Society of the Holy Trinity
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The Society of the Holy Trinity (Societas Trinitatis Sanctae - STS) is a Lutheran ministerium dedicated to the renewal of the Lutheran church and ministry. Founded in 1997 by 28 members, it currently has over 200 members in at least seven different Lutheran church bodies, mostly from the United States and Canada.
A Lutheran pastor becomes a member by publicly subscribing to the Rule of the Society. Pastors are challenged to remain faithful to their ordination vows by continual deepening of formation in: prayer (Chapters I and V), Christian life as duty and example (Chapter II), collegiality (Chapters III and IV), and study (Chapter VI). In addition, the Rule outlines a faithful pastoral practice seeking to renew Lutheran congregational life along catholic and confessional lines. Among the trajectories for renewal are a recovery of the public prayer of the Divine Office or canonical hours (Chapter I), and worship practice according to Scriptural, creedal, and confessional standards, including the recovery of the practice of voluntary private confession and absolution in Lutheran congregations (Chapter VII). Finally, the Rule commits members to pursuing the causes of intra-Lutheran unity as well as the unity of the Western Church (Chapter VIII). Chapter IX has to do with the governance of the Society.
The entire Society is under the pastoral direction of a Senior. The Senior convenes the Society once a year in a General Retreat, with local chapters meeting at least three other times during the year under the direction of a chapter Dean.
