DL2b: External history, Walther, then Guenther

      This continues from Part 2a (Table of Contents in Part 1) in a series presenting Der Lutheraner, 1888-1934, in English. — Fuerbringer brings us more valuable information on the various people involved through the years.  This helps as one reads this publication, to try to figure out who all the contributors were since most of them used abbreviations as their signature. From Der Lutheraner, vol. 76 (1920), p. 8-10:

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 The external history of the “Lutheraner”.

[by Prof. Ludwig Fürbringer; cont'd from Part 2a]

For more than twenty years, Walther alone had taken care of the editorial work, although from the very beginning, as already mentioned, other fathers and founders of our synod came to his aid with contributions. Then the 10th number of the 21st volume (January 15, 1865) announced: “Since Prof. Walther, at the urgent request of all the pastors of our Synod as well as of the Norwegian Synod, has undertaken a literary work, the editorship is temporarily entrusted to the teaching staff of the theological seminary in St. Louis.” Whereas before, under the main title at the head of the paper, it read, “Edited by C. F. W. Walther,” from now on it read, “Temporarily edited by the teaching staff of the theological seminary in St. Louis.” So it is still said today. For 55 years the faculty of the aforementioned institution has been entrusted with the editorship, which then always entrusted one of its members with the care of the editorial business. At first this was Prof. A. Craemer; for in the aforementioned announcement which Pastor [Page 9] H. Fick made on behalf of the St. Louis Pastoral Conference, it was still stated: “All submissions should therefore be addressed to: Rev. Prof. A. Craemer, Concordia College, St. Louis, Mo.” Craemer must then have conducted editorial business for a number of years; the letter C. often appears under the paper's “Ecclesiastical Chronicle” designating him, including under an editorial notice in No. 1 of the 27th volume (Sept. 1, 1870). But Walther also still wrote a lot for the paper, as can be seen from the contributions signed with the letter W., especially towards the end of this period. The other members of the faculty, E. A. Brauer and F. A. Schmidt, also contributed. The 29th volume (1872-73) did not close in September, like the previous volumes, but in December, so that from the 30th volume on the journal runs from January to December, as it still does today. At first, it was still printed by Wiebusch; however, from the number of April 15, 1865 on (Volume 21, No. 16), it merely says: “Printed by A. Wiebusch and Son.” But soon a change took place in this. In No. 20 of the 25th volume (June 15, 1869) it says again, and this time in the full sense of the words: “Printing house of the Synod of Missouri, Ohio and other states.” Our own publishing house had come into being, which in the course of time has gained such great importance for the Lutheran Church in general and for our Synod in particular.

[“The Editors, from Walther to Fuerbringer”]

The Foreword to the 29th volume (1872-73) had still been written by Walther, the Foreword to the 30th volume (1874) is signed G.. This was Prof. M. Günther, who had joined the faculty in 1873 and then took care of the editorial business and did the main editorial work for almost twenty years. Brauer had returned to the preaching ministry in 1872, Crämer moved with the practical department of the seminary to Springfield in 1875, Schmidt was transferred by the Norwegian Synod to its seminary established in Madison. But even now contributions from Walther's pen are still to be found, and this continued until his blessed end; his last word in the “Lutheraner” was a word of thanks on the occasion of congratulatory letters on his fiftieth anniversary as a preacher. It is dated January 17, 1887 (Vol. 43, No. 3), when he was already on the sickbed that became his deathbed on May 7 of that year. Thus Walther worked for over 42 years on the “Lutheraner” and above all made the “Lutheraner” what it is. Next to him stands Günther, who also worked tirelessly on the “Lutheraner” until his industrious hand fell from the pen on May 22, 1893. But also in these and the following years the other members of the faculty have always helped, to name only the deceased: G. Schaller, R. Lange and namely G. Stöckhardt and A. L. Gräbner. 

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I have been pleasantly surprised at Guenther's writings in Der Lutheraner, as they clearly showed that Walther's theology would continue well into the future.  And Guenther's book about Walther's life is quite a treat, and will be published soon on this blog in English. — In the concluding Part 2c…