About the Author

About the Author

An early English dogmatician of old Missouri

August Lawrence Graebner (1849-1904) was a Lutheran pastor, teacher, and professor whose work bridged the German theological world of the early Missouri Synod and the growing need for solid English-language doctrinal instruction in America. He studied at Concordia institutions, taught in Watertown and Wauwatosa, and later served at Concordia Seminary in St. Louis.

His significance lies especially in the way he made confessional Lutheran dogmatics more accessible in English without softening its substance. Outlines of Doctrinal Theology gives short thetical statements of doctrine together with the chief Scripture passages on which they rest, making it a compact window into older Missouri theology.

Graebner was also known for his strict commitment to Holy Scripture and the Lutheran Confessions. That makes this book useful not only as a historical document, but also as a concise doctrinal handbook for readers who want to see how older confessional Lutherans summarized and defended the articles of faith.