Funding Proposal and Grant Request: Seminarian Medical Emergency Relief Fund

The Saint Timothy Society uses a modified RFP (Request for Proposals) and Grants to determine and administer supported projects and efforts. For more information see our Projects web page. We list proposals to inform our donors and gauge their interest in funding. We also ask for comments and suggestions from donors, supporters, other churches, agencies and charitable organizations in order to improve and more clearly define proposals. Individuals and groups from the general public who are interested in the work of the society and supportive of our religious, doctrinal and theological prerequisites as described in our About web page are also invited to comment and make suggestions. The Contact link above has our mailing and email address.

Seminarian Medical Emergency Relief Fund: A Grant Proposal for the Saint Timothy Society

Introduction: Lutheran seminarians in many parts of the world encounter great challenges in pursuing their education. In the event of a medical emergency they, and their dependent families, may find themselves unable to continue their education, and can face serious consequences and significant expenses they are unable to pay.

Rationale, Goal, and Objectives: A seminarian emergency medical relief grant would allow designated faculty or administrators to pay for treatment in the event of medical emergencies for seminarians or their dependent families. This form of aid would be intended to allow seminarians to continue their education when such medical emergencies occur, and would otherwise cause them to withdraw from their program.

Location of Activity and Recipients: Lutheran seminaries and seminarians outside of North America.

Budget: The amount of funding would depend on donations. Expenditure of funds would be by invoice and receipt from medical providers.

Expenditures Specifically Excluded on Grant: Routine, non-emergency medical and dental treatment and procedures; Non medical or dental procedures; travel; rent, room and board and tuition, or other payments defraying physical plant or other tangible assets.

Expenditures Allowed on Grant: Emergency medical and dental procedures for serious and debilitating conditions; treatment and residence in hospitals and similar facilities for these conditions.

Reporting: Accounting of expenditures, recipients and beneficiaries of the grant in any quarter when expenditures exceed $1500, and annual report.

Administration: Expenditure of funds would be by invoice and receipt from medical providers. Faculty members or administrations designated by the Saint Timothy Society would request funds to pay for treatment by submission of supporting documentation of expense, including receipts and invoices.

Delegation: At the discretion of the Society, and in circumstances where other agencies and organizations are able to more effectively handle payments for such services outside of North America, the grant funds may be paid to them for final disbursement for expenses. Reasonable fees for such delegation will be considered an allowed grant expenditure.

Conditions of Grant and Terms: The Society will halt grant expenditures, cancel disbursement, and ask for reimbursement when: receipts, invoices, and other documentation are not given to the Society in a timely manner when requested, or such requests are denied or ignored; fraud, abuse or mismanagement of funds occurs; grant funds are used to displace available and existing funds and sources of aid and programs which are intended for identical purposes. Law enforcement offices in the relevant jurisdictions will also be notified in the event of grant funds being used for fraudulent or criminal activity.

The Saint Timothy Society's Guidelines for Events and Meetings in Jurisdictions with COVID or Other Restrictions

The Saint Timothy Society will continue to hold events and meetings while endeavoring to follow the guidelines and regulations in effect in the relevant jurisdictions. Those invited to our events should be aware of the following before deciding to attend.

The Saint Timothy Society's events and meetings may be held in the State of Minnesota, which has a number of rules and restrictions concerning gatherings related to the COVID 19 pandemic. Given the number of participants we have, it is unclear which restrictions would apply, how and in what manner. In order to avoid unnecessary confusion, we have adopted as our own the guidelines and policy positions of Saint Johns Evanglical Lutheran Church in Corcoran, Minnesota, as expressed in these two letters:

Letter of May 25th, 2020 from the pastors of Saint Johns

Letter of July 26th, 2020 from the pastors of Saint Johns

In addition, we encourage all members of the church and those so inclined from the general public to consider and adopt the broader theological and biblical considerations given here:

From the Faculty of Concordia Lutheran Theological Seminary of Saint Catherines, Ontario

We ask that all those invited to our events give special attention to the following before deciding to attend:

1. It is vital that everyone assess their own risk for COVID 19, and take action accordingly. If you have risk factors and co-morbidities, PLEASE ERR ON THE SIDE OF CAUTION, and do not attend until you have taken medical advice and received the best information available. No one can guarantee that you will not be exposed or infected at any event or gathering, including ours.
2. If you are ill, or exhibiting symptoms of COVID 19 or other infectious diseases or conditions, do not attend. Again, no one can guarantee that you will not expose others or be exposed to COVID 19, and this may be more likely if you are symptomatic.
3. Before you decide to attend, please be aware that specific mandates vary, and we have no authority or ability to police who has legitimate exemptions from wearing a mask. We cannot and will not ask any individual attending their reasons for wearing, not wearing, or wearing a particular type, of mask, or any other information about their medical history. We will not invade your privacy regarding your medical or mental health if you are not wearing a mask, and we will not sanction others doing so at our meetings and events.
4. We will not ask you about, or require you to disclose, any part of your medical history, including any treatments such as monoclonal antibodies, vaccines, or medical procedures or drug regimens, nor will we sanction others doing so at our meetings and events. We encourage everyone to evaluate all treatments available for COVID or any other disease, and evaluate them on their potential risk to benefit ratio and moral and ethical considerations (including those treatments involving fetal tissue in development and testing and those that violate informed consent or are coercive of conscience in application, testing, or development).
5. If you are made uncomfortable by this, or believe that you are placed at risk by an unmasked or unvaccinated participant, DO NOT ATTEND.
6. Those presenting and speaking at our meetings are also allowed a mask exemption by Minnesota regulations while observing the social distancing guidelines. Again, if you are made uncomfortable by this, or believe that you are placed at risk by an unmasked or unvaccinated participant, DO NOT ATTEND.
7. We require that those attending observe the relevant social distancing guidelines. Be aware that some attending may be uneasy with even 6 feet of distance, in which case give yourself and give others even more distance. Spread out and use the space available.
8. We require that all present observe the norms of civility, decency and respect for the conscience and opinions of others which are necessary when discussing differing views. Discussions of topics and questions related to biblical texts, doctrines, historical events, ideas, and public policy within that context are welcome. Discussions about individuals or groups (political, public, media or otherwise) should be limited within those topics and questions. Unverified speculation, assertion, or derogatory assumptions about motives or actions are discouraged.
9. Our meetings and events may be recorded in both audio and video. Those attending will be made aware of this, and we will make a reasonable effort to preserve the privacy and anonymity of our guests and participants. If you do not wish to be filmed or recorded, please make us aware of that fact.
10. The material presented, discussions, and conversations at our events are not medical, legal or financial advice. All who attend are encouraged to get the best information they can from multiple professionals, organizations and agencies in those fields, and evaluate and compare all sources for accuracy and reliablity, even as a second and third opinion.
11. We recognize that some information related to COVID has been, and remains, varied, contradictory, inaccurate and changing, including that from various governmental, medical, academic and research organizations. Their implementation of rules, guidelines and restrictions concerning COVID may be as flawed as the basis and rationale for their creation. While we are able to follow the masking and social distancing guidelines given above, we will not restrict or close our events and meetings to individuals who are otherwise qualified to attend and participate on the basis of a mandated or compulsory treatment or medical procedure (including vaccination). To do otherwise is to deny individuals and groups (religious and otherwise) freedom of conscience and the vital principal of informed consent. Just as we ask others and those in authority to respect our freedom of conscience, religion and informed consent, so we strive (imperfectly at times) to respect those same freedoms and rights as held by others.
12. We encourage those in positions of authority and all those in the medical and public health professions to explore, research and make available all potential treatments for COVID and to treat the disease early and aggressively, especially for those patients who have increased risks and co-morbidities. We encourage everyone to become acquainted with the safety profile for any and all potential treatments (including dietary, therapeutic, pharmaceutical, vaccines), the risks and benefits associated with them, and to seek guidance regarding the potential negative effects of all potential treatments.

We understand that our donors, supporters, participants and guests may have very different perspectives on the various mandates that have been implemented during this pandemic, including those items made explicit above. Our hope and prayer is that we would extend to each other patience, forbearance and forgiveness during these unusual times.

Updated 2022 NOV 06
Updated 2022 JAN 15
Updated 2021 DEC 09

Upcoming Event: LWML Rally, Saint Pauls Lutheran Church, Osseo, Minnesota, April 20 [CANCELLED]

Please note this event has been cancelled.

The Saint Timothy Society is grateful to the LWML (Lutheran Women's Missionary League) for the opportunity to speak at their upcoming Rally at Saint Pauls Lutheran Church, Osseo, Minnesota, and for their "Gifts from the Heart" collection for the Society's ongoing work at the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Kenya's seminary in Matongo, Africa.

The Saint Timothy Society, a Recognized Service Organization of the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod, has been active in supporting and fund raising for seminary education overseas since it began as a charitable corporation with 501(c)3 status in 2007. Our major and ongoing project has been to support Rev. Thomas Aadland, who has been called as a missionary by the Office of International Missions of the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod to teach and help the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Kenya in pastoral education at the Matongo Lutheran Theological College, where he also serves as Dean of Chapel. The LWML has generously offered to include this work in their "Gifts from the Heart" collection, which will go to support Rev. Aadland's salary, travel, books, and related expenses.

The Society also supports other projects and initiatives such as bringing foreign students from overseas to study at Lutheran seminaries in North America, and we encourage potential supporters and donors to contact us with their suggestions and ideas. We can work with donors in writing grant proposals for designated gifts for specific projects, which we believe gives donors, supporters and recipients a greater degree of accountability and clarity.

Rev. Gordon Bynum, our Chaplain, will be speaking to the LWML rally about the work of the Society and Lutheran Seminary Education in the larger context of the Lutheran understanding of the two kingdoms.

For more information, and to contact the Saint Timothy Society: Contact Us

LCMS Office of International Missions Kenya Page

Many Thanks To Our Donors! Letters for 2019 Contributions Have Been Mailed.

Part of the "housekeeping" for charitable organizations are letters sent out to donors with our record for their contributions for the past calendar year. If you gave to us in 2019, and do not received a letter recording your contributions by February 7th of 2020, please let us know.

And a big thank you to all our donors! 2019 was another excellent year for the Saint Timothy Society, and we're happy to report that we are (mostly) on schedule with our bookkeeping and reporting for 2019. If you gave in 2019, you should receive a donor letter for your contributions for that year. If you don't have it by Feb. 7th, or if you receive it and it does not agree with your records, please contact us:

That email (shown above as a .png image file to slow down the spam bots, so you will have to type it into your email program) also works for questions, suggestions, and other correspondence.

Upcoming Event: A Lutheran Consideration of Communism, Tuesday, Sept. 24, 6:30pm

As part of the "Bibles and Brews" series being held by Saint Johns Lutheran Church of Corcoran, Minnesota, the Chaplain of the Saint Tim Society will be leading a discussion on a Lutheran Consideration of Communism.

For more information, time, and location please see this link.

Our 2018 Annual Meeting: Monday, October 29 at 1pm, Saint James Lutheran Church West Saint Paul

The Saint Timothy Society for Lutheran Seminary Scholarship will hold its Annual Meeting Monday, 1pm, on October 29, 2018, at Saint James Lutheran Church, 460 Annapolis St W, West St Paul, Minnesota 55118

If you would like to attend or meet with the board in person on Oct. 29th, please contact us at this address:

Please be aware that some items and topics (such as those involving personnel or other sensitive items that might run afoul of the 8th commandment) can only be considered by the voting members in closed or executive session, and not in those parts of the meeting open to the public.

If you would like to know more about the work of the Saint Timothy Society, or have suggestions, ideas or insights you believe might be worthwhile for us to consider, please use the email address above to let us know.

The Saint Timothy Society Installs a Chaplain; Kroemer Library Dedicates the Murray Room; And a Fine Time Was Had By All

Elsewhere on this blog the comment was made that January 20th of 2017 would see events that ranged from huge to less huge to tiny.  From the point of view of the Saint Timothy Society, these are happy times for many reasons, including the installation of a Chaplain, and the dedication of the Murray Room at Kroemer Libary at Concordia Theological Seminary.  We would like to express our gratitude to Concordia Theological Seminary, the Rev. Dr. Murray, and all those who made possible and joined us for the events on January 20th.

Concordia Theological Seminary in Fort Wayne, Indiana, has distinguished itself in the last few years in its efforts toward theological education overseas.  From Kazakhstan to Odessa to South Africa to Sweden the seminary has been active in sending its faculty ("Deployed" seems to be their term of art for this) and receiving students who return to their home countries to continue the work of the Church.  We at the Saint Timothy would also like to express our thanks and gratitude for the work of Concordia Fort Wayne, the last example of which was their willingness to let us use Kramer Chapel for the installation of our Chaplain.  Other notable achievements at CTSFW has been fund raising for Kroemer Library and the creation and dedication of The Rev. Dr. Scott R. Murray Conference Room there:

Here is a better picture of the tile "Alpha Omega" at the entrance to the room:

The officiant for the installation was the eponymous Dr. Murray himself (2nd from right), with the Rev. Tom Aadland participating (on the right).  Also in the picture below are Chris Barnekov (Director, on the left) and Gordon Bynum (Director and Chaplain, 2nd from left).

The service was held around the baptismal font at the rear of Kramer Chapel and followed the order of None.   Kramer Chapel is an interesting combination of an Eero Saarinen architectural design (as is most of the campus of the seminary, sometimes described as a combination of Nordic village and "Neo-Futuristic" styles) with more traditional art in the rear of the chapel starting with the baptismal font itself:

My favourite is the dome above the baptistry:

This is all located underneath the chapel organ and choir:

Which is an excellent 56 rank Schlicker instrument. You can see other pictures of the Chapel on the seminary website.

And should you find yourself walking down the basement, you will notice this:

We did not use the organ, but if you have the chance, you should hear it. The seminary uses it regularly for chapel services in the morning during the regular school year (but not so much during Summer School, so check their calendar). If you would like to see what we did, here is the Order of None which will open in a separate window:

Or you can download the order here:

The other events of that week are mentioned elsewhere on this blog. Concordia Fort Wayne hosted not just the Theological Symposia that week, but also joint meetings of the boards of the seminaries in Fort Wayne and Saint Louis. The Saint Tim Society is grateful for their help and cooperation during such an active time. As for that truly YUUGE event that occurred on 12 noon the same day, we also wish our president the best of luck, and we will keep him in our prayers as well.