Al Rueter used airwaves to spread the Word

As pastor of a fledgling Lutheran church in Tulsa, Okla., the Rev. Alvin Rueter found an innovative way to get the word out about his brand of Christianity in a sea of Baptists.

He took to the airwaves, creating a program of religious music that carried his voice and message across the country and around the world.

The longtime St. Paul and Falcon Heights resident died on March 21 at his assisted living home in Blair, Neb. He was 86.

He and his wife, Beulah, began broadcasting on an FM station at the University of Tulsa in 1955, later moving to a bigger AM station.

The airwaves gave the Rueters a large voice for their tiny church, said the Rev. Michael Sherer, a retired pastor and editor of the Twin Cities' Metro Lutheran newspaper.

They continued broadcasting through a stint in Lincoln, Neb., and after joining the Bethlehem Lutheran In-The-Midway Church in St. Paul in 1966.

The program grew over the years, and in 1984, former WCAL Radio at St. Olaf College in Northfield picked it up.

The Rev. David Preus, retired bishop of the former American Lutheran Church, said Rueter believed the hymn program was a way to supplement his preaching.

"The hymns were not only a matter of being sung, but were to be commented on to reveal what the writer was seeking to get across," Preus said.

In 1993, Rueter told the Star Tribune: "Our show is different than what Public Radio offers. They talk about the musicians, and we talk music and scripture."

Rueter was ordained in 1945 and served parishes in California until 1954, when he went to Tulsa to start a church.

In the 1960s, he taught homiletics, or preaching, at Luther Seminary in St. Paul. In 1979, he began conducting preaching workshops in the Midwest, and from 1984 to 2001, he taught young priests at St. John's University in Collegeville.

At age 67 he earned a doctorate in speech and communication from the University of Minnesota.

Rueter is also the author of four books, including "Making Good Preaching Better."

Metro Lutheran honored him with its Golden Pen award in 2002.

He recently moved to Blair, Neb., the city where he earned a bachelor's degree in English at Dana College. He graduated from Capital University Seminary in Columbus, Ohio, in the 1940s.

Beulah, his wife of 49 years, died in 1993. His daughter Pauline died in 1960.