Pastoral students continue studies in Ukraine

Rev. Dr. Wilhelm Torgerson (left) with seminary students in Ukraine.

UKRAINE – The education of a new class of pastors for the Synod of Evangelical Lutheran Churches in Ukraine (SELCU) at Concordia Seminary in Odessa-Usatowe, Ukraine continued in late 2017.

Pastoral students finished their studies of the Patristic Age, with a particular emphasis on the First Four Ecumenical Councils, their doctrinal decisions, and their influence on our churches today. Following that, students began a course on Sermon Preparation, building on studies Rev. Dr. Wilhelm Torgerson led during his first teaching stint at the Ukrainian seminary. Dr. Torgerson is a pastor of Lutheran Church–Canada (LCC) and Dean of Concordia Seminary in Odessa-Usatowe.

During his time in Ukraine, Dr. Torgerson also visited Dnepropetrovsk where he preached to the local SELCU congregation. With the help of LCC pastor Rev. Roland Syens and Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Kitchener, Ont. the congregation recently purchased a tent-like facility used by a fitness club and now faces the task of preparing it for worship after taking possession December 1.

Additionally, Dr. Torgerson visited the SELCU church in Odessa, Ukraine, where he preached in mid-December. The congregation currently has no permanent worship space of its own, meeting in the living room of an apartment owned by SELCU—a tight squeeze for the more than 50 people who attended the service.

LCC has long supported the mission and ministry of the Synod of Evangelical Lutheran Churches in Ukraine. It is especially involved in providing seminary education to the Ukrainian church, paying for the seminary building, and providing instructors.

“Greetings to you all from Ukraine!” writes Dr. Torgerson in a late 2017 email. “Remember LCC’s work in the Ukraine in your prayers, that is my request to you all.”

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