The Rev. Dr. Leah D. Schade is the Associate Professor of Preaching and Worship at Lexington Theological Seminary in Kentucky and is ordained in the ELCA. Dr. Schade does not speak for LTS or the ELCA; her opinions are her own.
The Rev. Dr. Leah D. Schade is the Associate Professor of Preaching and Worship at Lexington Theological Seminary in Kentucky. An ordained Lutheran minister (ELCA) for twenty-five years, Leah earned both her MDiv and PhD degrees from the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia (now United Lutheran Seminary). She has pastored congregations in suburban, urban, and rural contexts. She has authored or co-edited seven books: Preaching and Social Issues: Tools and Tactics for Empowering Your Prophetic Voice (Alban Books, Rowman & Littlefield, 2024); Introduction to Preaching: Scripture, Theology, and Sermon Preparation (Rowman & Littlefield, 2023); Apocalypse When?: A Guide to Interpreting and Preaching Apocalyptic Texts (Wipf & Stock, 2020); Preaching in the Purple Zone: Ministry in the Red-Blue Divide (Alban Books/Rowman & Littlefield, 2019); Rooted and Rising: Voices of Courage in a Time of Climate Crisis (Rowman & Littlefield, 2019); For the Beauty of the Earth: A Lenten Devotional (Chalice Press, 2019); Creation-Crisis Preaching: Ecology, Theology, and the Pulpit (Chalice Press, 2015). She is also the EcoPreacher blogger for Patheos.
Leah has served as an anti-fracking and climate activist, community organizer, and advocate for environmental justice issues. She is currently the grant director for the $1.25 million project “Compelling Preaching for a Climate-Changed World” at LTS in partnership with The BTS Center and Creation Justice Ministries. She also partners with ecoAmerica’s Blessed Tomorrow, and the Interfaith Center for Sustainable Development, with whom she writes EcoPreacher 1-2-3 for busy pastors wanting to address environmental issues in their sermons.
She also served as President of the Academy of Homiletics in 2024. She has been a featured speaker for the Festival of Homiletics, leads workshops and retreats, and keynotes events throughout the country. She was the director of a Wabash grant exploring the use of deliberative dialogue in congregations and theological education is also conducting a longitudinal research study about ministry, preaching, and social issues that has surveyed more than 4,000 clergy and 1,000 laity since 2017.
Leah received the Kentucky Council of Churches award in 2019. She is also co-founder of the Clergy Emergency League, a network of 3,300 pastors throughout the U.S. who provide support, accountability, resources, and networking for clergy to prophetically minister in their congregations and the public square in this time of political upheaval, social unrest, and partisan division.
Leah is also a professional harpist and her CD, Shall We Gather, is available at http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/ldschade.
You can follow her on:
BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/leahschade.bsky.social
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LeahDSchade/
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Leah-D.-Schade/e/B018UH18EQ
To contact Leah directly: [email protected].
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