Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago invites students, faculty, staff, alumni, friends, and members of the wider community to join us as we celebrate the opening of LSTC’s 167th academic year.

This year’s Opening Convocation brings our community together for a day of learning, worship, reflection, and creative expression. The celebration will begin with the Lutheran Heritage Lecture, presented by Dean and Vice President of Academic Affairs, Rev. Robert O. Smith, followed by the Opening Convocation Ceremony, marking the formal beginning of a new academic year at LSTC.

Following Convocation, guests are invited to remain in the chapel for Beginnings: A Spoken Word Showcase and Reception, a lunchtime gathering featuring spoken word and creative expression as we reflect on themes of beginnings, community, and the year ahead.

We invite you to join us for this special day as we celebrate new beginnings and look ahead to LSTC’s 167th academic year.

Schedule of Events

Wednesday, September 9th, 2026 | LSTC Chapel

10:30 a.m. – 11:15 a.m. | Lutheran Heritage Lecture
Presented by Dean and Vice President of Academic Affairs, Rev. Robert O. Smith

11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. | Opening Convocation Ceremony
Join the LSTC community for our annual Convocation chapel service as we formally open the 167th academic year.

12:45 pm – 1:45 p.m. | Beginnings: A Spoken Word Showcase and Reception
Continue the celebration over light lunch reception with spoken word and creative expression from members of the LSTC community.

We invite you to join us for this special day as we celebrate new beginnings and look ahead to LSTC’s 167th academic year.

Lutheran Heritage Lecture

Lutherans and the Scourge of Ethno-Fascism

This year’s renewal of LSTC’s Lutheran Heritage Lecture will focus on the necessity of evaluating the past so we can most effectively interpret the present. Dean Smith will focus on Lutheran responses to fascism in the middle of the twentieth century. How we interpret those responses today informs how we respond to the current manifestations of Christofascism in the merger of white Christian nationalism and what journalist Gil Durán calls Silicon Valley’s “Nerd Reich.”