The 16th Corpus Christi Conference Turku, Finland 20–24 July 2026
Register here
On the theme, from Thomas Winger
“The Body Baptised: living a life of faith, worship, and service”.
In the plenary sessions, we will explore what it means that we are redeemed in both body and soul. Laying the theological foundation of what it means that God poured water on my body to make me His own, we will focus on the physical aspects of the liturgy (sacrament and ceremony), moving into service of the neighbour as daily worship.
Main Speaker
Thomas M. Winger has been Professor of Theology at Concordia Lutheran Theological Seminary, St. Catharines, since 2006.
Before his call to the Seminary, Winger served as pastor of Grace Lutheran Church, St. Catharines (1993–1999) and as a tutor at Westfield House, Cambridge (UK). (1999–2006) Professor Winger holds STM (1992) and ThD (1997) degrees from Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, MO.
He is married and has two children.
Presentations
Rev. Dr. Christian Tiews
Rev. Dr. Christian C. Tiews and his wife Lula are missionaries of the Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod, serving in Hamburg, Germany since 2021. Dr. Tiews brings Christ in Word and Sacrament to Persian immigrants and is an online theological educator at Luther Academy, Riga, Latvia. An adult convert to Christianity, he holds a Master of Divinity degree from Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, Missouri, and a Doctor of Ministry degree from Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne, Indiana. He also holds a Master of Science degree from Christian-Albrechts-Universität, Kiel, Germany. He is also a professional translator and has rendered numerous German theological works into English. Prior to his missionary work in Eurasia, Dr. Tiews served as a parish pastor in Oklahoma, where he quite often encountered individuals caught up in spiritual warfare. Both Dr. Tiews and Lula have spent about half of their lives in Germany and the United States, respectively. They are blessed with six children and four grandchildren. In his spare time Dr. Tiews enjoys studying the history of the Middle East, walking, and sailing.
Rev. Tiews on his presentations:
Once upon a time, Rev. Dr. Christian C. Tiews used to be an evolutionist, having earned a Master of Science degree in geology from the University of Kiel, Germany. However after coming to faith in Jesus Christ in 1997, he gradually discovered that much of what he had learned and believed regarding the formation of the earth and all living things was false. In his three-part session, he will attempt to explain to you why all man-made theories on this topic are incorrect and only God’s Word gives us the truth.
Rev Sahar Sadlovsky Gold
Rev. Sebastian Grünbaum
Rev. Sebastian Grünbaum was born and raised in Helsinki, Finland. He studied theology at Åbo Akademi University in Turku from 2006 to 2011. He was ordained as into the holy ministry in the Evangelical Lutheran Mission Diocese of Finland in 2011 and served in Turku for 11 years as a pastor. Between the years 2022–2026 has been working on his dissertation, which is about the theology of the Lord’s Supper of Martin Chemnitz. His interest include reading, writing, running, motorcycle riding, and ice bathing.
Rev. Grünbaum will examine the theological debate over infant baptism and believer’s baptism through the lens of church history, with particular attention to Augustine’s controversy with Pelagius and its implications for original sin, grace, and the freedom of the will. He will then explore the question of what baptism actually does by engaging the Reformation-era dispute between Luther and Zwingli, focusing on the contrast between sacramental realism and symbolic interpretation. Finally, he will consider the development of baptismal theology within the Pentecostal movement, especially its emphasis on a distinction between two baptisms, and evaluate these themes in light of Lutheran theology.
CONFERENCE DATES
JULY 20th – JULY 24TH, 2026
MONDAY – FRIDAY