CUNE is faithful to Lutheran standards, says Concordia University System
The bulldog statue in the Walz Human Performance Complex.
Photo credit: Nora Betts
By Nora Betts
Managing Editor
This article is featured in the February print edition of the Sower newspaper.
Concordia University, Nebraska is upholding the standards of a Lutheran institution with “no concerns,” according to feedback following a visit by representatives from the Concordia University System.
“[The CUS gives] us a confidential report. It’s shared with me and I make it available to the Board [of Regents],” said CUNE President Bernard Bull. “I didn’t publish it publicly but there’s nothing in there of concern. They have no concerns about Concordia. In fact, there’s a lot of affirmation.”
Both Bull and CUS president Rev. Dr. Jamison Hardy said that the students, faculty and staff at CUNE all build up a faithful campus community that sets them apart from other schools.
“When speaking with students at CUNE, I was struck by the joy and commitment they have to the university and its mission [and the] true excitement that they feel about being a Lutheran university,” said Hardy, who visited CUNE on Oct. 14-15 with other CUS board members.
Hardy said he participated in campus worship opportunities and talked with many groups and individuals about their involvement at CUNE to help determine whether the university was upholding its Lutheran standards.
“I really appreciate the full chapel services and the willingness for the students, faculty, and staff to chat and share the joy they have as members of CUNE,” said Hardy.
The visitation process is part of the new governance structure implemented by The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod in 2023. It requires annual informal visitations to the Concordia universities, plus a formal visitation every three years. A report on CUNE will be given at the national LCMS convention in 2026.
Bull said the visitation process “[holds] us accountable to biblical principles that we all want to be accountable to anyway.”
Bull said CUNE is distinct among the Lutheran universities when it comes to both students and faculty. About 25% to 30% of students are in church work programs and 80% to 90% of faculty are members of Lutheran Church– Missouri Synod congregations.
“We have the highest percentage of LCMS faculty of any Lutheran university in the country,” Bull said. “I believe over 60 of our faculty and staff are ordained or commissioned ministers of religion in the Lutheran Church– Missouri Synod. For them, we’re pretty distinct.”
Senior Joshua Burmeister said that CUNE aims to create a firm community of faith, even amid theological differences. He is a theology and pre-seminary student, president of the Student Senate, and a leader of the Pre-Seminary Club and Ministry Ties, which connects all the church work groups on campus.
“I do think this campus has cliques and groups just like every other campus on the face of the earth, but we are working to break down those barriers and bring everyone into a common identity,” Burmeister said. “Even if they’re not a confessional LCMS Christian, then they can still feel encouraged in their faith by the LCMS through the students that are here.”
Burmeister said it may be tempting for LCMS believers to consider themselves superior at a Lutheran university. If that is the case, he said God’s Law helps humble the proud.
“I do think so many people here are so firm in their Lutheran identity that it does sort of puff them up a little bit,” he said. “And that’s where you need the Law to knock you down a peg and show you some of your own sin.”
Bull said he appreciates the many avenues for spiritual engagement, including student-led worship and Bible studies, that are a regular part of life at Concordia. He said that students believe their actions make a difference in the campus community.
“The students have this legacy of, we’re going to make sure this is a place that’s committed to our mission and our shared confession,” said Bull.
The next LCMS visitation, a formal visit on Feb. 10-12, will bring representatives from other Concordia universities and leaders, such as district presidents, to CUNE’s campus. There will be no overlap between the visitors in October and February. A report after the formal visit will be published on the Concordia University System website.
