About ILT & Mission

About the Institute of Lutheran Theology

The Institute of Lutheran Theology is an independent and accredited institution of higher education serving the church through undergraduate, seminary, and graduate theological education. Rooted in the classical Christian tradition and shaped by a Lutheran theological perspective, ILT exists to preserve, promote, and propagate the faith in a time when both church and culture require theological clarity, intellectual seriousness, and pastoral courage.

ILT was founded in the conviction that theological education should be both confessionally grounded and academically rigorous. We believe that students should be formed not only in the history and doctrine of the church, but also in the disciplined habits of thought necessary to engage the contemporary cultural and intellectual horizon. For that reason, ILT brings together faithful teaching, serious theological inquiry, and accessible online delivery in order to serve students across North America and around the world.

As an institution, ILT is committed to the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the authority of Holy Scripture, the centrality of the cross, and the enduring importance of the Lutheran confessional witness. At the same time, we affirm that theology must not retreat from the questions of the present age. It must think carefully, speak clearly, and serve the church with confidence, depth, and hope.

ILT includes the Christ School of Theology, Christ College, and a growing network of initiatives devoted to theological education, congregational renewal, research and publication. Across all of its programs, the Institute seeks to form students who can read Scripture responsibly, think theologically, serve faithfully, and proclaim Christ in a world that no longer easily understands the language of faith.

ILT is

Independent

As a fully independent seminary, college, and theological graduate school, ILT receives no funding from any external church denomination.

Autonomous

As a fully autonomous seminary, college, and theological graduate school, ILT answers to no external church denomination.

Accredited

The Institute of Lutheran Theology employs fully-credentialed faculty members and a complete administrative staff to serve students and faculty. The Institute of Lutheran Theology has been accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of the Association for Biblical Higher Education to grant degrees at the undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral levels.

Christ School of Theology of the Institute of Lutheran Theology is accredited by the Commission on Accrediting of the Association of Theological Schools (www.ats.edu) and is approved to offer the following degrees: Master of Divinity, Master of Arts (academic), Master of Ministry (professional), Master of Chaplain Ministries (professional), Master of Sacred Theology, Doctor of Ministry, and Doctor of Philosophy.

The graduate school/seminary and Centers either a part of or associated with ILT:

  • Christ School of Theology  
    • ILT’s Christ School of Theology, a distinguished seminary and graduate school that stands as a beacon of quality in the realm of higher learning. Our institution is dedicated to nurturing academic excellence and fostering a vibrant community of scholars and thought leaders. At the heart of our school is a faculty of esteemed professors, many of whom are prolific authors and influential figures in their respective fields. Their dedication to shaping intellectual discourse and pushing the boundaries of knowledge sets the tone for a dynamic and enriching educational environment.
    • Additional, sub link: Christ School of Theology Identity Statement [https://cst.ilt.edu/#identity] (not up yet on cst.ilt.edu)
  • Center for the Word
    • The Institute of Lutheran Theology exists to preserve, promote, and propagate the classical Christian tradition from a Lutheran perspective. The Center for the Word serves as the scholarly foundation for the work of our students and faculty as well as the theological endeavors of the Institute. Thus, CftW exists to do the theology that the Church needs to deliver the Word of God to the world in need.
  • Center for Congregational Revitalization
    • The Center for Congregational Revitalization exists to renew the church by returning it to its proper center: the living Word of God proclaimed and the Sacraments rightly administered. In a time when denominational structures are weakening and cultural Christianity no longer sustains congregational life, the church is not called to reinvention but to retrieval. What is needed is not novelty, but clarity—clarity about what the church is, how it lives, and how it is sustained.
  • Center for Reformation Theology & Spirituality
    • CRTS cultivates rigorous scholarship rooted in the theology of Luther and the broader Reformation while recovering and deepening the resources of that tradition. In conversation with the wider Reformational heritage, the Center seeks to situate Lutheran theology within a larger movement of renewal.
  • Center for Missional & Pastoral Leadership
    • The Center for Missional and Pastoral Leadership at the Institute for Lutheran Theology offers pastoral and theological training designed to equip pastors and church leaders for mission-focused, impactful congregational ministry leadership.
  • Center for Wesleyan Studies
    • The Center for Wesleyan Studies at the Christ School of Theology offers pastoral and theological training designed to continue the Wesleyan tradition of Biblical leadership and gospel outreach.