All Pastors’ Conference 2019 – More than Sound Bytes – Playlist
**To view all videos from this conference, click on the upper right corner of the image above and choose from the playlist**
In a culture of outrage, it is often difficult to take the time to listen and have healthy conversations. In our congregations, it can be easier to avoid conversations that are potentially difficult than to minister within the tension and brokenness that our people live in. Come join us as we learn how to engage faithfully and reclaim conversations on sexuality, race, gender, mental health, and more.
“My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires” (James 1:19–20).
Sessions
- Framing Conversation – Rev. Dr. John A. Nunes
- Framing Technology – Rev. A.Trevor Sutton
- Framing Cultural Engagement – Rev. Dr. Kenneth W. Chitwood
- Breakout Session – Mental Health – Rev. Dr. Daniel R. van Voorhis
- Preview & Breakout Session – LGBTQ+ – Rev. William (Billy) A. Brath
- Preview & Breakout Session – Immigration – Rev. Dr. Leopoldo A. Sanchez
- Preview & Breakout Session – Women – Mrs. Gretchen M. Jameson
- Preview & Breakout Session – Race – Rev. Christopher R. Bodley
- President’s Report – Rev. Dr. Robert Kasper (for Rev. Dr. David P. E. Maier)
Speakers
Rev. Dr. John A. Nunes
President
Concordia College, New York
Dr. John Arthur Nunes has served as Concordia College New York’s ninth president since 2016. Under his leadership, the college has continued its notable growth to record enrollment. Dr. Nunes came to Concordia College from Valparaiso University, where he held the Jochum Chair, a university professorship supporting the study of Christian values in public and professional life. He had previously served as pastor to inner-city churches in Buffalo, NY; Detroit, Mich.; Dallas, Texas; taught at Concordia University Chicago, and was the President and CEO of Lutheran World Relief. He holds a B.A. from Concordia College, Ann Arbor, Mich.; an M.Div. from Concordia Seminary, St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada; and both M.Th. and Ph.D. from the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago. He is married to Monique Nunes, and they are the parents of six grown children and an expanding entourage of grandchildren.
Rev. A. Trevor Sutton
Associate Pastors
St. Luke, Lansing
Rev. A. Trevor Sutton is associate pastor at St. Luke Lutheran Church in Meridian Township and Lansing, Mich. He is currently a Ph.D. student at Concordia Seminary in St. Louis, Mo. Sutton has an M.A. (Digital Rhetoric) from Michigan State University, M.Div. from Concordia Seminary, and a B.A. from Concordia University Ann Arbor. He writes for The Gospel Coalition, Sightings, Faith & Leadership, Outreach Magazine, The Conversation, and other publications. His most recent books include Clearly Christian: Following Jesus in this Age of Confusion (CPH, 2018) and Authentic Christianity: How Lutheran Theology Speaks to a Post-Modern World (co-authored with Gene Veith Jr., CPH, 2017). Sutton lives in Okemos, Mich., with his wife, Elizabeth, and their two daughters. You can follow him on Twitter (@atrevorsutton).
Rev. Dr. Kenneth W. Chitwood
University of Southern California’s Center for Religion and Civic Culture
Rev. Ken Chitwood is a religion scholar, writer, and pastor. He holds a Ph.D. from the University of Florida, where he worked with the Department of Religion and the Center for Global Islamic Studies. His academic work focuses on Muslims in the Americas, American religion, religion and culture, Christian-Muslim relations, and ethnographic methods and manifestations of religion-beyond-religion in a global and digital age. Ken is also an award-winning religion, travel, and culture newswriter. As a Lutheran pastor who accents “glocal” 21st-century Christianity, Ken is interested in the contextualization of doctrines and practices across religious boundaries, physical borders, and cultural barriers. Ken has served in parish ministry in California, New Zealand, South Africa, Arizona, Texas, and Florida. He is currently working as a journalist-fellow with the University of Southern California’s Center for Religion and Civic Culture and resides in Berlin, Germany with his wife Paula Rötscher.
Rev. Dr. Daniel R. van Voorhis
Dean of 1517 Academy
Dr. Daniel van Voorhis has been a professor of history and political science for over 10 years, having most recently served as the assistant Dean of Arts and Sciences at Concordia University, Irvine, Calif. Dr. van Voorhis can be found acting as the Dean of the 1517 Academy, hosting the daily podcast The Christian History Almanac, producing The Soul of Christianity, and writing weekly at 1517.org. He is a nationally sought-out speaker, the author of two books and of numerous articles in journals, magazines, and online. Dr. van Voorhis worked in broadcast radio and television before taking his B.A. in Theology and earning his Ph.D. at the University of St. Andrews, Scotland. He practices yoga, loves all music, and follows the Rams, Angels, and Clippers with fanatic zeal. He and his wife, Beth Anne, have two sons.
Rev. William (Billy) A. Brath
VP of Ministry Support
LCEF
Rev. Billy Brath serves the church as the Vice-President of Ministry Support – East Region for the Lutheran Church Extension Fund (LCEF). He finds joy working with churches, organizations, and leaders to develop and produce ministries that effectively reach the culture today. He has a B.A. in secular religious studies, worked as an entertainer and dancer in Orlando, Fla., received his M.Div. from Concordia Seminary in St. Louis, served as pastor and urban Missionary at Trinity Downtown Orlando, planted the campus congregation at the University of Central Florida, LiveUCF, and has worked with district and national church organizations including Lutheran Hour Ministries and NYG. As a devoted Orlandonian, Billy continues to be Pastor to his neighbors and sees it as his primary call.
Rev. Dr. Leopoldo A. Sánchez
Professor of Hispanic Ministries
Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, MO
Rev. Dr. Leopoldo A. Sánchez M. is the Werner R. H. and Elizabeth R. Krause Professor of Hispanic Ministries at Concordia Seminary in St. Louis, Mo (CSL). A faculty member since 2004, he is professor of Systematic Theology and director of the Seminary’s Center for Hispanic Studies. He received his Ph.D. from CSL in 2003 and his M.Div. from Concordia Theological Seminary in Fort Wayne, Ind. in 1999. He holds a bachelor’s degree from Concordia University Wisconsin (1995). His primary research interests are in pneumatology (Holy Spirit), Spirit Christology, sanctification, issues in Hispanic ministries (especially immigration and the intersection of theology and culture) and Trinitarian theology.
Mrs. Gretchen Jameson
Sr. Vice-President for Strategy and University Affairs
Concordia University Wisconsin/AnnArbor
Gretchen Jameson serves as Sr. Vice-President for Strategy and University Affairs at Concordia University (Wisconsin and Ann Arbor, Mich.), where she leads internal and external stakeholders to accomplish the University vision. Following five years as a high school educator, Gretchen spent eight years at the national level of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. There and through her work with high-profile nonprofit clients at her start-up consultancy, purePR, Gretchen earned a strong reputation for her insight and leadership in the areas of brand development, communications, and organizational culture. A much-sought-after speaker, Gretchen frequently keynotes on the topics of brand identity, strategy, and organizational change. She holds a B.S. Ed. from Concordia University Nebraska; M.A. in Public Relations from Webster University; and is currently a doctoral student in the Organizational Change and Leadership program at the University of Southern California. Connect with her at: twitter.com/gmjameson; www.linkedin.com/in/gretchenjameson.
Rev. Christopher R. Bodley
Missionary at Large for Acts 2 Enterprise
Michigan District, LCMS
Rev. Christopher Bodley is the Michigan District’s Missionary at Large for Acts 2 Enterprise (A2E), a gospel-centered holistic outreach to the urban context. Bodley is also the lead pastor at Bethany Lutheran on the East Side of Detroit. In his role as A2E Director, he facilitates cutting-edge kingdom strategies including computer literacy classes, soft skills training, expungement fairs, partnerships for marketplace ministry, cultural competency, technology training for local churches, and city-wide sports camps in Detroit and other Michigan cities. He has been in ministry for 27 years, having also served as pastor to two multiethnic congregations in Florida and as a military chaplain in the U.S. Navy for 12 years. He and his wife Shikina have 5 sons.