Rev. Richard Nuffer Named LHF Chairman of the Board of Directors January 30, 2023

Rev. Richard Nuffer (pictured at left), retired lawyer and professor emeritus at Concordia Theological Seminary in Fort Wayne, Ind., has been named the new chairman of the LHF Board of Directors. He replaces Rev. Walter Otten, who retired at the end of 2022 after many years of faithful leadership.

“In the early 2000s, I met [LHF founder] Rev. Robert Rahn, who so clearly and beautifully explained to me the work of LHF,” Rev. Nuffer recalled. “I said yes to serving because I saw LHF as a mission organization that wanted to do mission work in a confessional, Lutheran way.”

That view is shared with former Chairman Rev. Otten.

Remembering the service of the first chairman, Rev. Dr. Robert Preus, Rev. Otten said Preus “had as his goal that we at LHF would…confess the Holy Scriptures, that is, the ‘heritage’ of the Lutheran Heritage Foundation. Our goal would be to continue that confession by translation works that also so confessed.

“My goal as chairman was that the confessional commitment to the Word of God revealed in the works of Preus and [next Chairman Rev. Kurt] Marquart be the continued commitment of all the works of LHF: To be sure LHF realizes that Jesus, His death and resurrection, is THE message of Holy Scripture. Our purpose is to get that message into the darkness of this day, because without the word of God as inspired and inerrant, we will ultimately lose the message.”

“To give that fullness of the Lutheran faith to people and aspiring pastors in faraway countries, it is essential that truly Lutheran books be translated, published, distributed and introduced (TPDI),” Rev. Nuffer agreed.

“My vision for the future of LHF is threefold: (1) that we maintain steadfast in our Lutheran TPDI core, so that many more people might believe in Christ as their Savior. (2) I hope that LHF is able to partner with many more agencies within the LCMS and the oversea Lutheran churches in our work. And (3), I hope that we be even bolder in telling others what LHF does.”

Please keep Rev. Nuffer and the 14 gifted, faithful pastors and lay people who serve on the Board of Directors in prayer, that they may continue to faithfully lead LHF in this mission.