Q&A
Q&A with the Rev. Dr. Christian Tiews
Tiews is an LCMS missionary to Germany, where he works primarily with Persian refugees.
The Rev. Dr. Christian Tiews was 40 years old when he first truly heard the Gospel during a service connected to his daughter’s Lutheran day care in Tomball, Texas. He and his wife, Gudula (Lula), joined the church, and eventually he studied to become an LCMS pastor. After serving two congregations in Oklahoma, Christian and Lula embarked on a new phase as LCMS missionaries to Germany. It was a welcome return, since they both grew up there. Now, Lula serves as communications specialist for the LCMS Eurasia region, and Christian works with hundreds of Persian refugees who are interested in Christianity — he has personally baptized 50 of them — and teaches online courses for future pastors through Luther Academy, based in Riga, Latvia.
What led you to become a missionary?
A: I was thinking about retirement and possibly returning to Germany. I contacted the Office of International Mission and said I’d be interested in missionary work. Eleven months later, I touched down in Frankfurt, Germany. For the first six months, I served in Kaiserslautern [at an English-speaking congregation]. For the last four years, I’ve been in Hamburg. The wonderful thing about working with the Persians is that they are converts, just like I was.
What are some of the challenges of this ministry?
A: The Persians face many challenges. For most of them, the journey from Iran or Afghanistan to Germany is extremely traumatic, physically and mentally. Some have walked to Germany. Others have been thrown into jail for months at a time. Once here, they have to go through the extremely tedious process of being granted asylum. Then there’s the mental stress of possibly being deported. When they convert, they often are the victims of hostility from other Muslims.
But the good news, obviously, is the Good News — when they hear the Gospel and the assurance of salvation in Christ for the first time. … Before, they were hounded by Islam or by the mental anguish of the law, as well as by the Mullah regime. So despite everything, in Germany they have found a peace that they’ve never experienced before.
Do you worry that some might use Christianity to gain asylum?
A: Out of 55 Muslim countries, only people from two — Iran and Afghanistan — are very open to the Gospel. … Matthew 28 says to baptize and teach. These people are being taught. They receive the Holy Spirit in Baptism. Some people are faster than others. My wife and I went to the Lutheran church [in Texas years ago] because it had the best day care. The pastor could have said, “You’re not taking this seriously. Please go somewhere else.” But he didn’t. He preached. He taught. And one evening, I did hear the Gospel. Tons of people go to church, from a human point of view, for the “wrong” reason. … The Holy Spirit does what He will do. That conversation takes place between that person and the Holy Spirit.
There is a refugee studying to become a Lutheran pastor, right?
A: Yes. Amir has been a Christian for 12 years. Even in Iran, he was teaching Christianity to fellow Iranians on the internet. I asked him, “Would you be interested in becoming a pastor to do this officially and properly?” He signed up at Luther Academy at the next opportunity. His wife is a professional translator, and she recently translated the Augsburg Confession into Farsi. We also have three more Iranians applying to Luther Academy for this fall.
What is your hope for this work?
A: I pray that this work, like a pebble tossed into a pond, will continue to have an impact on more and more people. But in a larger context, that Iran would open up. Maybe as many as a third of the population already believes in Jesus, but they need to be taught and baptized. I would love to be part of that bigger process by helping raise up future pastors.
Learn More
- Learn more about the LCMS Eurasia region
- Learn more about LCMS missionary Rev. Dr. Christian Tiews
Megan K. Mertz
Managing editor of Lutherans Engage the World and chief copy editor for LCMS Communications.
