Advisory Council Extravaganza
2027 Institute
Advisory Council Extravaganza
The Institute staff and advisory council members are involved in all sorts of interesting projects beyond their work for the Institute. These brief sessions will give you a chance to learn about their varied research interests and side hustles.
All sessions will take place on Tuesday, April 6 at 2:15 p.m. in various locations.
Annemarie Hartner Cook ’03, M.Div
“Making Room for Children in Worship”
Location: TBD
As the Program Director for the Faith Alive Initiative in the Southeastern Pennsylvania Synod, Annemarie has been immersed in the ways we can better welcome children in worship. She will present on the progress that this initiative has made and how congregations are making changes to their worship to intentionally welcome children.
Speaker Bio:
The Rev. Annemarie Hartner Cook is an Assistant to the Bishop and Program Director of Faith Alive in the Southeastern Pennsylvania Synod, ELCA. She is a graduate of Valparaiso University (B.A. ’03) and the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia (M.Div. ‘07). She has a passion for helping young people connect and feel included in liturgy and has coordinated the ELCA Worship activities at the 2018 and 2024 ELCA Youth Gatherings. Annemarie lives in the New Jersey suburbs of Philadelphia with her husband Tim and teen daughter, Sam.
Jim Marriott, Ph.D.
“Hermeneutics of Charity”
Location: TBD
Using Luther’s Large Catechism as a framework, this session develops a Hermeneutics of Charity that guides our interactions with one another. This hermeneutical framework can be applied to family dynamics, team interactions, social media engagement, and even driving on the interstate!
Speaker Bio:
Rev. Dr. James Marriott is Associate Professor of Theology and Music at Concordia University Texas, where he serves as Chair of the Theology Department, University Organist, and Director of the Chapel Music Ensemble. Holding undergraduate and graduate degrees in Parish Music from Concordia Nebraska and Concordia Wisconsin, respectively, he earned a Ph.D. in Liturgical Studies from Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary in Evanston, IL, with an emphasis in liturgical inculturation. He was also ordained into the pastoral ministry through Concordia Seminary, St. Louis and serves as Pastor of Faith Lutheran Church in Georgetown, TX. He frequently lectures and performs across the United States, using workshops and hymn festivals as an opportunity to demonstrate the cultural diversity of the church. Jim and his wife, Kristi, have been married for twenty-three years and are blessed with two children, Joel and Kirstin.
Sally Messner ’02, MSM
“Singing as Nonviolent Resistance”
Location: TBD
Singing has played an active role in many nonviolent resistance movements. As people of faith, how does practicing nonviolent resistance, particularly through the act of singing, deepen our connection with God, helping us to serve our neighbors as we are called to do? We will explore Biblical examples of singing resistance and learn new songs.
Speaker Bio:
Sally Messner, Director of Worship for the Institute of Liturgical Studies, serves as minister of worship and music at Hennepin Avenue United Methodist Church in Minneapolis. She has presented on topics ranging from vocal care to church music history, written articles and hymn texts for national publications, and has served as musician and preacher for the Association of Lutheran Church Musicians. She is president of the Twin Cities chapter of Choristers Guild and founding musical director of the Elm Ensemble. Sally earned a bachelor of music in voice performance from Valparaiso University and a master of sacred music from Luther Seminary, St. Paul, Minnesota.
Omaldo Pérez
“Church Music and Corporeality: Ear skills and the experience of bodily sacred”
Location: TBD
Our ears orient and ground us in the world: our sense of hearing avails us of balance and location. The experience music can be felt in skins, sinews, and bones. In our time together, we will discuss musical embodiment as a means of connection and ex-stasis.
Speaker Bio:
Omaldo Pérez serves as the Director of Music Ministry at St. Michael’s Episcopal Church in Orlando, Florida. He has served congregations in New Jersey, New York, Arizona, Washington, Ohio, Illinois, and Wisconsin. A native of the Dominican Republic, Omaldo has a deep love for all the musical traditions that inform his music-making. He has written for Sundays and Seasons, Prelude Music Blog, and the Association of Lutheran Church Musicians’ publications (In Tempo and CrossAccent). Omaldo joined ILS’ advisory council in 2020.
Rhoda Schuler ’77, Th.D.
“Creating Rites of Confession and Absolution through the Church Year”
Location: TBD
This session will explore writing rites of confession and absolution for the church year seasons that incorporate seasonal themes heed Luther’s insight; that “penance is nothing more than a return to baptism.”
Speaker Bio:
Rhoda Schuler, Lutheran deaconess, has a master’s degree in liturgical studies from St. John’s University, Collegeville, Minnesota, a Th.D. from Luther Seminary, and co-authored Journey to Jesus: Faith Formation into Christ and Community (Cascade Books, 2025). As a Valparaiso University graduate, she is honored to serve on the Institute Advisory Council, where she experienced the liturgy as a time and place to encounter the Risen Christ in Word and Sacrament.
James A. Wetzstein, Ph.D.
“How does art communicate meaning in a worship context?”
Location: TBD
This presentation is based upon research I did as part of my Ph.D. dissertation. We’ll look at our intuitive response to art and design, the role of the symbolic tradition, the opportunities afforded by ambiguity in a work of art, as well as the social context in which a work of visual art is experienced.
Speaker Bio:
Rev. Dr. James “Jim” Wetzstein serves as Executive Director of the Institute of Liturgical Studies and is in his 24th year as University Pastor (LCMS) at Valparaiso University, alongside colleague Rev. Katherine Museus.
He holds a Ph.D. in Liturgical Studies from Notre Dame. His research examines 20th-century Lutheran sculptor Ernst Schwidder and the role of art and design in spiritual formation.
A liturgical design consultant, Jim has guided numerous congregations on spatial renovations, earning the 2008 LCEF Art and Architecture Award for Immanuel Lutheran Church’s immersion font. He also consulted on the International Lutheran Center chapel in Wittenberg, Germany.
Jim authors the lectionary comic strip, Agnus Day.