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Rev. Dr. Stephen Larson
Adjunct Faculty
I was born in Houston, and raised in Texas, Illinois, Oregon and Minnesota. I emigrated to Canada in 1973, and became a Canadian citizen in 1981.
I am a graduate of Pacific Lutheran University, Tacoma, WA (BA 1971). I combined my Master of Divinity studies at Waterloo Lutheran Seminary (1973-1974) and the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago (MDiv 1975), and completed doctoral work at St. Stephen’s College in Edmonton (DMin 1987).
An ordained pastor in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada, I have served in three countries and held a number of positions:
- pastor in a two-point rural parish in Calmar and Millet, Alberta (1975-1977)
- Lutheran Chaplain at The University of Alberta (1977-1988)
- pastor at the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Geneva’s English-speaking Congregation in Switzerland (1988 – 2003; interim pastor 2012-2014)
- lead pastor at St Luke’s Lutheran Church, Park Ridge, IL, USA (2003-2011)
- consultant with the Lutheran World Federation’s Department for Theology and Public Witness in Geneva, Switzerland (2011-2012)
- interim pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church, New Hamburg, ON (2014-2017)
My doctoral research was on the theological, theoretical and practical intersections of liturgy and social justice. This project included course work with William Stringfellow and Robert Hovda. Portions of my dissertation project were published in Liturgy, Justice and the Reign of God: Integrating Vision and Practice.
- Member of the North American Academy of Liturgy (1985 to the present)
- Doctor of Divinity honoris causa from St. Stephen’s College, Edmonton (2000)
- Pastor-in-Residence at the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago (2002)
- Chair of the Lutheran World Federation’s International Worship Planning Committee for the 12th Assembly and 500th Anniversary of the Reformation, Windhoek, Namibia (2014-2017)
- Henderson, J. F., Quinn, K. and Larson, S. (1989). Liturgy, Justice and the Reign of God: Integrating Vision and Practice. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press
- Larson, S. (1983) “Old Ruins and New Images,” in Liturgy: Holy Places (pp. 85-90) Vol 3, No 4. Washington, D.C.: The Liturgical Conference
- Larson, S. (1990). Three homilies included in Homilies for the Christian People. New York: Pueblo Press.
- Larson, S. (1992). Five sermons included in The Minister's Annual Manual for Preaching and Worship Planning. Lois and Manfred Holck, Jr, (Eds.), Austin, Texas: Church Management Inc.
- Larson, S. (1996). “How Does the Liturgy Serve Justice?” in What are the Ethical Implications of Worship? Open Questions in Worship Series, Gordon Lathrop, Editor. Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress.
- Frequent contributor to Homily Service (Washington, D.C.: The Liturgical Conference).
- Frequent contributor to Sundays and Seasons and Preaching (Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress).