Under the Southern Cross. History of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Australia
Adelaide, Lutheran Publishing House, 1956.
Octavo, xii, 456 pages with numerous illustrations (mainly from photographs).
Cloth; spine lightly mottled; flyleaves a little offset and lightly tape-marked; marginal notes on a few pages (in ink on one page), with minimal light pencil underlining on a few others; an excellent copy with the lightly used dustwrapper.
The editor's preface is instructive. Dr Brauer completed his manuscript in 1947, having spent over 25 years on it, but it remained unpublished on his death in 1949. Pastor Strelan was tasked with reducing the manuscript to one-third of its length; the complete original work is retained in the Lutheran Archives. Not least, there are five chapters (about 60 pages) on Aboriginal missions. Although a paperback facsimile edition was published in 1985, it is uncommon in our experience, and this first edition is scarce. Provenance: Reverend Dr Leslie Bernhard Grope (1920-2018), Lutheran Church of Australia President Emeritus, 'who served in the role now known as LCA bishop from 1972 until his retirement in 1987' (LCA obituary); his signature is written in ink on the flyleaf. The marginalia and a few loose sheets of notes are in his hand.
Item #115419
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