Herewith we hand over the tenth part of Walch's collection of Luther's works, which contains his catechetical writings, in a new form for public use. In this revised edition, we have retained the arrangement of Walch, who rubricated the writings of Luther that belong here according to the main pieces of Luther's Small Catechism. Walch has woven these writings into a whole and in the historical introduction, the individual parts are so closely connected that a change or rearrangement did not seem possible, if one did not want to overturn the whole structure. It cannot be denied that the selection and compilation of Luther's "catechetical" writings depends on the subjective judgment and taste of the editor and in some places challenges criticism. In general, it is often difficult to decide whether one of Luther's writings has more the character of a catechetical or polemical or Reformation-historical writing. The arrangement of the Erlangen edition is also quite subjective, often purely arbitrary. The compilation of all
of Luther's occasional writings according to chronological order would be advisable in many cases, even if in this case the writings of the same type would be torn apart. However, the deficiency of the factual order, the disturbance of the historical context, can easily be compensated for if, as has now also been done in this part, a rubrication of the titles of Luther's writings united here according to the time of writing is added to the table of contents..
However, this volume has also undergone a thorough revision. The text of the German writings has been reviewed and improved according to the original printings used by the Erlangen edition. For the letters, German and Latin, De Wette's "Briefe Luther's" was compared, for some writings also Löscher's "Vollständige Reformationsacten". The translations of the Latin writings made by Walch's co-workers had to be corrected in many cases, and mostly replaced by new translations. Also, the letters and concerns, which Walch gave only in excerpts and incomplete, were completed from the original text. Likewise, some of the
The titles and headings indicating the content of the letters and concerns in question may be changed.
The present edition also includes some writings that are completely missing in Walch's work and that have been added to this volume at the relevant places because the subject matter they deal with has been included here by Walch. These are, apart from various reviews of several sermons, another "Concerns of Luther, Jonas, and Melanchthon about the counter-defense," a letter to Nic. Hausmann of May 26, 1531, a disputation of the Mass, and Luther's preface to the Begräbniß-Gesänge of 1542. Other additions, such as the enclosure of the musical scores to the "German Mass," explanation of outdated
Words, scholastic expressions, etc., make themselves recognizable as such.
Walch's preface, which contains the historical introduction, has been supplemented by completing and partially correcting the table of contents and by increasing the historical material. We have not specifically noted formal changes to Walch's text, but have added the factual additions in square brackets.
This volume of Luther's works also contains an alphabetical index.
May Luther, the greatest and best catechist since the days of the apostles, find many students eager to learn, not only in the theological world that calls itself by his name, but among the Lutheran Christian people in general!
St. Louis, Pentecost 1885.