The Chief Divine Service

Friedrich Lochner's work in hymnology and liturgy has been recognized as preeminent among liturgical scholars for well more than 100 years. Excerpts of his writings have been published in periodicals, and a condensed version of his original book was published in the early 1950s, but the full work has not been available to today's reader.

Recently, as interest in historical liturgies has increased, serious liturgists have been asking for an English edition of Lochner's original book. This authoritative translation includes all of the original material, including references to liturgical practices that are no longer observed. Although this translation has been adapted to use the modern wording of Lutheran Service Book, the reader who is interested in the historical perspective will value the scholarship and historicity present in this edition.