Underlying the current unrest affecting us in the Concordia system may be the paradigm shift in higher education and the expectations of what it is intended to do (a subject all in itself that could occupy its own thread). In the earliest years the Concordia system was a system primarily designed to prepare workers for our churches and schools. To some degree it retains that charter, but as we all know those numbers have dropped precipitously. Funding from Synod, Inc., which used to be more substantial, has also dropped. The schools, therefore, were pushed to find money outside the official system, often from private donors, as well as from recruitment of those pursuing non-church careers. I was surprised when I taught a mid-level theology course at one of our Concordias back in 2020 to discover not one church workers student in the class which numbered 20 (at the beginning). The online course was structured by a rostered LCMS professor and reflected our beliefs, even including readings from Luther and CTCR documents. The problem, in part, was that the class reflected many who were barely catechized or not catechized at all in the Christian faith. My daughter also discovered this in her roommate for her freshman year. We have brought in many students who are not only non-Lutheran, but who are essentially not even literate in the Christian faith in general. One of my students in the course I taught admitted to opening the Bible for the first time only the semester prior.
This diversity of non-catechized students are naturally gong to reflect the outside culture. And it's not just that this conflicts with the culture within the LCMS, it conflicts, in part, with Christian culture in general. So when it comes to the current mantra of "diversity, inclusion, and equity," many of these people turn to the outside culture for definitions and direction and not primarily to the scriptures. We certainly have a tradition of kindness and love to those who are different than we are. The scriptures inform us to love our neighbor as ourselves. But even the concept of what it means to "love the neighbor" is vastly different inside and outside of the church. Outside of the church it means not only tolerance of all differences, it means unconditional acceptance of them. Now here I am not referring to racial issues, which I see as a category different than other 'diversity' issues, especially when it comes to that area the professor mentioned frequently in his diatribe: the LGBTQ+ community (which we should treat with kindness even if we do not agree). It is no secret, as well, that church bodies across our nation approach these issues with dramatically different convictions and understandings. So many see what some churches do outside the LCMS and assume that this is the standard of all churches. Much confusion abounds.
As my daughter observed, this clash was bound to happen and was inevitable. Yet it gives us an opportunity to discuss a difficult subject we seem to have been dancing around, perhaps hoping it would just go away. It won't. Should we have addressed it much earlier? Most certainly. But we can't waste time implicating the past. The issue is how we address it in a Christian manner that is faithful to the confession that governs the school. CUC, like all of our Concordias, whether some like it or not, are not only Lutheran schools, they are LCMS Lutheran schools. Unless the synod decides to divest itself of them. But that is a decision for the Synod, not the school, not the faculty, not the students.
The issue that has surfaced now at more than one Concordia is not simply gong to just 'blow over'. We're way past that. And there will be difficult and painful moments to come as we must firmly and faithfully address what our Concordias are meant to be and expected to teach.
We still need them to teach our called workers. CUC has the only undergraduate program for deaconess studies. I am hoping this will continue. Yes, I'm vested in that because of my daughter, but I think the church is as well. Can we train people in other vocations faithful to our confession? Yes, but it will not be like every other university, private or public. I think that Dr. Dawn is working to make sure CUC reflects our confession in all that it does. Not an easy task. But if the synod abandons him now, he is sunk. He must have its support. We will not just ride this out. Fallout is inevitable. But I think that CUC can arise from this, as the rest of our Concordias, stronger and more clearly focused on their central mission.
