[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 78 (Tuesday, June 14, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Page S6476]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 RETIREMENT OF REVEREND DAVID L. TIEDE

 Mr. COLEMAN. Mr. President, for the past 64 years, Minnesota 
has had the good fortune to be blessed with Dr. David L. Tiede.
  When I was first elected Mayor of St. Paul, the first thing I did was 
travel around and meet the men and women who made the city tick. I 
encountered ordinary men and women, working moms and dads, who had 
tipped the scales to make a real difference. It was the first time I 
truly realized the ability of a single person to change the world 
around him for the better. David L. Tiede is such a person. He is a 
leader and a visionary, and thanks to his presence, Minnesota will 
never be the same.
  Recently, David announced that he is retiring from Luther Seminary. 
Times like this are bittersweet. It is bitter because we are bidding 
farewell to somebody who has meant so much to us. It is sweet because 
we have an opportunity to pay tribute to someone who has given us so 
much and deserves acclaim.
  A native Minnesotan, David earned his bachelor's degree at 
Northfield's own St. Olaf College, only a few miles away from his home 
in Le Center. After earning his Master of Divinity degree from Luther 
Seminary in St. Paul, David left Minnesota to complete his graduate 
study and eventually earn his PhD.
  After earning his doctorate from Harvard in 1971, Massachusetts' loss 
was Minnesota's gain as he returned to serve as the associate pastor of 
Trinity Lutheran Church in Minneapolis. At Trinity, David was not only 
a pastor, but also a teacher. Each Sunday he would teach Christ's 
lessons to his parish enabling them to realize God's calling and 
commission.
  This is David's genius. Too often we are told that there is no right 
and wrong, that everything is subjective. The truth is that there is a 
right and a wrong, and there is something called the good life, which 
is not an easy life. It can be hard to do the right thing and can be 
even harder to lead others to do the right thing. However, that is 
exactly what David did.
  David continued his commitment of teaching God's lessons when he 
joined Luther Seminary to teach the New Testament. Working first as a 
member of the faculty and then as president, David brought his 
expertise of teaching and leadership to Luther Seminary, giving the 
school a strong mission focus in the preparation of pastors and other 
professional leaders for the Lutheran church. David taught his students 
that a pastor without a mission is just a guy talking. In other words, 
David realized that the old saying that a leader without followers is 
just a guy taking a walk is as true in a church as it is in life.
  I remember shortly after being elected mayor of St. Paul being 
invited by Dr. Tiede to be a part of a program launching Luther 
Seminary's new Islamic Studies program. It was worth noting that this 
was probably the first time that a Jewish mayor of a Roman Catholic 
city was speaking at a Lutheran seminary to inaugurate an Islamic 
studies program.
  David's leadership is recognized throughout the theological world. In 
2002, he became only the second Lutheran to be elected president of the 
Association of Theological Schools, an organization of accredited 
theological schools in the United States and Canada. In addition, he 
serves on the board of IN TRUST, Inc., which provides resources for 
governing boards of theological institutions and has received the 
Outstanding Executive Award from the Association of Lutheran 
Development Executives. This spring, Trinity Lutheran Seminary in Ohio 
awarded him the Joseph A. Sittler Award for Theological Leadership. 
Most recently, Augsburg College in Minneapolis named Dr. Tiede to the 
newly established Bernhard M. Christianson Chair of Religion, the 
college's first endowed chair. In this capacity, Dr. Tiede will be able 
to teach, write and continue his study of the New Testament even as he 
continues to work to strengthen the institutions of the Lutheran 
church.
  David Tiede's retirement will be a great loss to Luther Seminary and 
Minnesota. Certainly he has been one of the finest, most skilled 
religious leaders in our state. David will be missed, but will never be 
forgotten as his teachings and philosophy have been passed on through 
the Luther Seminary to a new generation of religious leaders.

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