George Edward Vandeman (October 21, 1916 – November 3, 2000) was a

Seventh-day Adventist The Seventh-day Adventist Church is an Adventist Protestant Christian denomination which is distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the seventh day of the week in the Christian (Gregorian) and the Hebrew calendar, as the Sabbath, and ...

evangelist who founded the ''

It Is Written ''It Is Written'' is an internationally broadcast Seventh-day Adventist Christian television program founded in 1956 by George Vandeman. Its title comes from the Gospel of Matthew: "It is written, 'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by eve ...

'' television ministry.

Biography

Vandeman was born on October 21, 1916."Vandeman, George E." in ''Historical Dictionary of Seventh-day Adventists'' by Gary Land, p310 At the age of 21, he attended Emmanuel Missionary College in

Berrien Springs Berrien Springs is a village in Berrien County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 1,800 at the time of the 2010 census. The village is located within Oronoko Charter Township. History Berrien Springs, like Berrien County, is na ...

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and t ...

. He found a job working at a weekly 15-minute radio broadcast in Elkhart,

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th ...

. While there, he met Nellie Johnson and they were married the following year on October 2, 1938 in

South Bend South Bend is a city in and the county seat of St. Joseph County, Indiana, on the St. Joseph River near its southernmost bend, from which it derives its name. As of the 2020 census, the city had a total of 103,453 residents and is the fourt ...

, Indiana. After completing his second year of college, Vandeman began working as a full-time evangelist. During a series of meetings in

Muncie Muncie ( ) is an incorporated city and the seat of Delaware County, Indiana. Previously known as Buckongahelas Town, named after the legendary Delaware Chief.http://www.delawarecountyhistory.org/history/docs/lenape-villages.pdf It is located in ...

, Indiana, Nellie gave birth to their first child, George Jr. The birth of their sons Richard and Robert soon followed. The Vandeman's fourth child, Connie, was born in 1956. Vandeman received his

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...

degree in speech and communication from the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

. His 1946 thesis was entitled, " Spurgeon's theory of preaching". He was then

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform ...

as a minister, and worked as a field instructor in evangelism at Emmanuel Missionary College for four years. He then joined the

Ministerial Association A ministerial association is an ecumenical Christian group that is active on the local level. Clergy from various congregations, including Anglican, Baptist, Catholic, Congregationalist, Lutheran, Methodist, Moravian, Orthodox, Presbyterian, an ...

at the General Conference (world headquarters of the church) in 1947, taking the position of associate secretary, and at age 33 becoming one of the youngest to work in Adventist church leadership. In the years following

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, Vandeman and other

charismatic Charisma () is a personal quality of presence or charm that compels its subjects. Scholars in sociology, political science, psychology, and management reserve the term for a type of leadership seen as extraordinary; in these fields, the term "ch ...

Adventist speakers like Fordyce Detamore spearheaded a drive for the public

evangelism In Christianity, evangelism (or witnessing) is the act of preaching the gospel with the intention of sharing the message and teachings of Jesus Christ. Christians who specialize in evangelism are often known as evangelists, whether they are ...

of major cities. He conducted campaigns in

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

in 1948, Washington, D.C. in 1951 and

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

in 1952, amongst other places.

''It Is Written''

After returning from a mission project in

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

, he was asked by the new General Conference President

Reuben Richard Figuhr Reuben Richard Figuhr was the 15th president of the Seventh-day Adventist Church General Conference. He was born in Superior, Wisconsin, United States October 20, 1896. He served as Adventist president between 1954 and 1966. He married May Belle ...

to continue with the Christian television program. Six years earlier then-president

James Lamar McElhany James Lamar McElhany (January 3, 1880 – June 25, 1959)Ochs, Daniel A. and Ochs, Grace Lillian. ''The Past and the Presidents'', Southern Publishing Association, Nashville, Tennessee, 1974. SBN: 8127-0084-8 was a Seventh-day Adventis ...

had convinced Vandeman to try television as a means of reaching others with the Gospel. As such, he created a six-month experimental evangelistic effort for television. At the time, he wasn't able to get the financial support he needed, and temporarily put the effort on hold. In the mid-1950s Vandeman started work on a series of television programs called "''

''", which he planned to air for several weeks in an area as a warmup to an evangelistic program. In spring 1956, ''It Is Written'' launched its first telecast in black and white—a full-message, Bible study telecast in Washington, D.C. The program later became one of the first religious television programs to air in color.The History of It Is Written
. ''It Is Written''. Accessed 2008-04-1 The program's title was based on the

Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus ...

verse , "It is written, man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God."About
''It Is Written''. Accessed 2008-04-01 Vandeman ran the first ''It Is Written'' campaign in

Fresno Fresno () is a major city in the San Joaquin Valley of California, United States. It is the county seat of Fresno County and the largest city in the greater Central Valley region. It covers about and had a population of 542,107 in 2020, maki ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

in 1958, and later in Washington, D.C.,

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since ...

and other cities. The telecast was launched to all of California in 1962, and this effort was followed by a month-long series at the

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...

Memorial Sports Arena. By the mid-1960s it was being broadcast internationally on a weekly basis. In 1971, the ''It Is Written'' production studios moved to the Adventist Media Center in

Thousand Oaks Thousand Oaks is the second-largest city in Ventura County, California, United States. It is in the northwestern part of Greater Los Angeles, approximately from the city of Los Angeles and from Downtown. It is named after the many oak tree ...

, California. In 1975, Vandeman began conducting Revelation Seminars. The seminars consisted of a one-day, eight-hour Bible study followed by a luncheon. Over a course of 10 years, tens of thousands of ''It Is Written'' viewers traveled hundreds of miles to attend one of 300 seminars. In 1979, the ministry's success was noted by Excellence In Media, a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting excellent family-oriented programs by honoring media with Angel Awards. Vandeman and the ''It Is Written'' team were given their first Angel award. They would ultimately receive a total of 10 Angel Awards from Religion in Media.George Vandeman Dies
". ''

Adventist Review The General Conference Corporation of Seventh-day Adventists is the governing organization of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. Its headquarters is located in Silver Spring, Maryland and oversees the church in directing its various divisions an ...

'' Vandeman was later presented with an International Distinguished Achievement Gold Angel award — Excellence in Media's highest honor. In 1980 he received the Religious Heritage of America Faith and Freedom Award for Television Religious Personality of the Year. He was a member of Religious Heritage of America, the Strategy for the Elevation of People Foundation, and the Year of the Bible Committee. Vandeman was invited to presidential briefings during both the

Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...

and Bush administrations. By the 1980s, ''It Is Written'' had more than 600,000 regular viewers. That number surpassed 1.5 million in the 90s. In 1990, the ''It Is Written'' production team and Vandeman traveled to the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...

to tape "Empires in Collision," an eight-part series. ''It Is Written'' was one of the first religious telecasts to be aired on

Soviet television Television in the Soviet Union was owned, controlled and censored by the state. The body governing television in the era of the Soviet Union was the Gosteleradio committee, which was responsible for both the Soviet Central Television and the All ...

. In 2000 it was broadcast in 8 languages to over 150 countries. It was a "pioneering force" in Adventist evangelism. One of his most popular series was "What I like about...", which investigated shared beliefs between Adventists and

Baptists Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only (believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul com ...

, Methodists,

Catholics The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

, charismatics and others. See: Seventh-day Adventist interfaith relations. Vandeman founded the New Gallery Centre in London. He served as the primary speaker of ''It Is Written'' until his retirement in 1991, when

Mark Finley Mark A. Finley (born 1945) is the former host and director of ''It Is Written'' (from 1991–2004), for which he traveled around the world as a televangelist. He was the first Seventh-day Adventist pastor to do a satellite evangelistic series ...

succeeded him. He died on November 3, 2000 at age 84, at his home in Newbury Park, California of heart failure while asleep.Internationally Known Adventist Evangelist Dies
by Bettina Krause.

Adventist News Network The Seventh-day Adventist Church is an Adventist Protestant Christian denomination which is distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the seventh day of the week in the Christian (Gregorian) and the Hebrew calendar, as the Sabbath, and i ...

, 2000-11-03. Accessed 2008-04-01 He was survived by his wife, Nellie of

Camarillo Camarillo ( ) is a city in Ventura County in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 70,741, an increase of 5,540 from the 65,201 counted in the 2010 Census. Camarillo is named for brothers Juan an ...

, California, and by children George Jr., Bob, Ron, and Connie Vandeman Jeffery.Good Day!: The Paul Harvey Story - Page 181 Paul Batura - 2011 Though not a baptized member of the Adventist Church, Harvey enjoyed a warm friendship with famed church author George Vandeman, author of the book, Planet in Rebellion.21 The two men met in 1961 at the Campion Adventist Academy in ... According to

Paul Harvey Paul Harvey Aurandt (September 4, 1918 – February 28, 2009) was an American radio broadcaster for ABC News Radio. He broadcast ''News and Comment'' on mornings and mid-days on weekdays and at noon on Saturdays and also his famous ''The Rest o ...

, :"George Vandeman has completed his earthly ministry in his 84th year. When the roll is called up yonder, and you and I hear that gently persuasive voice again...we'll know we made it to the right place."

Style

According to one report, :"Vandeman's warm voice defined a new approach for religious television. Instead of preaching, he quietly shared insights from God's Word to meet people's needs." According to

, :" 'Planet in Rebellion''impacted my life so constructively." According to Mark Finley, :"George Vandeman was a visionary who often was far ahead of his time". "He had the unique ability to see possibilities where others saw only problems. George had the ability to communicate to people at all levels, but he especially ministered to people who are highly educated, affluent, and in upper echelons of society. He seemed to understand their heartaches, their longings, and their basic human needs."

Publications

* ''Touch and Live'' (1958) * ''Planet in Rebellion'' (1960, revised edition 1965) * ''A Day to Remember'' (1965) * ''Destination Life'' (1966) * ''Look! No Doomsday!'' (1970) * ''Papa, are you going to die? from stress? from smoking? or in your favorite chair?'' (1970) * ''Hammers in the Fire, and What Wore the Hammers Out'' (1971) * ''I Met a Miracle'' (1965, revised edition 1971) * ''Psychic Roulette '' (circa 1973) * ''Is Anybody Driving?'' (1975) * ''Sail Your Own Seas'' (1975) * ''The Day the Cat Jumped'' (1978) * ''How to Burn Your Candle'' (1978) * ''How to Live With a Tiger'' (1978) * ''The Impersonation Game'' (1978) * ''Tying Down the Sun'' (1978) * ''Showdown in the Middle East'' (1980) * ''The Book That Would Not Go Away'' (1983) * ''The Cry of a Lonely Planet'' (1983) * ''Amazing Prophecies'' (1986) * ''Life After Death'' (1986) * ''The Rise and Fall of Antichrist in the Prophecies of Revelation'' (1986) * ''Truth or Propaganda'' (1986) * ''What I Like About--'' (1986) * ''Your Family and Your Health'' (1986) * ''Showdown at Armageddon'' (1987) * ''When God Made Rest'' (1987) * ''Empires in Collision'' (1988) * ''Decade of Destiny'' (1989) * ''Lost at birth: Saved by miracle'' (1990) * ''Comrades in Christ'' (1991) * ''The Overcomers'' (1992) * ''My Dream: Memoirs of a One-of-a-kind Disciple'' (1995) * ''Happiness Wall to Wall: Your Right to Enjoy''
web page
* ''Faith Lift''
web page

References

* ''Channels of Inspiration'' magazine

External links