Lutheran churches to train seminary students as vicars

Southeast Missourian

Two area Lutheran churches will serve as training ground for soon-to-be pastors.

Hanover Lutheran Church and Trinity Lutheran Church, both in Cape Girardeau, now have vicars for the coming year. The vicars are both third-year students at Concordia Seminary.

Hanover Lutheran Church will induct its fifth vicar during its 10 a.m. worship service Sunday. A reception for James Zang and his wife, Sonia, will follow the service.

The Zangs will be working with the congregation during the coming year. James Zang is a third-year student at Concordia Lutheran Seminary in St. Louis, Mo.

Sonia will teach second grade at Trinity Lutheran School. Until last September, she had been a teacher in India where her father is a pastor.

Todd and Angela Kollbaum are serving at Trinity Lutheran Church. Todd Kollbaum was inducted during a service last weekend.

Three of the couple's children will be attending Trinity School.

Vicars in the Lutheran denomination spend a year in local congregations to get hands-on experience with everything from preaching to visiting church members in the hospital.

"This range of experience is crucial for a pastor," James Zang said. It helps show how academic knowledge correlates to the practical. "We get to see that it's not all cut and dried."

Kollbaum said the year will be packed with learning opportunities. "It's an overview of ministry as you work in the church. This is where the book meets real life."

The seminary students complete a survey that helps match them to churches seeking vicars. The matches are based on what the pastoral students request in experiences and what they list as gifts and talents.

"To have a successful vicarage, you have to have a good supervising pastor," Zang said. The Rev. Jeff Sippy will be his supervising pastor.

Kullbaum will be supervised by the Rev. Doug Breite.

Both Zang and Kollbaum will lead Bible classes and participate in worship services, along with making visits to members. As vicars, they cannot baptize, consecrate the elements for communion or perform weddings.

ljohnston@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 126