Gingerich, Melvin (1902-1975)

Mennonite Weekly Review obituary: 1975 Jun 26 p. 1 Mennonite Weekly Review obituary: 1975 Jun 26 p. 4

Birth date: 1902

text of obituary:

MELVIN GINGERICH (1902-1975)

Review readers knew him especially under the familiar heading "On My Desk." For more than 31 years — without missing a single week — he single-handedly produced his column, becoming the most prominent book reviewer in the Mennonite denomination.

It was with sadness and a sense of deep loss that we received the telephone message from Dr. Owen Gingerich of Cambridge, Mass. informing us of the death of his, Dr. Melvin Gingerich, on Tuesday, June 24. (See story on page 1.)

Melvin Gingerich was well known to a wide circle as a teacher, author, lecturer, historical scholar and church leader. In his writing and speaking, he was consistently a wise commentator on the religious and world scene, always in the light of his Christian convictions and the Anabaptist-Mennonite heritage.

His many travels and wide acquaintance with Mennonites around the world gave him an unusual breadth of perspective, so evident in his interpretive articles and reviews, which contributed to the shaping of opinion throughout the brotherhood.

Perhaps the highest compliment that can be made regarding Dr. Gingerich as a Mennonite Weekly Review columnist is that it requires a whole group of persons to carry on the task he accomplished individually for so long. In mid-1973 he took the lead in organizing the present arrangement for the "On My Desk" column, now conducted by a large panel of reviewers.

But his contribution to MWR went beyond his weekly column. The close friendship of Melvin Gingerich and Menno Schrag (now Review editor emeritus), which dated back to school days at Hesston Academy in the 1920s, developed into a practical working relationship in 1941 when the Gingerich family moved from Iowa to North Newton, Kan. where Gingerich joined the faculty of Bethel College. "On My Desk" began with the issue of Feb. 26, 1942. From then on, he also gave invaluable counsel and assistance that greatly helped to enlarge the scope and acceptance of the Review as an inter-Mennonite newspaper.

A paragraph from a chapel address Dr. Gingerich gave at Goshen College in 1966 is an example of his vital Christian faith and testimony.

"For years as I taught history I stressed the role of personalities in the shaping of events. . . . But nowhere have I found a personage quite like Jesus of Nazareth. He is like us and yet he is unique. So those of us who find the study of man to be intriguing sooner or later are driven to a profound study of this person, and we are forced to conclude that ours is the 'visited planet.' It is not surprising that those who deliberated on the significance of this person's life, death, and resurrection should have formulated as the first great confession of the church — 'Christ is Lord'."

Mennonite Weekly Review obituary: 1975 Jul 3 p. 5
Mennonite Weekly Review obituary: 1975 Jul 17 p. 5