Meet the Pastor: Rev. Jeff Hemmer
The Rev. Jeff Hemmer has been blessed to serve at Bethany since 2011. Starting February 2026, he also serves Signal Hill Lutheran Church in Belleville in a dual parish capacity.
Born in Belleville, Pastor Hemmer received a B.A. in English from Concordia University, Nebraska, Seward, Neb., and an M.Div. from Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, Mo. He is currently a Ph.D. candidate at Concordia Seminary, working on a dissertation on the theology of body and the theology of place. His other theological and academic interests include biblical masculinity and the function of Christian fathers, the role of the resurrection in Christian ethics, and martyrdom and the cross-shaped Christian life.
Pastor Hemmer has also served as the assistant to Synod President Rev. Dr. Matthew Harrison, and is a noted author of Man Up!: The Quest for Masculinity (CPH, 2017); “Behold the Man!” Lenten and Easter sermon series (CPH, 2019); “A Noble Army” sermon series on the martyrs (CPH, 2020); and assorted other articles, essays and posts.
Pastor Hemmer is blessed with a wonderful family. He, his wife Laura, and their nine children live in an 1860s farmhouse nearby.
