Peter Bush

Peter Strauch (born January 10, 1943 in Wetter an der Ruhr ) is a German evangelical theologian , author and songwriter of popular Christian music . From 1973 to 1983 he was head of the federal youth work, 1983 to 1991 federal nurse and 1991 to 2008 President of the Federation of Free Evangelical Congregations in Germany. He was a member of international and national evangelical bodies, from 1986 to 2006 he was on the main board of the German Evangelical Alliance and from 2000 to 2006 he was the first chairman.

Life

Peter Strauch was the eldest son of four children of the truck driver Karl and the housewife Ruth Strauch, nee Bühne. The first five years of his life he grew up in Wuppertal - Cronenberg and from 1948 they lived in Wuppertal- Ronsdorf . The family of six belonged to the local Free Evangelical Congregation. As a child he found a personal faith in Jesus Christ . After leaving school, he first learned toolmaking and then studied Protestant theology from 1962 to 1966 at the free church theological seminar in Ewersbach . There he was most strongly influenced by the theologian Fritz Laubach , who also asked him for his first pastor's position in Hamburg.

From 1966 to 1973 Strauch was first vicar and then pastor of the Free Evangelical Congregation Hamburg-Sasel .

From 1973 to 1983 Strauch was head of the federal youth work of the Federation of Free Protestant Congregations , and from 1983 to 1991 he was federal carer in these congregations. In 1987 and 1988 he was 6 times speaker of the word for Sunday .

From 1991 to 2008 he was President of the Federation of Free Evangelical Churches in Germany (BFeG) and from 1994 to 1997 President of the Association of Evangelical Free Churches (VEF). His term of office as President ended due to old age. His predecessor was Karl Heinz Knöppel (1973 to 1991), his successor is Ansgar Hörsting , who was previously head of the Allianz mission .

Strauch is a member of the board of trustees of the evangelical association ProChrist, which is related to the YMCA . He is also a member of the leadership group of the Lausanne Movement and from 2000 to 2006 he was the first chairman of the German Evangelical Alliance, of which he had been a member since 1986. On January 1, 2007, Jürgen Werth replaced him as chairman.

Strauch is known to a wide audience through his books - some of which have had multiple editions. He recognized issues such as honesty, credibility, work-life balance and burn-out early on and wrote about them. He achieved even greater fame due to his more than 150 songs, which are now part of the fixed songs of many free, Protestant and Catholic parishes .

Private

Strauch has been living with his retired wife Edelgard in Wetter an der Ruhr since 2008. The couple have two daughters.

Honors

From the Trinity Evangelical Divinity School (in Deerfield, Illinois) , Peter Strauch was awarded an honorary doctorate of Divinity on May 12, 2007 for his achievements in leading positions as Chairman of the German Evangelical Alliance and as President of the Federation of Free Evangelical Churches. He was the initiator of youth and community development projects and was a successful bridge builder between generations, piety styles and different church traditions.

In 2015 he received the Neviandt Prize for his theological and musical work .

Works

Songs

Peter Strauch's numerous songs mostly fall into the New Spiritual Song category , but sometimes also praise and adoration . The best known include:

• My time is in your hands
• Lord, we ask: come and bless us
• Those who love God will be like the sun
• Jesus, we look to you
• Lord you give us hope
• Come on, take a deep breath, you shall live
• Lord I see your world
• Jesus Christ died for me

The two volumes of the song book Tell it all in your city , published by Peter and Diethelm Strauch, were groundbreaking for the development of modern Christian music during the 1970s and 1980s in Germany and for the youth choir movement that promoted this song material . But also in popular church hymn books such as I want to thank you! or the current hymn book Fieren & Loben of the FeG and BEFG in Germany, his songs are an integral part.

Tribute albums

Gerhard Reaper played with the ERF Studio Choir in 1984 with the concept of production discoveries familiar songs by Peter Strauch one. Gerhard Schnitter also produced the concept album Der Himmel ist offen with Strauchs Christmas carols, this time with Time To Sing and various soloists. Other music producers such as Hans-Werner Scharnowski or Tom Keene also released albums dedicated to Strauch's compositional work.

year	title	Artist	Label
1984	Discoveries of songs by Peter Strauch	Gerhard Schnitter with the ERF studio choir	Hänssler Music
1993	Hope instrumental arrangements of popular songs by Peter Strauch	Tom Keene	Gerth media
1996	PS: songs of life	Hans-Werner Scharnowski with studio choir	Kawohl Music
1997	The sky is open Christmas carols by Peter Strauch	Gerhard Schnitter with Time to Sing	Hänssler Music
2012	Gott ist da 12 classics by Peter Strauch	Sarah Kaiser ; Dania King ; Andreas Volz ; Lars Peter	Hänssler Music

Books

• Light lights up and floods the world. Photos and texts for meditation and prayer , Kawohl Verlag , Wesel 1980, ISBN 978-3-88087-552-4 .
• Swap fears for hope , Kawohl Verlag, Wesel 1996, ISBN 978-3-88087-007-9 .
• Discoveries in loneliness , SCM R. Brockhaus , Wuppertal 1997, 12th edition 2003, ISBN 978-3-417-20394-3 .
• Typical FeG: Free Protestant congregations on the way into the new millennium , SCM Bundes-Verlag , Witten 1997, 7th edition 2014, ISBN 978-3-86258-029-3 .
• On the longing to be real , SCM R. Brockhaus, Wuppertal 2002, ISBN 978-3-417-24435-9 .
• My time is in your hands , SCM R. Brockhaus, Wuppertal 2005, ISBN 978-3-417-24885-2 .
• Who am I when nobody sees me ?: On the longing to be real , SCM R. Brockhaus, Wuppertal 2006, 4th edition 2008, ISBN 978-3-417-24931-6 .
• Traces of life - texts from four decades , SCM R. Brockhaus, Wuppertal 2008, ISBN 978-3-417-26250-6 .
• Real: 52 impulses for a credible Christianity , Kawohl Verlag, Wesel 2010, ISBN 978-3-88087-774-0 .
• My time is in your hands: biography , SCM Hänssler , Holzgerlingen 2015, ISBN 978-3-7751-5608-0 .

Musical notes

• with Diethelm Strauch: Tell it all in your town , vol. 1, SCM-Hänssler, Holzgerlingen 1975, ISBN 978-3-7751-0326-8 .
• with Diethelm Strauch: Tell everyone in your city , Vol. 2, SCM-Hänssler, Holzgerlingen 1975, ISBN 978-3-7751-0421-0 .

Web links

• Literature by and about Peter Strauch in the catalog of the German National Library

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Peter Strauch: Traces of life. Texts from four decades , Witten 2008, p. 237
2. ↑ Peter Strauch: My time is in your hands. Biography. Hänssler, Holzgerlingen 2015. ISBN 978-3-7751-5608-0 , pages 15-76
3. ↑ Peter Strauch: Traces of life. Texts from four decades , Witten 2008, p. 237
4. ↑ Peter Strauch: My time is in your hands. Biography. Hänssler, Holzgerlingen 2015. ISBN 978-3-7751-5608-0 , pages 250-253
5. ↑ -President of the Federation , feg.de, accessed on 10 April 2017th
6. ↑ An interview with the new chairman of the German Evangelical Alliance , ead.de, article from October 27, 2000.
7. ↑ Peter Strauch: My time is in your hands. Biography. Hänssler, Holzgerlingen 2015. ISBN 978-3-7751-5608-0 , pages 206-430
8. ^ Theological honorary doctorate for FeG President Peter Strauch , mennonews.de, message from May 15, 2007.
9. ↑ Neviandt Prize for former President Peter Strauch , ead.de, message from February 1, 2015.
10. ↑ Evangelical Hymns Edition Württemberg No. 628.
11. ↑ Evangelical Hymns Edition Württemberg No. 565.
12. ↑ Evangelical Hymns Edition Württemberg No. 639.

predecessor	Office	successor
Rolf Hille	First chairman of the German Evangelical Alliance 2000–2006	Jürgen Werth