President’s Letter
The cover story for this edition of “Concordia St. Paul” is about business leaders. For decades the business of Concordia almost exclusively was preparing pastors and church school teachers. Some readers may not know that in the Lutheran theology and tradition, the founding educators envisioned a comprehensive curriculum preparing students for a variety of vocations. Pastoral and teaching graduates–like me–quickly learned the importance of knowledge and skill in business principles and methods even in church work.
For example, when my wife, Lynne, and I began careers in the church as missionaries in Papua New Guinea, I wanted to spend all my time exploring the rain forest to find where people lived, learning the Ipili language, discerning essentials of the culture and–to use today’s terms–planting churches. That left little time for accurate bookkeeping and accounting reports. Fortunately, I was married to Lynne! She did the vitally important accounting and reporting. I appreciated her work and learned first-hand the essential role of good business practices. In church and society, good business practices are necessary and support worthy Christian vocations.
As president of Concordia, my vocation gains knowledge and support by contact with dedicated business leaders, many of them devout Christians. They face not only marketing, accounting and profit/loss issues but also complicated ethical decisions. In our rapidly changing contemporary business world, new information, new technology, new forces of globalization and new factors based on demographic diversity, success in business demands innovative knowledge and skill but even more important loom honesty, integrity and trust. Maybe Jesus’ words set a business standard for all of us. When asked what he was doing he replied, “I must be about my Father’s business.” I believe that, in the end, in our daily business we serve God. The business or vocation we conduct in our own personal lives here and now can praise God and have spiritual significance for ourselves and others. Concordia enriches its business programs by sharing Christian truths preparing students to engage in business transactions with honesty, integrity and respect for the welfare of others.
Many times area business people tell me they like to hire Concordia students or graduates for three simple reasons: their strong work ethic, good attitude and values. Shockingly simple! Yet business people tell me too many workers today lack such vital attitudes and attributes.
May the information about our business graduates in this issue help you understand the role we play in preparing students for dedicated service to God and humanity with vocations in the world of business. There are many more business graduates worthy of note than we can cover in one magazine but know that our graduates serve with distinction literally around the world in the business of church, commerce, mission, human aid, education and military service. I hope that you appreciate the information given and celebrate with us the quality and intent of our business programs. Thank you for your continued care and support of Concordia University, St. Paul, including our academic and Christian interest in business education.
In Christ,
Bob Holst
President
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