon S. Bruss asked for prayers for the “blood-bought Christians” in congregations that did not receive a hoped-for pastor or vicar, then encouraged men to consider coming to the seminary and families to help their sons see ordained ministry as a blessing.

“Through it, the Lord sends people to heaven, and he keeps your children and grandchildren in the faith,” said Bruss. “What more could you ask for?”

Vicarages and deaconess internships announced April 28

On April 28, the evening before the call service, 30 seminarians, including 28 MDiv students and two AR students, learned where they would be serving as vicars, and three distance deaconess students received internship assignments in absentia. One deaconess intern will be serving in Puerto Rico through the LCMS Office of International Mission.

Second-year students line up in front of Kramer Chapel before the assignment and internship service April 28.

Rev. Eric T. Lange, pastor at Redeemer Evangelical Lutheran Church, Gresham, Oregon, and first vice-president of the LCMS Northwest District, preached at the service. In his sermon, Lange noted that the appointed readings, Ezekiel 37:24–28 and 1 Peter 3: 8–17, brought to mind Luther’s explanation of the Fourth Commandment, which he related to the relationship between supervisors and their vicars.

“I thought about starting my message tonight by saying, ‘Do I really have to love my supervisor?’ The answer is yes,” said Lange. “The good news is they need to love you, too.”

Rev. Lange speaks from experience, having supervised two summer vicars and 25 vicars, 22 of whom have been CTSFW students. In recognition of this service, Lange and Redeemer received the fifth annual Wyneken Vicarage Award, named for one of CTSFW’s founders, the Rev. F. C. D. Wyneken. The award is given annually to pastors and congregations that have demonstrated exceptional service to the Church through their participation in the vicarage program.

“It is this partnership between the seminary and these congregations and pastors that makes our pastoral formation as robust and Gospel-focused as it is,” said Dr. Todd Peperkorn, director of Vicarage and Internship, who presented the award. “You have heard an example of why we have been so adamant in sending so many vicars to Pastor Lange for so many years. He is a true gift to the Church.”

Dr. Jon Bruss (left), Rev. Eric Lange, and Dr. Todd Peperkorn after the assignment and internship service April 28.

For recordings of both services, lists of calls and assignments, photo albums, and an interactive placement map, visit ctsfw.edu/CallDay.

Considering Church Work?

Thinking about becoming a pastor or deaconess? Contact CTSFW Admission at Admission@ctsfw.edu or (260) 452-2155, or fill out an inquiry form at ctsfw.edu/admission.

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