A Tale of Two Schools: Lutheran Identity and Mission Go Hand in Hand

By Samuel Eatherton

There once was a Lutheran school in a town with a lot of Lutherans living in it. The school was part of the Lutheran church it was connected to and was started when the church was formed years ago. The church founders started the school to educate their children in matters both temporal and spiritual. This still seems to be a chief purpose of the school, for many church members continue to send their children. Others from outside the congregation attend the school as well — some from other Lutheran churches in the area, some from other denominations, and a handful of unchurched students. The school has a strong Lutheran culture due to its called teachers and pastors and the predominance of Lutheran families in the school. The students are catechized daily and participate in chapel worship that reflects and reinforces the worship they participate in on Sundays.

There once was another Lutheran school in a town with not so many Lutherans. It, too, was begun when the church was formed and was intended chiefly to instruct its children from the Lutheran perspective. But very few church members now send their children to the school. Perhaps the demographics around the church have changed, or church families are satisfied with the public or private education they can receive elsewhere. There are a handful of Lutheran students in the school, perhaps children of the called workers, but most students hail from outside the Lutheran faith: Many denominations and unchurched families are represented. What Lutheran culture exists in the school is maintained largely by the called teachers and pastors. The students are still taught the catechism, have the Lutheran faith integrated into all subjects, and experience Lutheran worship, but most students receive very little (if any) reinforcement in these areas from their parents at home or in Sunday worship.

I have served in schools much like the two described. Both of them have a certain level of Lutheran identity or culture, and both have an eye toward reaching those outside the faith. In the first, the Lutheran identity in the school is strong, with teachers and most families coming from the same perspective. Those students and families who are outside the Lutheran church are carried along with the church families, experiencing the Lutheran culture of the church and school. In the second, the burden of Lutheran identity is held by the church workers and is much more difficult to maintain, because the non-Lutheran parents are not naturally inclined toward Lutheran catechesis or worship. The school culture is Lutheran due to the teachers, but most of the families remain outside the Lutheran faith. This congregation may see its school as being more of an outreach to the community than a tool to catechize its own members. So, should our Lutheran schools exist primarily for the bringing up of our Lutheran children in the faith, as it has been historically? Yes. Unless parents are immersing their children in biblical teaching at home every day, then yes, they should take advantage of a Lutheran school. Should Lutheran schools also be mission-minded? Yes, of course. Mission-minded and Lutheran identity. These two attributes of Lutheran schools go hand in hand.

Think of God’s chosen people Israel after they settled in the Promised Land. God wanted them to be set apart from the wicked practices of the Canaanites, so He gave them laws to follow. He told them not to marry into non-Israelite families lest they be turned to the false gods of those households (Deut. 7:3–4). God knew what He was doing. He knew that if His chosen people were not careful about who they associated with, they may be swayed by other teachings and cease to follow Him. He was right. Much of the books of history and prophecy show how Israel failed to keep their identity as God’s people and ended up doing all the things God had warned against. At the same time, a number of non-Israelites became part of their community — Rahab of Jericho and Ruth of Moab are just two examples. The salvation of foreigners among them was a definite part of God’s purpose in preserving their God-worshiping identity.

Our thinking about Lutheran education should be similar. The original purpose of the Lutheran school — the training of our churches’ children — should be strongly encouraged and celebrated. With a strong Lutheran identity, Lutheran schools are well poised to proclaim God’s Word to those who are outside the circle of faith. Students attending from the congregation can act as Christian examples for students who are unchurched. The presence of churchly minded parents and called teachers reinforces the sense of Lutheran community.

To be a Lutheran school, identity must be of primary importance. Here are questions schools can ask regarding their identity: Do we truly want to teach the Word of God from the Lutheran perspective? Will we use the Small Catechism and hymnal of the church? Do we have called teachers who are invested in a ministry mindset? Do our teachers pray and have devotions regularly with their students? Are there regular worship services for the teachers and children? Does the principal lead by setting a spiritual example that faculty and parents are compelled to follow? Are the pastors involved in the school in a regular, meaningful manner? Are church leaders willing to unabashedly make a case for their Lutheran school to church families and do all in their power to encourage them to attend? A strong Lutheran identity can propel the mission to reach those outside the faith.

Schools that have a predominantly non-Lutheran constituency can feel a disconnect with their sponsor churches. Older members may remember the time when they and many of their friends sent their own children to the school. Now they see fewer church families attending the school, and they may wonder, “Why should I support the school if so few of our members send their children here?” Without the support of the congregation, many Lutheran schools have ceased to exist. One way to ameliorate this is for church leaders to insist that their teachers are not only called but are invested in the total ministry of the church. In other words, called teachers don’t have an 8-to-3:30 job. They attend church every Sunday. They are active in the congregation and volunteer in ways that match their gifts: choir, Sunday school, ushering, altar guild, church dinners and so on. This does wonders to create and maintain a bond of fellowship between the church and school.

Music can also tie together the church and the school and help to win those outside the faith to Christ. In my experience as a church and school musician, it is clear to me that music is an excellent tool for creating this bond. I have had the privilege of teaching choral music to the school students and then having them sing the same music in the Sunday morning services. What a connection this makes when students see that what they experience in school has the same purpose as what they do in church on Sunday! True, it is a challenge to convince parents that it is important to bring their children to church to sing and play instruments, and some will refuse to do it. But the majority of them allow their children to participate, and this touches those present in the service like few other things do. Having the children perform excellent music at concerts in the church is also an option that unchurched parents may find less threatening than attending on a Sunday morning. Concerts of sacred music at Christmastime and during the Easter season — concerts that include the church choirs in addition to the school choirs — are great ways to bring together the children of the school and the people of the church. The tale of two schools is really the tale of every Lutheran school. We pray that God strengthens us through His Word and Sacraments as we use our Lutheran identity to reach all people with the love of Christ.

This article is adapted from a piece published in the August 2024 issue of The Lutheran Witness.

Cover Image: LCMS Communications/Erik M. Lunsford.