2022 St. Mark’s Conference

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“The Life and Works of Hermann Sasse, Arthur Carl Piepkorn, and Frederick Roth Webber”
April 25-26, 2022


The Saint Mark’s Conference concerns the confessional, sacramental, and liturgical life of the Church of the Augsburg Confession.

The first half of Twentieth-century Lutheranism was a time of cultural upheaval as traditional customs and ideas were constantly challenged and changed. This is especially true in the Church. Yet during that time the Church was also blessed with a number of very gifted theologians who in different ways tried to counter these trends. Three of these were the Rev. Frederick Roth Webber, the Rev. Dr. Hermann Sasse, and the Rev. Dr. Arthur Carl Piepkorn. Their work helps us better understand the problems of today and how best to face them with wisdom and integrity.

The Rev. Dr. John Stephenson will present two papers: Hermann Sasse and the Third Reich and Sasse in Hindsight.   Professor Stephenson is Professor of Historical Theology at Concordia Theological Seminary, St. Catharines, Ontario, where he has served since 1989. He received degrees from the universities of Oxford (MA 1974), Cambridge (GDipTh 1975), and Durham (PhD 1983). He is the author of volumes 12 (The Lord’s Supper) and 13 (Eschatology) of the series Confessional Lutheran Dogmatics, and the translator of Wilhelm Löhe’s Aphorisms on the New Testament Offices and their Relationship to the Congregation. Previously he has served the Lutheran Church of the Escarpment, Lewiston, NY (1986-89).

The Rev. Charles McClean will speak on Arthur Carl Piepkorn and Hermann Sasse. Pastor McClean has served at Our Saviour Lutheran Church, Baltimore, Maryland since 2013. He is a graduate of Concordia Seminary, Saint Louis and has served parishes in Virginia, Illinois, and Pennsylania, among other places. His Master of Sacred Theology thesis, Theological Issues at the Colloquy of Montbeliard 1586, was prepared under the supervision of the Rev. Dr. Arthur Carl Piepkorn. Pastor McClean is editor of The Conduct of the Services.

The Rev. Roy Axel Coats will present an Introduction to the Life and Work of Frederick Roth Webber. Pastor Coats has served at the Lutheran Church of the Redeemer, Baltimore, MD since 2010. He graduated with a Bachelor’s in Liberal Arts from Thomas Aquinas College in Santa Paula, California. He then attended Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne, Indiana completing his studies in 2010 prior to being called to serve Redeemer Church. In addition to serving at Redeemer, Pr. Coats is on the board of the Wyneken Project and is active in the Maryland Chapter of Lutherans for Life.

Additionally, we will have:

The Rev. Mark Braden
Pastor of Zion Lutheran Church, Detroit, Michigan
Preacher at Divine Service

The Rev. Noah Rogness
Associate Pastor of Immanuel Lutheran Church, Alexandria, Virginia
Preacher at Vespers

The Rev. Brian Westgate
Pastor of Redeemer Church. Oakmont, Pennsylvania
Conference Organist

The conference will begin with Divine Service at 11:00 A.M. on Monday, April 25and end with Prayer for Travelers the afternoon of Tuesday, April 26.

The Saint Mark’s Conference concerns the confessional, sacramental, and liturgical life of the Church of the Augsburg Confession. It is hosted by Our Saviour Lutheran Church, Baltimore, Maryland and is open to interested clergy and lay persons.


To see the conference schedule, click here.