Dr. Mark J. Schreiber of Jacksonville, Fla., began serving Oct. 1 as director of the Synod’s Ministry to the Armed Forces, a division of LCMS World Mission.
Schreiber, 54, succeeds Chaplain Rodger Venzke, who retired after serving more than eigh
t years in the post.
Schreiber was commissioned in the Navy Reserve in 1980 and has served on active and reserve duty for the past 24 years. For the past four years he served on active duty as district chaplain for 900 Marine Corps recruiters and their families in 10 states.
He is a graduate of the Marine Corps Command and Staff College, and was promoted to captain in 2003. He received his D.Min. degree in 1996 from Faith Evangelical Lutheran Seminary, Tacoma, Wash., and his M.Div. from Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne, in 1977. He also holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Northern Illinois University. He is currently at work on a master’s degree in German from the University of Florida, Gainesville.
The Missouri Synod has about 230 active-duty and reserve chaplains. Schreiber said he sees his role as “pro-actively supporting their ministries and their families wherever they’re deployed around the world.” His goal, he said, is to personally visit all LCMS active-duty chaplains, “to offer counsel and support,” and “to seek new ways to reach out to our military with the Gospel.”
“Chaplains are missionaries to the military and have unique opportunities to share their faith with others,” he said, and they can become valuable components of Ablaze!, LCMS World Mission’s initiative to share the Gospel with 100 million people by 2017.
“My vision for our chaplains is to support and enhance their ministry in such a way as to bring the Gospel to the hearts and minds of our armed forces personnel in new and relevant ways,” he said.
Posted Nov. 1, 2004
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