Rienk Bouke Kuiper (31 January 1886 – 22 April 1966)
at Westminster Theological Seminary was a pastor and professor of systematic theology. Kuiper served as President of Calvin College between 1930 and 1933.

Biography

Kuiper was born in

Garrelsweer Garrelsweer () is a village in the Netherlands, Dutch province of Groningen (province), Groningen. It is a part of the municipality of Eemsdelta. History The village was first mentioned in 1057 as Gerleuiswert, and means "settled height of Gerle ...

, in the municipality of Loppersum, in the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

.Rienk B. Kuiper
at Calvin College He was the son of Klaas Kuiper and younger brother of Barend Klaas Kuiper. His family moved to

Grand Haven, Michigan Grand Haven is a city within the U.S. state of Michigan and the county seat of Ottawa County, Michigan, Ottawa County. Grand Haven is located on the eastern shore of Lake Michigan at the mouth of the Grand River (Michigan), Grand River, for which ...

in 1891 when his father accepted a call to be minister of the Christian Reformed congregation there. Kuiper graduated from the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, or UChi) is a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its main campus is in the Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood on Chicago's South Side, Chic ...

(A.B., 1907);

Indiana University Bloomington Indiana University Bloomington (IU Bloomington, Indiana University, IU, IUB, or Indiana) is a public university, public research university in Bloomington, Indiana, United States. It is the flagship university, flagship campus of Indiana Univer ...

(A.M., 1908);

Calvin Theological Seminary Calvin Theological Seminary is a private Christian Reformed Church seminary in Grand Rapids, Michigan. It is closely tied to Calvin University, though each institution has its own board. History The seminary was founded in 1876 with the purpose ...

(diploma, 1911); and Princeton Seminary (B.D., 1912). He served as the pastor of several congregations in West Michigan, including one in the

Reformed Church in America The Reformed Church in America (RCA) is a mainline Reformed Protestant denomination in Canada and the United States. It has about 82,865 members. From its beginning in 1628 until 1819, it was the North American branch of the Dutch Reformed ...

. In 1928 he accepted a one-year appointment to

Westminster Theological Seminary Westminster Theological Seminary (WTS) is a Protestantism, Protestant Christian theology, theological seminary in the Reformed theology, Reformed theological tradition in Glenside, Pennsylvania. It was founded by members of the faculty of Prince ...

in Philadelphia, as Professor of Systematic Theology, and later served there as a professor for the largest part of his teaching ministry. The

Synod A synod () is a council of a Christian denomination, usually convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. The word '' synod'' comes from the Ancient Greek () ; the term is analogous with the Latin word . Originally, ...

of the Christian Reformed Church had persuaded Kuiper to accept the presidency of

Calvin College Calvin University, formerly Calvin College, is a private Christian university in Grand Rapids, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1876, Calvin University is an educational institution of the Christian Reformed Church and stands in the Reforme ...

in 1930. During his tenure the economic impacts of the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

began to be keenly felt. Although enrollment did not decline, partly because a lack of jobs meant young people pursued education, the downturn forced the college to cut costs and expenses. Faculty voluntarily took pay cuts, as high as 40 percent. Kuiper also found it difficult to mediate the growing differences of opinion among faculty and between faculty and the

Board of Trustees A board of directors is a governing body that supervises the activities of a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government agency. The powers, duties, and responsibilities of a board of directors are determined by government regulatio ...

over the school's direction. In 1933 he took up the position of Professor of Practical Theology at Westminster Seminary. Retiring in 1952, he returned to Grand Rapids and then accepted the presidency of

for four years. Kuiper was also a founding member of the

Evangelical Theological Society The Evangelical Theological Society (ETS) is a professional society of Biblical scholars, educators, pastors, and students "devoted to the inerrancy and inspiration of the Scriptures and the gospel of Jesus Christ" and "dedicated to the oral ex ...

. Kuiper married Marie Janssen in 1911. They had three children: Marietta Rolena Heerema, Dr. Klaudius Kuiper and Kathryn Junia Kuiper, who died at age two.

Works

*''As to Being Reformed'' *''Not of the World'' *''For Whom Did Christ Die?'' *''God Centered Evangelism'' *''The Glorious Body of Christ'' *''While the Bridegroom Tarries: Ten After-the-War Sermons on the Signs of the Times'' (1919)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kuiper, Rienk 1886 births 1966 deaths 20th-century American academics Orthodox Presbyterian Church ministers People from Loppersum Presidents of Calvin University University of Chicago alumni Presidents of Calvinist and Reformed seminaries Dutch emigrants to the United States Westminster Theological Seminary faculty Indiana University Bloomington alumni Princeton Theological Seminary alumni Calvin Theological Seminary alumni People from Grand Haven, Michigan