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H.P. Scholte Sesquicentennial Conference, 1868–2018

This conference will focus on the history and legacy of Scholte and his community in the Netherlands and the United States.

We will seek to understand the distinctive leadership of Scholte in the context of that time period, considering features like the separation of church and state, expanding mobility, democratization and education.

Five organizations and institutions are sponsoring the conference:

Central College in Pella
The Historical Documentation Center for Dutch Protestantism, partner of the Amsterdam Centre for Religious History at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
Pella Historical Society
The A.C. Van Raalte Institute, Hope College, Holland, Michigan
Theological University Kampen

Conference Details

The conference will be held at the Pella Opera House on August 16–18, 2018. The conference proceedings will be published.

Call for papers

The sponsors invite papers on the following or related topics:

Scholte’s Lutheran background
His secession from the Reformed Church in the Netherlands
His personal life, marriage, character, family and friends
His financial resources
His relation to the Reveil movement
His journalism
His ecclesiastical leadership in the Netherlands and the United States
His preaching
His political ideas
His role in Dutch and American politics
His immigration
The variety of his functions in the immigrant community in Pella
His theology and church polity
His library
His fit in the American theological scene
His correspondence
His individualism
His comparison with other (Dutch) immigrant leaders
How he is remembered in the Netherlands and in the United States in historiography and in fiction
His representation in pictures and photos
The Scholte house as cultural heritage
Other topics connected with Dominie Scholte’s work and life

Deadline for abstract

February 1, 2018. Acceptance will be notified by March 1, 2018.

All abstracts should be sent to g.harinck@vu.nl Proposals should include a 250-word abstract and title, as well as the author’s name, address, telephone number, email address and institutional affiliation.