Meet the Professor: Dr. Stephen Pietsch

Concordia Seminary Dean of Theological Research and Publication Dr. Kevin Golden chats with Dr. Stephen Pietsch, who recently joined the faculty as associate professor of Practical Theology. Pietsch is a respected scholar with expertise in pastoral care and counseling from the Australian Lutheran College (ALC) in North Adelaide, South Australia, where he taught undergraduate, graduate and doctoral students in the areas of pastoral care and counseling, homiletics, Lutheran Confessions, liturgics, the pastoral theology of Martin Luther and others (2008-23). After receiving a Bachelor of Theology from Luther Seminary (now ALC) in 1988, Pietsch was ordained in the Lutheran Church of Australia (LCA). He served for 19 years in parish ministry, gaining extensive pastoral care experience in congregational, school and chaplaincy settings. He also served as the ALC’s director of pastoral formation (2018-22), dean of chapel (2016-19) and field education coordinator for the School of Pastoral Theology (2009-19). Pietsch says he looks forward to teaching seminarians at Concordia Seminary and sharing his expertise in pastoral care and comfort, particularly of people with mental illness and depression. “Mental illness is a very, very lonely experience for people typically,” Pietsch says in the video. “And someone who is a persevering, loving presence in their life is also an important thing. That’s one of the things that Luther models so beautifully in his letters. … Like Luther says, you take all things captive and you use all of the gifts that God gives you. Indeed that’s one of the hallmarks of our methodology for doing practical theology here at Concordia [Seminary].” Learn more about Pietsch.