| REV. DR. JAMES ARTHUR WALTHER
87, of Greenville, formerly of Pittsburgh, died Wednesday, Dec. 28, at UPMC Horizon, Greenville. Born April 3, 1918, to George A. and Mary P. Walther, he married Janet Walther of Greenville, on March 15, 1986. She survives. He was a member of Shenango Presbytery and served as parish associate at Hillside Presbyterian Church, Greenville PA.
At Shenango he also held many courses from the Kerygma Bible Study and was a member of the senior choir. He was ordained by Pittsburgh Presbytery on May 19, 1942, in Bethel Presbyterian Church, Bethel Park, PA, where he had been baptized and confirmed. Dr. Walther enjoyed a distinguished career. He served as assistant pastor at Concord Presbyterian Church in Carrick, Pittsburgh, from 1942-1943. In April 1943, he received a commission as a Naval Reserve Chaplain and served for 27 months in the Pacific area, at Pearl Harbor Hospital and aboard USS PROTEUS, AS19. The ship was at Midway Island and then Guam and joined the 3rd Fleet at the final surrender in Japan. He continued in the Naval Reserve for 30 years. From 1956 to 1973, he was chaplain for the Marine Corps Reserves of Pittsburgh. He was a life member of the Military Chaplains Association. From 1946 to 1948, he studied at Emmanuel College of Victoria University in Toronto. From 1947 to 1948, he was also an assistant at the Timothy Eaton Memorial United Church. He served as pastor of the First Presbyterian Church of Edinboro, PA, from 1948 to 1950. From 1950 to 1954, he taught Greek and Latin at Grove City College in Grove City, PA. In 1954, he returned to Pittsburgh to teach New Testament studies at Western Seminary. After consolidation into the Pittsburgh Seminary in 1959, Dr. Walther continued to teach there until 1983, retiring as Emeritus Professor of New Testament Literature and Exegesis. He then was adjunct professor until 1990. He was one of the founders and the first author of the Kerygma Program (1977), which has placed Bible studies in some 16,000 churches representing 30 denominations. For Kerygma he wrote:
He has also written Bible studies for the Logos youth program and was a leader at its national conferences from 1987 to 1998. He has published a textbook of New Testament Greek (University of Chicago Press, 1966; 1980). With Professor William F. Orr, he coauthored the Anchor Bible Commentary on First Corinthians (Doubleday, 1976). Editor of Ever a Frontier, the bicentennial history of Pittsburgh Seminary (Eerdmans, 1994), Dr. Walther has also written many articles and been an editor, including the Pittsburgh Perspective from 1960 to 1967. Dr. Walther continued to serve the Presbyterian Church at Presbytery, Synod, and General Assembly levels, having preached or lectured in more than 450 churches. In addition to his services as Parish Associate at Hillside Presbyterian Church, Dr. Walther was active with the Greenville Area Christian Ministerial Association (GACMA), having served as its president from 1996 to 1998. He enjoyed traveling, bowling, golfing, reading, fishing, walking on the beach, crossword puzzles, and spending time with his family. In addition to his wife at home, Dr. Walther is survived by a son, the Rev. James A. Walther Jr., and his wife, Doreen, of Charleston, W. VA; a daughter, Maryann Walther-Keisel, of Columbus, Ohio; three step-sons, David Lanston, and his wife, Lora, of Harrisburg, PA, the Rev. Robert Langston and his wife, Karen of Syracuse, NY; Daniel Langston and his wife, Pam of Charleston, South Carolina; and seven grandchildren, Kenneth J Keisel, Drew and Julianne Langston, Matthew Langston and Ryan, Will, and Emily Langston. He was preceded in death by his first wife, AnnaMarie Piel Walther. In lieu of flowers donations may be made to Pittsburgh Theological Seminary Student Aid Fund, 616 Highland Ave., Pittsburgh, PA 15206. Condolences may be emailed to ljfh@pathway.net |
