Story and photos by Jana Inglehart
On Sunday, September 10, Concordia the Reformer Seminary in the Dominican Republic celebrated the installation of her new director, Rev. Sergio Fritzler. Pastors from five countries participated in the special service, with seminarians, missionaries, deaconesses, Dominican Lutheran Church members, Concordia Lutheran school children and faculty joining in the festivities.
“We are grateful that the Lord of the harvest provides experienced and capable men to lead a seminary in preparing pastors and deaconesses at a time such as this. The impact of Concordia Seminary the Reformer continues to grow as her men are sent out to all corners of Latin America. Pastor Fritzler brings a wealth of experience and a clear dedication to the task of preparing confessional pastors as evangelists, shepherds and teachers who would preach the Gospel.”
Rev. Ted Krey, Regional Director for the Latin America and Caribbean Region
Rev. Fritzler is a missionary pastor from Buenos Aires, Argentina, with a Bachelor of Theology from Concordia Seminary, Argentina, and a master’s degree in Pastoral Theology from the Instituto Ecumênico de Pós-Graduação em Teologia in Brazil. Before arriving in the Dominican Republic with his family in 2017, he served in various capacities in Chile and Argentina as a pastor, professor and director of Concordia Seminary in Argentina.
Pastors participating in the service were Rev. Sergio Fritzler (Front center). All others from the left: Rev. Idjon Fritz, Rev. Ted Krey, Rev. Yban Navarro, Rev. Dr. Nathan Meador, Rev. Dr. Douglas Stowe, Rev. Justin Laughridge, Rev. Dr. Jonathan Naumann, Rev. Dr. Ross Shaver, Rev. Rafael Flores, and Rev. Lucas Elberhardt
In the Dominican Republic, Fritzler also serves as a church planter at Lamb of God Lutheran Church in Licey. There, his work involves supervising seminary field workers, making evangelistic visits, and planting new mission starts in nearby communities. In addition, he has served Concordia the Reformer Seminary as a professor and provost since 2017, overseeing residential students’ affairs as well as distance learners in partnership with Concordia Theological Seminary, Ft. Wayne, Indiana.
Rev. Fritzler is an accomplished musician, using his musical talents on the keyboard, flute and accordion to enhance worship services. He played a substantial role on the hymnal committee that developed the new Lutheran hymnal in Spanish (Himnario Luterano), which was rolled out in the spring of 2022. Fritzler is married to Lilian, a nurse by profession. They have two sons, Enzo and Martín. When he manages to find some downtime, he enjoys grilling, playing musical instruments, and playing soccer with his sons.
The Rev. Ted Krey delivered the sermon on 1 Peter 1:25-26 and was the officiant for the installation with the permission of District President Stuckwisch.
Regional Director Rev. Ted Krey said, “We are grateful that the Lord of the harvest provides experienced and capable men to lead a seminary in preparing pastors and deaconesses at a time such as this. The impact of Concordia Seminary the Reformer continues to grow as her men are sent out to all corners of Latin America. Pastor Fritzler brings a wealth of experience and a clear dedication to the task of preparing confessional pastors as evangelists, shepherds and teachers who would preach the Gospel.”
