Featuring the Rev. Wiley Smith, 
Pastor at Christ the King Lutheran Church, Redlands, California

by Pam Knepper
Managing Editor, For the Life of the World

Born in St. Louis, Mo., Rev. Smith spent the early years of his life in this Midwestern city sporadically attending Methodist and Presbyterian churches. When he was eight years old, his family moved to the West Coast to the town of Albany, Ore. It was in Oregon that Rev. Smith was first introduced to Lutheranism.

"After graduating from the University of Oregon, I met my bride, Alise. She was the brightest light I had ever seen and she invited me to her church, Trinity Lutheran Church, in Bend, Ore.," Rev. Smith explained. "It was in the Divine Service at Trinity that I was first subjected to the Gospel in all its fullness and, though I had no conception of it, began my journey toward the ministry."

Having graduated from the University of Oregon in Eugene, Ore., with a bachelor's degree in psychology, Rev. Smith still had no clear career direction and the dream of "going fast" remained, so he decided this was the time to join the U.S. Navy. He began the process by taking the Navy's entrance exam for admittance into the Aviation Officer Candidate School (AOCS).

"I am not much of a mathematician," said Rev. Smith. "So I was a non-select."

Anxious to enter the Navy regardless of his test score, Rev. Smith decided to enlist for a four-year commitment.

"The naval recruiter told me that if I received a good evaluation and the endorsement of my commanding officer my chances of being admitted into AOCS would be good," explained Rev. Smith. "Surprise! This ended up not being the case. But by the time I found out that I had been deceived, it was too late. I was an enlisted flunky swabbing hangar decks."

Stationed at Naval Air Station Miramar in San Diego, Calif., Rev. Smith and his wife settled in the city of Escondido and transferred their membership to Grace Lutheran Church. It was here that he began to realize that God was calling him into the ministry and not a cockpit.

Rev. Smith became quite passionate about Lutheran theology and active in Bible studies and other church activities.

"My pastor, the Rev. James P. Young, saw that I was very interested in the doctrine of the church and he began to encourage me toward the Holy Ministry. As a graduate of Concordia Theological Seminary, Pastor Young told me all about life at the seminary," said Rev. Smith. "He told me about the professors, the wonderful Lutheran churches in Fort Wayne, and how seminary life is so fulfilling for students and families alike. By the time I applied in 1988 and was accepted, I felt like it was home before I even got there."

Committed to finish his four year assignment with the Navy, Rev. Smith did not begin his studies at the seminary until the fall of 1991. Describing his seminary education, Rev. Smith mirrors it to the assembling of a mosaic.

"As I began to learn more, the depth and richness and clarity of Christ's sacrifice and His ongoing work in the church grew and intensified in my mind," Rev. Smith explained. "Between the glorious worship life in Kramer Chapel and the teaching prowess of Professor Marquart, Dr. Scaer, Dr. Just and Dr. Weinrich, all the pieces came together perfectly. Now I help my parishioners to see the mosaic of a suffering and triumphant Christ in our liturgy, the Sacraments and the Holy Scriptures."

Along with his years on campus, Rev. Smith also credits a wonderful year of vicarage under the sainted Rev. Dr. Martin Rudolph Taddey at Trinity Lutheran Church in Palo Alto, Calif., in preparing him for the Holy Ministry.

Graduating in 1995 with his M.Div. degree, Rev. Smith decided to stay on for an additional year to serve as the graduate assistant for the pastoral ministry department and to begin working toward his Master of Sacred Theology (STM) degree.

"I absolutely loved my STM year because it gave me a chance to discuss theology more in-depth with my professors and classmates," explained Rev. Smith. "I feel as though I could not have possibly been better prepared to herald the Good News, to shepherd a flock, under any circumstance. When I left the seminary I was a race car, totally revved and ready to go."

In the spring of 1996, Rev. Smith received his first and current call to Christ the King Lutheran Church in Redlands, Calif.

Overlooking the San Bernadino Mountains, Christ the King worships around around 130 members each Sunday and is the home to one of the largest preschools in the Missouri Synod, with an attendance of 300 children.

"Being around so many young people keeps me on my toes and chapel is always interesting," said Rev. Smith. "Through the year they become familiar with parts of the liturgy, the Lord's Prayer and the Creed."

Christ the King is firmly grounded in a Word and Sacrament ministry.

"At Christ the King the ministry is established around our Lord and His life," explained Rev. Smith. "By following the church year and expounding on the depth of our liturgical practice we pattern the rhythm of our lifes on the life of our Lord-the head of the body. Through this ministry, we too have sent a son of the congregation, seminarian James Rice, to Concordia Theological Seminary."

The Rev. Wiley Smith and his wife Alise are the parents of Madison and Wiley the 5th. They live in Redlands, Calif.