The world we live in today is constantly changing, often in directions contrary to our faith. But we know that the Word of the Lord endures forever (1 Peter 1:25). Concordia Publishing House (CPH) is proud to serve as the official publishing arm of the Synod. It is our privilege to provide resources that equip congregations, schools, and families to effectively share and teach God’s enduring Word in a changing world. From the days of CPH’s founding, equipping schools with resources to teach our children has been a priority. Our pre-K through
eighth grade religion curriculum, Enduring Faith, is now used by a vast majority of Synod schools. We continue to supplement this curriculum with online resources that provide additional value and meet unique needs. Our support of Lutheran schools is not limited to classroom curriculum. In this “golden era” of Lutheran education, a significant challenge to the growth of our schools is the lack of roster ed teachers to fill the classrooms. We are excited for the April 2026 launch of Lutheran Educator Academy, a video-based resource for use by Lutheran school administrators as they navigate the reality of non roster ed and often non-LCMS faculty and staff. We have designed this tool especially with those teachers in mind. It complements other efforts to serve those teachers who choose not to or have not yet completed colloquy by equipping them to understand the Lutheran setting in which they are teaching and introducing them to its opportunities, ways of thinking, expectations, and common language. An experienced mix of pastors and Lutheran educators have contributed to this. During the COVID-19 era, our churches and schools recognized rapidly rising rates of anxiety, depression, loneliness, and other mental health issues among our youth. In response, CPH introduced Resilient Minds, a mental health curriculum for grades 5 through high school for use in our schools, and with additional support materials for the home. CPH is further serving families and children in an exciting way through the launch of Words of Worship, a new program funded through a $1.25 million grant from Lilly Endowment Inc., within their Nurturing Children Through Worship and Prayer Initiative. In partnership with the Missouri and Northern Illinois Districts, CPH has formed three cohorts of congregations to advise on and test out a suite of resources related to Lutheran Service Book (LSB). As LSB has been adopted by more than 90 percent of LCMS congregations, we are optimistic about providing the full set of resources to the whole Synod. The Words of Worship resources will be geared for passing along the faith to children ages 0–8 and will release in multiple waves, beginning in 2027. Providing faithful and accessible resources for children, parents, and other caregivers is also otherwise a high priority at CPH. We are giving attention to the special needs of our time and the particular challenges that families face. Children’s picture books on the Nicene Creed and Baptism are recent releases, and an innovative new series called Bedtime Bible Journeys aims to help families dig deeply into the Scriptures and recognize both Law and Gospel as they do. Another major initiative launched this triennium has been the Arch® Book food bank program. CPH sends the books to LCMS congregations and other organizations that sponsor food banks/pantries so that the families they serve can be fed both physically and spiritually. Currently, over 10,000 books are distributed each week through this initiative. Academic publishing is a further ongoing focus for CPH. We have published 50 volumes of the Concordia Commentary series. We have increased the frequency with which these are released and have also begun supplementing them for congregational usage with the Concordia Commentary Bible Study Series. Luther’s Works volumes continue to release as well. In the spirit of offering resources by academics but not only for academics, contributions in our new Apropos series by the best scholars in the Synod address important but carefully defined topics with clarity and depth. Initial
releases on missions, the two kingdoms, and transgenderism offer a picture of what we hope that series will become. CPH is unequivocally committed to publishing doctrinally pure resources. The main pillar of this commitment is evaluation of scriptural and confessional fidelity through the Synod’s established Doctrinal Review (DR) process. In isolated cases, historically significant works of Lutheran theology have been translated into English and published by CPH without going through DR. These include Luther’s Works, Walther’s Works, Chemnitz’s Works, and Johann Gerhard’s Theological Commonplaces. While we do not suggest that these authors are incapable of error, we share with the respective seminary professors and Synod entities with whom we partner on these projects the view that the faithful contribution of these works justifies their publication. In the very rare case of modern works of this sort (like Albrecht Peters’s Commentary on Luther’s Catechisms and Hellmut Lieberg’s Office and Ordination in Luther and Melanchthon), we have included a special notice in the books, designating them as study resources and making clear that they have not been submitted to DR. No modern books of this sort have been in any stage of development in the last triennium, nor are any at present, although projects like Luther’s Works continue. During the past triennium, CPH invested heavily in a mobile app version of The Lutheran Study Bible, now available on both i OS and Android devices. This past January, we launched a Book of Concord website featuring Concordia: The Lutheran Confessions at book of concord.cph.org. This is the most widely used edition of the Book of Concord in the LCMS today, and we encourage all congregations to link to it on their websites as an essential component of their faith statements.
ricula, music, church resources, church administration software, and other resources that we offer. Also, in order to help get products into the hands of “LCMS pew-sitters,” CPH has started a new Resource Program, which provides discounts and free shipping on orders sent to congregations. We already have 600 congregations signed up. We invite your congregation to sign up as well. Christ Is Risen Indeed! This unchanging truth reminds us in this changing world that our faith is not in vain, nor is our work to support the faithful proclamation of the Gospel. On your behalf, and with the Lord’s guidance, CPH will continue to strive to be the premier publisher and provider of choice for products and services faithful to the Scriptures and the Lutheran Confessions. We pray our products help the LCMS continue to boldly proclaim the risen Christ to the world around us. Jonathan D. Schultz, President and CEO