Harvest NewsA quarterly mission newsletter to inform and involve LCMS Christians in God’s mission
THE LUTHERAN CHURCH—MISSOURI SYNOD
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Read more inside...• Witness and mercy in Latin America and the Caribbean• Concordia Seminary, Buenos Aires• Spotlight on LCMS missionary and Argentinian pastor
Argentinian Pastor Horacio Witzke with youth group members at the central congregation of San Pedro parish, Misiones Province, Argentina.
Throughout the region, the LCMS works with par tners to share the Gospel.
Latin America and the Caribbean ministry at a glance
In Spain, Rev. Gustavo Lavia is based in Madrid, but serves the small Lutherancongregations that meet in five different locations around the country. Rev. Laviaprepares orders of worship each week for Lutheran families to worship in their ownhomes. He runs the Internet-based “Bible Institute” that trains lay leaders andfuture pastors in Lutheran doctrine.
MissionariesThe LCMS supports a team of 10 career
missionaries and their families and three
GEO missionaries serving in five countries in
Latin America and the Caribbean. Missionaries’
countries of origin include the United States,
Canada, Brazil, Argentina and Nigeria.
LCMS-supported missionaries include:
• Rev. Ed and Cherie Auger, Cayman Islands
• Anthony DiLiberto, Peru
• Rev. Mark and Sandi Eisold, Peru
• Jamie Endorf, Peru (GEO)
• *Rev. Obot and Abasifreke Ite, Jamaica
• Rev. Ted and Becca Krey, Dominican
Republic and regional director
• Katie Lane, Peru (GEO)
• *Rev. Gustavo and Rosana Lavia, Spain
• James Neuendorf, Dominican
Republic (GEO)
• Christel Neuendorf, Dominican Republic
• Danelle Putnam, Dominican Republic
• *Rev. Walter and Ana Ries, Dominican
Republic
• Bruce and Sarah Wall, Peru
*Alliance missionaries, sent jointly throughthe LCMS and a partner church body.
Theological EducationBecause of the needs for more pastors,
deaconesses and teachers to serve in Latin
America, the support of Latin American
seminaries and theological programs is a top
priority for the LCMS in the region.
Spiritual Care for Church WorkersThe lack of resources, support
and continuing education for the
Latin American pastors has led to
burnout and resignations. Supporting
pastors and missionaries with further
education and ongoing spiritual care
is vital to the church, and an LCMS
mission priority.
Church PlantingWe are planting churches today
through the joint efforts our of LCMS
missionaries and Lutheran brothers and
sisters in Latin America and the Caribbean.
MAP KEYPartner Churches in Latin America and the Caribbean
• Evangelical Lutheran Church of Argentina (IELA)(Iglesia Evangélica Luterana Argentina)
• Evangelical Lutheran Church of Brazil (IELB)(Igreja Evangélica Luterana do Brasil)
• Confessional Lutheran Church of Chile (IELCHI)(Iglesia Luterana Confesional de Chile)
• Lutheran Church of Guatemala (ILG)(Iglesia Luterana en Guatemala)
• Lutheran Synod of Mexico (SLM)(Sinodo Luterano de Mexico)
• Evangelical Lutheran Church of Paraguay (IELP)(Iglesia Evangélica Luterana del Paraguay)
• Lutheran Church of Venezuela (ILV)(Iglesia Luterana de Venezuela)
• Evangelical Lutheran Church of Haiti (ELCH)(Eglise Evangelique Lutherienne D’Haiti)
Associated Church BodiesAssociated church bodies are established Lutheran Church bodies who have some association with the LCMS but are not yet full partner churches.
• Christian Evangelical Lutheran Church of Bolivia• Lutheran Church of Panama• Lutheran Church of Uruguay
Emerging Church Bodies• Dominican Republic• Jamaica• Peru
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The LCMS is working alongside our partners throughoutLatin America, by providing resources and missionworkers. Supporting partner churches and global
seminary education are priorities for LCMS work in theworld, as are acts mercy accompanied by Word and
Sacrament. We boldly pray that the Lord will provide formore workers in the harvest fields of Latin America!
In the Cayman Islands,Rev. Ed and Deaconess Intern CherieAuger serve at Safe Harbour LutheranChurch, providing both native islandersand temporary residents of GrandCayman with Word and sacrament andother spiritual care. Rev. Auger alsoserves as a mentor for Lutheranpastors in training in Central America,through a partnership with theLutheran Church—Canada.
In the Dominican Republic,the Lutheran mission team works to bear witness to Christ’s Gospeland to share His mercy with theDominican people through churchplanting, a new Lutheran school and Good Shepherd LutheranHome, a home for developmentallydisabled children.
In Peru, the LCMS mission team is in thebeginning stages of church planting in San Borja, aneighborhood of the capital city, Lima. A result of post-earthquake disaster ministry since 2007, a Lutherancongregation is meeting in Lunahuana, wheremissionaries visit regularly to encourage and teach.
In Jamaica, Rev. Obot andAbasifreke Ite serve at St. AndrewLutheran Church in Kingston and reachout with the Gospel to the rest of theisland’s population.
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Seminary students file into a second-
story classroom carrying notebooks,
textbooks like Pieper’s “Christian
Dogmatics” and hot beverages that will help
keep them awake through class. However,
these future pastors are not on a campus in
the U.S. — they are in Buenos Aires,
Argentina. Their notes and books are in
Spanish, and the beverage they carry is not
coffee — it’s yerba mate, a traditional
Argentinian tea-like drink.
HistoryMore than 100 years ago, God sent
Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS)
missionary pastors as His witnesses to
immigrant communities in Argentina.
Through these pastors, God established
Lutheran congregations around His Word and
Sacraments. These first congregations
eventually grew into the Evangelical Lutheran
Church of Argentina (IELA) — a church body
that today includes more than 30,000
baptized members worshipping in 265
congregations, served by 80 active pastors.
In 1942, the IELA established Concordia
Seminary, Buenos Aires, to train Argentinian
men in the pastoral ministry — to be God’s
witnesses, proclaiming the Gospel to
congregations and people throughout
Argentina.
The Seminary TodayNow, 70 years later, the four full-time
and 15 part-time faculty members of
Concordia Seminary Argentina continue to
train servants of God — including pastors,
deaconesses and lay leaders. Since its
beginnings, the seminary has trained 171
men for the Office of the Holy Ministry.
Currently, more than 470 students are
participating in its various training programs.
Pastoral education students graduate with a
“Bachelor of Theology,” having completed
five years of classroom study, a three-month
pre-vicarage, a year-long vicarage and a
senior thesis.
During the 2011 school year, 19
residential students studied towards the
Bachelor of Theology degree, with an
additional 13 future pastors taking classes
online through the “Theological Education
for Hispanic America” program. During the
2012 school year, there are 10 new students,
mostly from other countries in Latin America,
including Chile, Guatemala, Paraguay, Spain,
Uruguay and Venezuela.
Nestled in a suburb of Buenos Aires, the
campus also houses Concordia Institute, a
Lutheran day school that teaches students
from pre-K through grade 12. Through the
school, seminary students have contact with
the families of more than 700 non-Lutheran
students. The campus serves as the home for
Concordia Lutheran Church, a congregation
which started in 1983 as an outreach to the
families of the school.
Offerings from the IELA’s 265
congregations, individuals and special
fundraisers come together to completely fund
the seminary. The annual “Seminary Day”
celebration, held on the seminary’s campus
each May, is a church-wide event drawing
upwards of 700 people for worship,
traditional Argentinian ‘Asado’ (Bar-B-Que)
and other activities. Students benefit from the
support of IELA congregations, scholarships
and wages from full- or part-time jobs.
A Growing NeedOut of the IELA’s 265 congregations,
nine parishes have no pastors. In Argentina, a
parish may consist of one or more
congregations. Parishes are organized into
circuits and circuits form districts. There are
many opportunities to expand into less-
reached areas of the country with missions
and church plants — but available pastors
are few.
The Rev. Sergio Fritzler, director of the
seminary, said, “Currently, we see many
vacant congregations and limitations on our
ability to do mission … and yet, we have a
shortage of students, and thus, future pastors.
It’s something for which the church has a
plan and for which we are praying — that
God would send more workers.”
“Every day, we need more and more
pastors,” said the Rev. Carlos Nagel,
president of the IELA. “We give thanks to
God for this — it’s a good problem to have.”
The Rev. Noberto Gerke, president of
the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Paraguay,
said that simply to minister to members of
existing Lutheran congregations, 50 more
Concordia Seminary celebrates 70 years of ministry and continues to expand its reach.
Pastoral education in Argentina — and beyond
Men enrolled in the pastoral education program atConcordia Seminary, Buenos Aires, for the 2012school year began classes in early March.
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pastors are needed in Argentina, Brazil, Chile,
Paraguay and Uruguay — without
considering the pressing mission needs in
each of these countries.
Graduates of the Argentinian seminary
currently serve congregations and missions in
Brazil, Chile, Paraguay, Spain, Uruguay and
even places like Australia and at Concordia
Publishing House in St. Louis, Mo.
Expanding to Serve the Entire Region“Theological education and mission are
not two separate things — we believe that
one is part of the other,” explained Fritzler.
“We believe that it’s a bonus for our students
to have positive practical experiences in
mission fields and congregations. The
experiences of vicars in mission fields like
the Dominican Republic or Salta (a region in
northern Argentina), give them tools, and
most importantly, a vision, about the mission
of the church and churches in mission.”
The Lord continues to expand the reach
of the seminary as it begins educating
students from Bolivia, Chile, the Dominican
Republic, Paraguay and Venezuela. Currently,
via Internet, five Dominican men are
studying for the Office of the Holy Ministry
and two women are studying to become
deaconesses, learning from the Argentinian
faculty through online courses. These men
will provide the Christ-centered witness
needed to lead new congregations of the
emerging Lutheran church body in the
Dominican Republic.
In Bolivia, Guatemala, Spain and
Venezuela, there is no education institution
for training pastors comparable to the
thorough pastoral preparation program
offered at Concordia Seminary. For the men
from these countries hoping to one day serve
as pastors, completing the six-year residential
program at Concordia Seminary is the only
available route to ordination.
During this 2012 academic year (the
school year in Argentina runs from early
March through mid-December), about a third
of the students are from other countries –
men who will return to their home countries
to as pastors, serving the people of their
church bodies.
The need for pastors in other Latin
American countries is even more dire than in
Argentina. “We hope that these men would
take up leadership positions to train their
own people and teach in their Bible
institutes,” explained the Rev. Ted Krey,
LCMS regional director for Latin America and
the Caribbean.
Partnership with the LCMSThe LCMS is providing scholarships for
13 students from other countries to complete
their pastoral studies at the seminary. LCMS
funding also allows seminary professors to
continue their education through advanced
studies at Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, and
Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne.
The seminary, which is celebrating its
70th anniversary in April 2012, “is a great
treasure for the church, but it is also a
responsibility,” said Fritzler. “We ask the
church to pray — that the Lord would send
more workers to the harvest field. We also
ask the church for its support — to partner
with us through offerings in support of all
our needs.”
The campus Concordia Seminary, Buenos Aires, Argentina also houses a Lutheran day school and a Lutheran congregation.
Help & Learn • Give a gift to support the ministry of Concordia Seminary in Buenos Aires.
Use the enclosed envelope to mail in a gift designated “Argentina Seminary.”
• Watch, “The Harvest Fields,” a five-minute video, featuring the seminary,
at http://video.lcms.org.
• View photos from Concordia Seminary online at http://photos.lcms.org.
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Meet Anthony DiLiber to and Horacio Witzke, serving in Peru and Argentina.
Two faces of LCMS mission work in Latin America
Meet Anthony DiLibertoA rural village mayor.
Grape farmers. Families
whose homes were lost or
damaged by the 2007
earthquake. Middle-class
engineers interested in
learning more about the Lutheran faith.
These are but a few of those who God
has led across missionary Anthony
DiLiberto’s path since he began serving in
Peru in 2008. Through building relationships
with the townspeople of Lunahuaná, guiding
short-term teams through witness and mercy
projects over the last three years, connecting
with local government officials and teaching
English-as-a-Foreign-Language classes,
DiLiberto has laid the groundwork for
ongoing mission work in Peru.
Contacts made by DiLiberto and LCMS
short-term teams have now grown into a
Lutheran congregation that meets twice per
month with Bible studies for young and old
and a worship service. DiLiberto and other
LCMS missionaries are now residing in Lima,
Peru’s capital, where the team is working
towards the planting of another
congregation.
In January 2012, DiLiberto began serving
as an LCMS career missionary in a new role:
mercy outreach specialist. He now
concentrates on identifying and developing
ways for members of the emerging Peruvian
Lutheran church body to reach out with the
love of Christ to their neighbors in both word
and deed.
We give thanks to the Lord for sending
His servant, Anthony, to serve in the harvest
fields of Peru!
Meet Horacio WitzkeRoads made of red-
colored earth crisscross
back and forth over hilly
terrain, bordered by small
forests and tobacco, tea and
yerba mate fields. A solitary
white Volkswagen slowly makes its way up a
summit en route to a small, Lutheran church
in the isolated countryside. Its driver is the
Rev. Horacio Witzke, pastor of the San Pedro
parish in Misiones Province, Argentina. The
parish actually consists of nine separate
congregations and Witzke serves as pastor to
all of them.
Witzke accepted his first call to this rural
parish upon graduation from Concordia
Seminary, Buenos Aires. Congregations in the
parish can only hold two worship services
per month, because of the time that Witzke
must spend traveling between them.
“Nine congregations in a parish for one
single pastor is almost impossible to
manage,” said Lidio Haubert, a member of
San Pedro. “I think that we could have more
[services], but it would wear out the pastor.
Our pastor doesn’t have time for anything —
his life is dedicated to only this.”
Despite the challenges, Witzke is joyful
in his work and counts it as a privilege to
serve the people of San Pedro (the parish
shares its name with a nearby town). “It’s a
privilege to have the responsibility of
bringing the Word of God to so many people
and families,” he said. “We work for the
people of God and for God Himself in
thanksgiving for what He has done for us.
Jesus Himself commanded us, ‘Pray, that the
Lord would send more workers to the harvest
fields’ (Luke 10:2).”
Witzke’s ministry provides just one
example of the need that exists across
Argentina for more pastors — so that pastors
who are stretched thin across many
congregations can focus their efforts and
devote more time to outreach and church
plants, so that the church might grow.
“We need more pastors — we don’t see
our pastor very often because he has many
locations to visit and they are all very far,”
said Yolanda Yanke, also a member of San
Pedro parish. “It’s our greatest concern — to
have more pastors and more support for our
congregations.”
Missionaries Anthony DiLiberto and Katie Lanelead children in Lunahuaná during Bible Study.
Rev. Witzke preaches on Sunday morning at thecentral congregation of his parish.
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If you are not a pastor, I’d like to dedicate
this issue of Harvest News to you. Why?
Read on…
I ama pastor. I’ve been theologically trained
and mentored by wonderfully gifted professors
and colleagues throughout my entire career as a
professional church worker. And I will testify, first
hand, that well-trained pastors are absolutely
essential to a growing church body.
However, that is part two of the whole story.
As I listen to fellow believers around the
world rehearse their history, I have learned that
people are most often drawn to the Gospel,
initially, through the caring touch of hands of
mercy, and through the personal words of witness
imbedded in simple conversations between
friends. And before long the Word spreads, as
people begin to realize that there is life and hope
in the lives of their friends…and one by one the
number grows….and they long to hear more.
Today, our focus on theological education is
a direct response to the growing number of
Christians (and yes, non-believers!) who want to
hear more…who need a shepherd! Throughout
the global Lutheran community, the number of
congregations is expanding well beyond the
number of trained pastors to serve them.
And yet you and our fellow Lutheran
believers show no signs of slowing down.
Lutherans are still touching people with hands of
mercy, and witnessing to
their friends with the Word
of life. And, the need for
trained pastors keeps on
growing.
I invite you to read in
this issue about the genesis
of a new church plant in
Peru. And then, rejoice
with us at the message
of opportunity and hope contained in this issue. It
is part two of the story.
That’s why I want to dedicate this issue to
you, fellow believers, fellow Lutherans. Witness
and mercy begins with our Lord and through His
gifts of Word and Sacrament, He strengthens and
enables your faithful witness resulting in the need
for shepherds.
May God continue the good work that He has
begun among us!
Sincerely in Christ,
Rev. Dr. David C. Birner
Interim Co-Executive Director
Office of International Mission
The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod
Director’s L E T T E R
My Dear Par tners in the Gospel
Letters should be signed and addressed to Harvest News Editor, 1333 S. Kirkwood Road, St. Louis, MO 63122-7295
Send email to: [email protected]
Individual free subscriptions may be ordered by calling 888-843-5267, or by registering at www.lcms.org/harvestnews.
Copyright © 2012 The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. Permission granted to reprint Harvest News articles. Please notify [email protected].
Rev. Dr. David C. BirnerInterim Co-Executive Director Office of International Mission
Harvest News StaffCarolyn Niehoff, Elizabeth Truong
EditorDeaconess Pamela Nielsen
ContributorJames Neuendorf
Rev. Dr. David Birner
Dear readers,
We pray that you enjoy this editionof Harvest News, filled with storiesof how God is working through theLCMS to share the Gospelthroughout Latin America. You,too, are part of this story — Godblesses your gifts to the LCMSenabling our work in the world.
Many of you have called or writtenour office to let us know about amailing error related to theprevious issue of Harvest News.Thank you for alerting us to aproblem that has since beencorrected.
I invite you to share the stories inthis issue with your family, friendsand congregation — may they be asource of encouragement and joy!
In Christ,
Deaconess Pamela NielsenManaging Editor
Apr. 1 J.P. Cima, Vietnam
Apr. 2 Sarah Berta-Somogyi, Hungary; Michael Vogel, Taiwan
Apr. 3 Michael Piescer, Japan
Apr. 10 Shauen Trump, Kenya
Apr. 14 Megan Kincaid, Hong Kong; Joel Scheiwe, Hong Kong; Rachel Sekki, Taiwan
Apr. 18 Robert Ferrin, Hong Kong
Apr. 20 Elliot Derricks, Macau
Apr. 27 Gretchen Weesner, Asia
Apr. 28 Andy Jones, Germany; Matthew Fick, Taiwan
Apr. 29 Jennifer Rasch, Nigeria
Apr. 30 Richard Larson, Asia
May 1 Ed Strohschein, Hong Kong
May 2 Hannah Kiefer, Macau; Sarah Weider, Indonesia
May 4 Deborah Aarhus, South Korea
May 9 Todd Roeske, Philippines; Virginia Taff-Lagergren, South Africa
May 11 Michael Rodewald, South Africa
May 15 Delaine Baker, South Korea; Matthew Heise, Eurasia
May 16 Rita Flohrs, Germany
May 18 Sandi Eisold, Peru; Kalia Lo, Cambodia
Prayer ResourcesMay 19 Jerry Markin, Vietnam
May 21 Jacqueline Noel Engelbrecht, Asia
May 26 David Bickel, South Korea; Persephone James, Hong Kong
May 27 Donna Meyer, Papua New Guinea
May 30 Steve Kosberg, South Korea; Carl Rockrohr, South Africa
June 4 Sarah Wall, Peru
June 7 Kevin Baker, South Korea; Carl Hanson, Hong Kong
June 8 Chen-Hsi Hanson, Hong Kong
June 11 Tony Booker, Czech Republic
June 13 Ted Engelbrecht, Asia
June 14 Mary Ettner, Vietnam; Janet Moeller-Abercrombie, Hong Kong
June 16 Allen Piepenbrink, Hong Kong
June 18 Deborah Going, Indonesia
June 24 Andrew Schaff, Taiwan
June 26 Christine Bickel, South Korea
June 27 Judy Newhouse, Hong Kong
June 28 Mark Wolfram, Taiwan
June 29 David Pfeifer, Thailand; Iantha Scheiwe, Hong Kong
L April, May & June Missionary & Personnel Bir thday List
Military chaplains with birthdays in April:Chaplain Douglas Ochner, Germany; Dr. Dennis Scheck,Fort Eustis, Va.; Chaplain Jeffery Wollberg, Battle Creek,Mich.; Chaplain Derek Wolter, St. Louis, Mo.; ChaplainThomas Waynick, Washington, D.C.; Chaplain WilliamYates, Air National Guard
Military chaplains with birthdays in May:Chaplain Marc DiConti, Camp Pendleton, Calif.; ChaplainDonald Ehrke, Fort Bliss, Texas; Chaplain Matthew Franke,McChord Field, Wash.; Chaplain Timothy Sowers, RedstoneArsenal, Ala.; Chaplain Charles Varsogea, England
Military chaplains with birthdays in June:Chaplain Sean Ballard, Vandenberg AFB, Calif.; ChaplainWalter Diekroger, Chillicothe, Ohio; Chaplain Randy Loux,Fort Bragg, N.C.; Chaplain Carl Muehler, Norfolk, Va.;Chaplain Matthew Prince, Parris Island, S.C.; ChaplainTimothy Rosenthal, Hickam AFB, Hawaii; Chaplain RobertStroud, MAF Committee; Chaplain Mark Tews, Afghanistan;Chaplain Arleigh von Seggern, Nellis AFB, Nev.
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CPH’s Amazing Desert Journey includes the LCMS Project:
Clean Water a refreshing outreach opportunity.
Join the Journey! A VBS with Purpose. http://vbs.cph.org
A glass of water to you ... the gift of life to them.
Did you know?
You can help!
P.O. Box 66861
www.lcms.org/vbs
In Christ,
for the Church
and the World!
Contact Information
888-THE-LCMS314-965-0959 [email protected]
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Harvest News
1333 S. Kirkwood Road St. Louis, MO 63122-7295
The Evangelical Lutheran Church of Argentina celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2005.
THE LUTHERAN CHURCH—MISSOURI SYNOD