Walther's Works: Church Fellowship, Pastoral Theology; new cross-reference, new availability

[2024-08-31: added links to English text for 1870 Western and 1872 English Conf.; 2024-08-25: added new links to new uploads of CPH books to Internet Archive, now making almost all material from this volume available for free to view; fixed broken links; added highlighted source to #12] 

      I have blogged previously in 2014 about one of the releases of Concordia Publishing House's Walther's Works series – Church Fellowship.  That included a cross reference to the original German language source material.  However I want to present a more complete cross-reference which includes the already existing English translations that were used for this publication.   This is for anyone who already owns the previous publications (like me) or who is contemplating purchasing the 2 older works still available – Selected Writings and At Home in the House….   As publisher Paul McCain put it to me:

…a new set of Walther's works, pulling together all the previously different formats, shapes, sizes, into a consistent set of books. "Essays for the Church" will be included in this new series. 

So this publication is largely only a re-ordering, a new "pulling together" of previous publications, not presenting original material.  (Matthew Harrison did present some new translations for his book…)  Here are the books partially used as sources for this newer publication:

• Editorials from “Lehre und Wehre” hereafter abbreviated “Editorials”
• Essays for the Church, vols. 1 and 2
• Free English Lutheran Conference, 1872
• Concordia Theological Monthly or CTM
• At Home in the House of My Fathers by Matthew Harrison

Contents

1. Subscribing to the Whole Book of Concord, 1857     p. 1

[LuW 3, No . 1, Jan . 1857, pp. 1-4; Editorials p. 39]

2. Taking the Confessions Seriously, 1858     p. 5

[Editorials p. 43]

3. Answer to the Question “Why Should Our Pastors, Teachers, and Professors Subscribe Unconditionally to the Symbolical Writings of Our Church?,” 1858     p. 11

[Western District Convention in 1858; also in Tappert, Lutheran Confessional Theology in America 1840-1880, pgs 55-77; Concordia Theological Monthly, vol. 18 1947 – p. 241-253, Guebert translation; At Home in the House of my Fathers, pgs 120-137]

4. On Doctrinal Development, 1859      p. 29

[Editorials p. 49]

5. On Church Language, 1859 [LuW vol. 5, pp. 65-71]     p. 43

[Editorials p. 62]

6. Do We Draw the Lines of Fellowship Too Narrowly?, 1860     p. 55

[Editorials p. 74]

7. The Missouri Synod’s Adherence to the Lutheran Confessions, 1866     p. 75

[Editorials p. 115; Opening Address at the Convention of the 1866 General Synod, LuW 1867 pp. 1-8]

8. On Syncretism, 1868     p. 81

[Concordia Theological Monthly, vol. 17 1946  – pgs 481-498, Guebert translation]

[reprinted in Concordia Journal June 1975]

9. The False Arguments for the Modern Theory of Open Questions, 1868     p. 95

[Concordia Theological Monthly, vol. 10 1939  – pp. 254 ff.

(254-262, 351-357, 415-420, 507-513, 587-595, 656-666, 752-759, 827-834)]

10. Theses on the Modern Theory of Open Questions, 1868     p. 141

[Original  – translated by Benjamin T. G. Mayes from LuW 14, p. 318-9]

11. Communion Fellowship, 1870     p. 145

[Western District Convention, 1870; Theses on communion fellowship with those who believe differently, L. White, 1980; Essays For The Church, vol. 1, pp. 202-228; English text]

12. Summary of Christian Doctrine, Sixteen Theses, 1872     p. 193

[Free English Lutheran Conference, 1872; Essays For The Church, vol. 1, pp. 229-243; English text]

13. On the Three Hundredth Anniversary of the Formula of Concord, 1877     p. 217

[Editorials p. 143]

14. Duties of an Evangelical Lutheran Synod, 1879     p. 237

[Iowa District Convention 1879; Essays For The Church, vol. 2, pgs 6-63; available in pamphlet format from CPH HERE]

15. The Only Source of Doctrine, 1882     p. 337

[Editorials p. 164]

16. Church Fathers and Doctrine, 1884     p. 351

[Synodical Conference 1884; Essays For The Church, vol. 2, pgs 67-101]

Scripture Index     p. 413

——————————

      The introductions to the essays taken from Essays For The Church (from 1992) are repeated verbatim, presumably all having been written by Prof. Charles Arand. But Charles Arand seems not to be contributing anything involved with C.F.W. Walther’s writings in recent times.  —  One of the benefits of purchasing this book is the Scripture Index, something that was not available before in previous publications.

      There is one minor exception in this book – it is by Benjamin T. G. Mayes and his two page original translation of item # 10.  I don't think there is any newly translated material in this year's book All Glory to God.  I also hope to publish a cross reference for it soon.  At least these 2 books bring back some of those essays that became extinct when CPH quit selling the 2 volume Essays for the Church books.  —  One can hope the next release of Walther's Works will have more value in original translation work, not just re-publication of previously translated works.  There still is a large amount of Walther's writings that remains untranslated.

 

      The next release of Walther's Works from CPH, Walther's Pastoral Theology, is now available for pre-release purchase ("Estimated 01/31/2017. Subject to change").   This was delayed 1 year — the confusion caused by this delay is even evident in WorldCat which today lists a 2016 version as being available at the Library of Congress!  This book was apparently prematurely announced and then delayed.  But the long delay would seem to be nearly over as CPH is even offering a $10 discount so that the book is sale priced for only $29.99.  This is an eagerly awaited translation – I have had several correspondences about it – and it is well worth a purchase for not only pastors and teachers, but also all Christians.