Rev. Dr. Stephen Oliver: A Life of Faith, Service, and Global Mission

Rev. Dr. Stephen Oliver recently transferred to the CNH District in a return home of sorts. Keep reading to learn more about Oliver's work in Taiwan.

Rev. Dr. Stephen Oliver’s journey in ministry began as a young boy attending Our Redeemer Church & School in Oakland, California. A move to Hayward and membership at Calvary, San Lorenzo, deepened his spiritual roots. At Oregon State University, he began discerning his call to ministry with guidance from Pastor Wessel. Encouraged to trust in God’s leading, he transferred to Concordia University in Portland and continued through Concordia Seminary in St. Louis. He was ordained in 1987 and served his first congregation in Iowa.

In 1991, Dr. Oliver answered a new call—this time as a U.S. Navy Chaplain, serving aboard ships in San Diego and Pearl Harbor. His experiences in East Asia stirred a growing passion for Chinese ministry, initially sparked during the Tiananmen Square crisis. After leaving the Navy, he studied Mandarin and completed advanced degrees, eventually accepting a call in 2000 to teach at China Lutheran Seminary in Taiwan.

Today, he teaches New Testament and Luther Studies in Mandarin, directs the Graduate School in Luther Studies, and equips Chinese Christians for leadership across Asia. The graduates of China Lutheran Seminary serve in a wide variety of callings, and the branch courses are composed of mostly lay people who serve their congregations in a great variety of ways.

Rev. Dr. Oliver shared the following for prayer requests:

Please pray for us at China Lutheran Seminary for God to passionately inspire our students through the work of the Holy Spirit in His Word. They need strong passion, strength and wisdom to be on the front lines of spreading the Gospel in an environment that is only 5% Christian. Pray for our family's health (physically, emotionally, socially, spiritually). Pray for our children as the three of them are in that "dispersion stage" (going in many different directions), including our firstborn starting at Texas A&M University in Engineering starting August 2025. Thank God for providing for our needs through churches and believers giving, and pray for this continued need.