Giving Walther a Run for His Money

Everyone knows that C.F.W. Walther, the first president of what would become the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, was quite the specimen of a man from an "esthetic" standpoint.  But he wasn't alone. His legacy as studliest bishop might be challenged by Bishop Joseph Long.  Bishop Long, here pictured in a photo from 1869 (on the right - Walther is on the left), was the third Bishop of the Evangelical Association, which would ultimately become the United Methodist Church.  It's amazing that the Methodists have kept this under wraps for so long.  Maybe they could parlay Bishop Long's photo into a marketing tool to help with their sagging membership numbers.  Who wouldn't want sideburns like that after all.

Photo of Long from Roy's World