Dennis Voskuil
(616) 392-8555 x105
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Dennis Voskuil

Marvin & Jerene DeWitt Professor of Church History

B.A. University of Wisconsin, Madison

B.D. Western Theological Seminary

Ph.D. Harvard University

"If we are to effectively communicate the gospel of Jesus Christ, we must be keenly aware of the contours of our culture. As we study the history of the church we learn how the gospel became rooted in particular cultures. This is why I find church history so relevant and exciting."

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Mountains into Goldmines: Robert Schuller and the Gospel of Success (Eerdmans, 1983)

    • TF101 The Church's Life and Witness (1536-present)
        A study of the history of the church and its missionary expansion from 1536 to the present. Attention given to the American church and to the student’s denominational heritage and the ways its life and faith have been shaped by its various contexts, experiences, forms of worship, proclamation, discipleships, and governance.
    • TF451 RCA History
        Examines the development of the Reformed Church in the context of North America. Special attention will be devoted to the leaders, approaches, and philosophies of RCA missions. 2.5 credits.
    • TF567 Jesus in America
        This course examines how Jesus is portrayed in American culture, and how this portrayal of Jesus impacts the mission of the church. 1.5 credits
    • TF570 American Theologies: Culture and Religious Thought in the U.S.
        Employing H. Richard Niebuhr’s classic Christ and Culture typology, we will examine the interplay between religious thought and American culture during the last century, exploring how movements such as Evangelicalism, Pentecostalism, Fundamentalism, Protestant Liberalism, Neo-Orthodoxy, New Thought, Liberation Theologies, the death of God and New Age have developed in a culture that has nurtured individualism, freedom, competition, consumerism, pluralism, activism and optimism. The principal goal is to identify and understand the cultural forces which affect Christian thought during the 21st century.
    • TF577 Global Christianity and the Mission of the Church
        Explores how Christianity has become a global faith. Special attention is given to the developments in Asia and Africa where the Church has recently experienced explosive growth as well as tensions with Islamic cultures.
    • TF621 Apologetics in Post-Christian Culture
        Helps students to interpret and commend the Christian faith in a non-Christian culture. If we are to be effective apologists today, we must have a clear understanding of and a firm conviction about the core beliefs of the Christian church, as well as a keen awareness of the cultures in which they are received and interpreted.
    • TF633 Made in America: A Study of Indigenous Sects and Cults
        This course will examine several religious groups that have been spawned in the U.S. and Canada, such as the Latter-day Saints (Mormons), Jehovah’s Witnesses, Christian Scientists, Seventh-Day Adventists, the New Age movement, and the Nation of Islam. Students will study these movements and examine the North American culture that produced and nur- tured them. 1.5 credits.

Background

Dennis Voskuil came to Western as president in 1994 after serving as a teacher, pastor, and student of church history. He was a professor of religion at Hope College before coming to Western and has also served as pastor of several churches. He has served on the Reformed Church in America's Commission on History, Commission on Theology, and as chair of its Ad Hoc Committee on Ecclesiastical Office and Ministry. He retired from the Western's presidency in June of 2008 and returned to teaching church history in January 2009.

Adult Education Courses

Dr. Voskuil is prepared to lead the following Adult Education courses at your church:
  • The Church Faces the 21st Century (2-4 sessions)
  • History of the RCA (2-4 sessions)
  • The Reformation (2-4 sessions)
  • Latter Day Saints (1-2 sessions)
  • Pentecostal Church (2-4 sessions)
  • Who are the Evangelicals? (2-4 sessions)
  • American Pentecostalism (2-4 sessions)
  • Strangers in the Land (2-4 sessions)
  • Calvinism in an Armenian Culture (2-4 sessions)
  • Robert Schuller Revisited (1-2 sessions)
  • Positive Thinking in American Popular Religion (2-4 sessions)