St. Michael Liturgical Conference Recap
The 2019 St. Michael Liturgical Conference was held at Zion Evangelical-Lutheran Church of Detroit on Monday, September 30.
The Conference began with a Solemn High Mass on the Commemoration of St. Jerome, Priest and Confessor, (see a video of the Mass here)
Presiding: The Rt. Rev. Dr. David P. Stechholz, Bishop and President of the English District Emeritus
Preacher: The Rev. Dr. David Petersen, Pastor of Redeemer Evangelical-Lutheran Church of Fort Wayne
Celebrant: Fr. Mark P. Braden, Pastor of Zion
Deacon: Fr. Edward Steeh, Pastor Emeritus of St. John Evangelical-Lutheran Church of Ray Township
Subdeacon: Fr. Ryan Beffrey, Pastor of Epiphany Evangelical-Lutheran Church of Dorr
Chaplain to the Bishop: Fr. Raymond Parent, Pastor of Redford Evangelical-Lutheran Church of Detroit
Servers at the Mass included pre-seminary students from Concordia University Wisconsin and Concordia University Ann Arbor. Mr. Thomas Habitz, Chairman of Zion Congregation, served as Thurifer for the Mass.
The Lutheran High School Westland Chambers Choir sang at the Mass.
The Conference Keynote Presenter was Fr. Roy Axel Coats, Pastor of Lutheran Church of the Redeemer, Baltimore, Maryland. Fr. Coats presented on “Adiaphora and Modernity”, exploring the relationship between modern thought and the definition of adiaphora in the debate between the orthodox Valentin Alberti, the pietist Philipp Spener, and the modernist Christian Thomasius Leipzig around the year 1700. Fr. Coats then showed how the themes of this debate are present in modern considerations of adiaphora. Read Fr. Coats’ paper here. Watch a video of Fr. Coats presenting here.
The Divine Office of Sext was prayed at noon, Fr. Braden presiding. A catered luncheon was served after Sext. After lunch Bishop Emeritus Stechholz brought greetings to the Conference attendees from the English District, and Mr. Jeff Long, Thrivent representative, greeted the attendees on behalf of Thrivent, a major sponsor of the 2019 Conference.
Three shorter papers were given in the afternoon by the Reverend Dr. Frank Pies, by Fr. Charles McClean, and by the Reverend Dr. Burnell Eckardt.
Fr. Frank Pies, Pastor emeritus of Our Savior Evangelical-Lutheran Church of Hartland, Michigan, led the Conference attendees in a study of the rites, rubrics and ceremony of Private Confession and Absolution.
Fr. Charles McClean, Pastor of Our Savior Evangelical-Lutheran Church of Baltimore, Maryland presented on the life and work of the Rev. Friedrich Lochner, a 19th century German Lutheran Pastor who served in Milwaukee. Lochner was a pioneer in liturgical renewal. Fr. McClean distributed select excerpts from Lochner’s book Der Hauptgottesdienst, and discussed Lochner’s liturgical contributions.
Fr. Burnell Eckardt, General Editor of Gottesdienst magazine, and Pastor of St. Paul Evangelical-Lutheran Church in Kewanee, Illinois, presented on the topic of “The Atonement and its Implications on the Pastoral Task”. A copy of Fr. Eckardt’s Powerpoint presentation can be downloaded here (scroll down to his paper).
An organ recital was given by Ms. Emily Solomon, Cantor of Zion.
The Divine Office of Solemn Vespers was prayed at the close of the Conference, Fr. Braden and Fr. Beffrey serving as co-Presidents, Fr. Braden preaching. Download his sermon here (scroll down to 2 Timothy 3:10-17).
A lively Gemütlichkeit was enjoyed by Conference attendees after Vespers.
The annual Presenters Dinner was held at Tria, an upscale restaurant in Dearborn.
The 2020 St. Michael Liturgical Conference is scheduled for Monday, September 28. Watch the Zion website for information, updates, and registration information.