City: Gettysburg, PA

Category: Education

Telephone: (717) 334-6286

Address: 61 Seminary Ridge

Description: Founded in 1826 by Samuel Simon Schmucker, a leading churchman in American Lutheran circles (and founder of Gettysburg College in 1832), the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg is the oldest continuing Lutheran seminary in the Americas. It was created to fill the specific need at the time for American-trained clergy. In 1832 the seminary moved from modest quarters in the center of town to its current 52-acre location on a ridge overlooking the borough of Gettysburg from the west. On July 1, 1863, the first day of the Battle of Gettysburg, the campus became a battleground and then the center of the Confederate line for two days. The cupola of the Old Dorm served as an observation tower first for Union and then for the Confederate officers. From that day and for two additional months, the rest of the building served as a hospital for the wounded from both sides. Three original buildings still stand at the seminary: Krauth House, Schmucker House, and Schmucker Hall. The primary mission of the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg (LTSG) is to prepare leaders for service in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America as pastors, deaconesses, associates in ministry, and diaconal ministers. Two degree programs, the Master of Divinity and the Master of Arts in Ministerial Studies, serve as the academic foundation for that preparation. The seminary’s Master of Arts in Religion program offers an opportunity for broad study in theological disciplines, while at the same time permitting specialization in one particular area of interest. The Master of Sacred Theology (STM) degree provides an opportunity for concentrated study in a given area of theological inquiry for persons who have completed a first theological degree or its equivalent. The Doctor of Ministry degree is received through the Eastern Cluster of Lutheran Seminaries, of which Gettysburg is a part. The seminary also offers a long list of one-day events and public lectures intended for broad audiences of both clergy and laypersons, and the Lay School of Theology has been held on campus each summer since 1963. The student body numbers around 270 full- and part-time students, and there’s a faculty of 18, plus another 10 part-time, adjunct, and distinguished visiting teachers. Students travel from 30 states and another half dozen countries to study theology here. Even though most students are members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), a growing number of students have religious backgrounds from other Christian traditions. The Seminary Ridge Historic Preservation Foundation is in the process of creating an interpretive walking tour on Seminary Ridge. The 1-mile path will be for pedestrians and bicyclists, and there will be three primary entry points to the path and more than 10 wayside stops along the way. The walkway will focus on the importance of the battle on Seminary Ridge on the first day of the Battle of Gettysburg and the religious history of the seminary. The foundation raised money for the pathway by selling bricks engraved with the names of alumni, friends, and notable former residents of the ridge. Archaeological studies of the proposed pathway area have been completed, and the money has been raised. The foundation is now securing final approvals on the loop and hopes to have the path operational by 2010. For information on the foundation or its projects, call the seminary at (717) 334-6286.