Unity and hope at LTSS welcome service

The first chapel service of the spring 2025 semester marked the historic arrival of Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary (LTSS) to the Hickory campus of Lenoir-Rhyne University. Students, faculty, staff and community members came together in Grace Chapel on January 15 for a service of worship and welcome.

In his opening remarks, Lenoir-Rhyne President Fred Whitt, Ed.D., called the service “a significant milestone in the life of our university.”

He added, “Today we officially welcome, as part of the 195-year pilgrimage, the seminary to the main campus of Lenoir-Rhyne University. We know our Lenoir-Rhyne community, as well as the Hickory, Catawba County and Unifour communities are ready to welcome you with open arms and with love and compassion. We certainly look forward to celebrating the 200th year of the seminary in just five short years, and we know that the seminary will have a home here for many more years to come.”

As an LTSS alumnus and interim chair of the LTSS advisory council, the Rev. Rick Goeres, M.Div. ’84, compared the seminary’s many relocations over the years with the journey of the three Magi who visited the newborn Jesus Christ.

“It’s exciting to be here on this campus of our university, where we can share cross-disciplines and influence one another in our learnings and in our sharings,” he said before offering a blessing for the new semester. “May you be filled with wonder this day and every day.”

LTSS holds a custom of formally acknowledging the Indigenous peoples whose land the seminary occupies – in this case the Catawba tribe. The Rev. Dr. Melanie Dobson, associate professor, poured water taken from rivers significant to LTSS into the baptismal bowl for this service, while the Rev. Dr. Chad Rimmer, dean and rector of LTSS, reflected on the seminary’s connection to the land, its Indigenous caretakers and the seminary’s pilgrimage,

“Today we remember how far God has brought us,” he said. “From the communities of our baptism; to the Broad, Saluda and Congaree Rivers which flow near the Columbia Campus of Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary; to the Catawba River in this community in which we now stand.”

Between familiar hymns such as “Thine is the Glory” and “I’ve Got Peace Like a River,” and scripture readings from Isaiah 43: 1-7 and Luke 3: 15-17 and 21-22, the Rev. Todd Cutter ’96, M.A. ’00, M.Div. ’04, in his role as university pastor, delivered a meditation that started with the origins of the slang term “hot mess” and ended with a reminder of how we can endure change and the chaos of an unpredictable world through our connections with God and with one another.

“God is with us in the words of scripture, and in the declaration of forgiveness. God is with us in the body and blood of communion, and God is especially with us in the community that surrounds us together,” he affirmed. “And with God’s help we can face any hot mess as we weep with those who weep and as we rejoice with those who rejoice.”

Honoring the connection and community with God and one another, the service ended with the sharing of Holy Communion, led by the Rev. Dr. Beverly Wallace, M.Div. ’96, director of lifelong learning at LTSS. 

At the end of the service, Dobson offered the final blessing and a promise for the new era of LTSS history. “With God’s help, we, the administration, faculty, students and friends pledge to work together that all may find welcome in this place.”