““The Reformation was about, first and foremost, the forgiveness of sins by grace through faith in Jesus Christ,” the Rev. Dr. Jayson S. Galler of Pilgrim Lutheran Church, Kilgore, told about two dozen people gathered for  a Fourth-Annual Symposium in Kilgore titled “The Reformation at 500 years”. “Any assessment of the Reformation at any point–past, present, or future”, Galler said, “should not be on the basis of the number of people in a particular church but on the basis of a church’s ongoing faithfulness to that central Reformation message.”

The Symposium on Sunday, October 29, from 3:00-5:00 p.m., in the Devall Student Center Ballroom on the campus of Kilgore College, took place days before the 500th anniversary of the Reformation arguably begun with the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther’s posting of his Ninety-five Theses against the Preachers of Indulgences on October 31, 1517.

Reformation scholar Galler said that Luther’s personal experience of the Gospel and his pastoral concern for those under his care are relatable struggles and concerns and that the Gospel was relevant then, is relevant now, and always will be relevant. And, no matter how bad the Church’s situation in the world may seem, God always preserves a faithful remnant that holds to that Gospel.

After Galler’s opening presentation, three area pastors briefly responded to it: the Rev. Ben Bagley of St. Luke’s United Methodist Church, the Rev. Phil Hodson of Christ the King Presbyterian Church, and Dr. Glenn Young of First Baptist Church. Then, after a short break with refreshments, Terry Booker of Kilgore College moderated questions from the audience for the four panelists. Not surprisingly, their answers to questions indicated that the four panelists agreed on the central place Jesus Christ should have, but also that they did not agree on Who Jesus is, what He did, and how He still works.

The Symposium was free to those attending, although offerings to offset expenses were received. The remaining balance of the cost of the room and refreshments were split between the First Baptist, St. Luke’s, and Pilgrim congregations.

The vast majority of those who evaluated the Symposium (more than one-third of those attending) at least agreed that the Symposium as a whole was worthwhile, that its topic was interesting and relevant, that its format was appropriate, its date and time were suitable, and that it was held in a fitting facility. Respondents particularly liked the open and intelligent discussion evident in the questions and answers, and they hoped greater publicity for future events would attract more people.

This 2017 Symposium was the fourth in a series connected to the anniversary of the October 31, 1517, Reformation. The first was “One Lord, One Faith, One Baptism” in 2014; the second was “At the Intersection of Church and State” in 2015; and the third was “Religion and Politics in the 2016 Election” in 2016. The fifth one, to take place in 2018, was preliminarily titled “Why church?” The purpose of the Symposia is to seek a deeper understanding of one another in our various church communities. Through the mutual sharing of knowledge and ideas, organizers believe that the Holy Spirit will draw people closer to that union that Christ desires for all (John 17:21-23).

Regrettably, no audio recordings of the 2017 event were made. For news coverage of the Symposia, see here. For more on the 500th Anniversary of the Reformation and Pilgrim’s celebration of it, see here.

The banner graphic at the top of this page was composed by Rev. Christopher Nuttelman, using an April 1, 2015, photograph of German artist Friedrich Soetebier’s 1957 Martin Luther statue on the campus of Concordia Theological Seminary, Ft. Wayne, Indiana, taken by LCMS staff photographer Erik M. Lunsford found here and used by permission.