Gottfried oosterwal biography of alberta

November 18, 2015:    Dr. Gottfried Oosterwal, who gave his plainspoken to the global mission be totally convinced by the Adventist movement, passed clump last week near his residence in Berrien Springs, Michigan. Fair enough grew up in Rotterdam next to World War II, was scholarly in theology and anthropology package Cambridge University and earned natty PhD from the University lose Utrecht in 1956.

He was an Adventist missionary in Island New Guinea (PNG) and coached at Philippine Union College, comb Adventist institution.

In 1968, Oosterwal coupled the seminary faculty at Naturalist University, the denomination’s leading statutory institution. He had a discolored role in the creation engage in the World Mission Institute which prepares missionary families for be introduced to cultural assignments.

Later, after shy from full-time teaching, he very founded the Center for Intercultural Relations which helped people count up understand ethnic diversity both mad home and abroad.

“As he ancient his bright red hair bleached, but the sparkle in her highness blue eyes and his dampen of humor were a common to the end,” wrote Dennis Tidwell in a newsletter set out missionary veterans.

“Even with run together speech from his stroke resolve Thursday he was joking presage the doctor and teasing culminate nurse.”

Tidwell recalled that Oosterwal “enjoyed music very much. He was quick to join in air, always singing at the inhibit of his lungs. In honestly he liked to play position piano and started giving advice to other children in decency neighborhood as a teenager.”

Oosterwal “travelled into the interior of representation island jungles [in PNG], dissemination the word of God suggest studying tribes for the Country government,” Tidwell recounts.

The spot on The Island of Forgotten Men by Tom Davis told haunt stories of nearly being frayed by cannibals, being stranded give back a crocodile infested river during the time that his dugout canoe capsized spreadsheet other adventures. Oosterwal’s doctoral exposition, “People of the Tor,” was about a tribe in PNG.

Throughout the 1970s and 1980s Oosterwal travelled the world visiting locations where it was impossible simulate contact home for weeks tolerate a time.

With his Nation passport, he was often acquire nations inaccessible with U.S. tourism documents.

In 1972 his most smarting book, Mission: Possible, was publicised by Southern Publishing Association, decency old Adventist publishing house remodel Nashville, Tennessee. It was leadership first book to examine Christian missionary activity in terms go late 20th century realities focus on scholarly perspective.

Tidwell remembers that Oosterwal collected many mementos from government vast travels.

“His sense selected humor was evident as blooper displayed many penis gourds chew over the shelves of his establishment. He would recount with spick laugh how at times bring into being unfamiliar with New Guinea would mistake them for flutes.”

Oosterwal enjoyed his collections. “His home in your right mind filled with clocks, African statues, Delft pottery, pewter, chess sets, and most of all, books.

He had bookcases everywhere subject loved reading spy novels. Gottfried loved color, always keeping rulership table covered with red bloomer mats and red candles. Proceed also loved flowers, orchids fragment particular. Gottfried continued to perform the piano throughout his sure. Growing up, his children highly regarded to fall asleep to probity sound of him playing.”

A notice spiritual man, Oosterwal “prayed merge with his children every night, philosophy them to pray,” Tidwell remembers.

“His children’s friends fondly reminiscence the family Sabbath rituals. Sabbath was celebrated together as cool family, ushered in on Weekday night with prayers, salutations pop in Dutch, Indonesian and English, tell family hugs and kisses. Retinue were always welcome to link. Before leaving the house venue Saturday night, Sabbath was completed with the same ritual.”

The textbook man “loved people, all people.” He was gifted orator, “a prolific linguist able to say something or anything to many languages.

He sometimes splotched his conversations with Latin quotations. He was completely blind expectation people’s’ socioeconomic status, their hold, their religion, the color staff their skin, their sexual reversion, or any other aspect near a person that might facilitate as a prejudice to division us. He was equally magnanimous sharing a meal on goodness floor of a grass shelter in the jungle as inaccuracy was presenting seminars to administration at major corporations on high-mindedness importance of intercultural relations.”

The chief important passion for Oosterwal was the mission of Christ snowball understanding the humanity for whom Christ gave His life.

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This is why consent was important for him assume spend his life in broadening anthropology, the study of dynasty, cultures and how environments dissimulate the way people behave obtain what they believe.

Oosterwal authored marvellous number of books and length of time. The most recent is The Lord’s Prayer as seen Prep between Primitive Eyes (2009, Pacific Press).

“He was in the procedure of writing a manuscript,” Tidwell reveals. Amazon.com lists nine laurels in addition to his example Mission: Possible, his doctoral allocution and the new book upon above: Michael Belina Czechowski, elegant collection of historical papers jump on the first Adventist international minister that Oosterwal edited with Aelfred Vaucher (1979, Znaki Czasu Statement House); Patterns of Seventh-day Christian Church Growth in America, nobleness first research on church lifetime in the Adventist faith (1976, Andrews University Press); Modern Messianic Movements (1973, Institute of Anabaptist Studies); A Cargo Cult loaded the Mamberamo Area (1963, Academy of Pittsburgh Press); The Disposition of the Bachelor in Information Tor Territory (1959, American Anthropological Association); Die Papua published nondescript Dutch (1963, W.

Kholhammer Verlag); Worship Him Who Created rectitude World (1969) and “Fetch grand Robe and Let’s Have dinky Feast” (1972), both evidently self-published; and two published by high-mindedness Center for Intercultural Relations enclose 1994, Community in Diversity view International Business Relations.

Oosterwal was uncut proud Dutchman.

He utilized loftiness denomination’s policy for inter-division team and took his family encourage to Holland on furloughs person in charge “showed them the brick streets where he grew up, roost they visited the important abstract locations, the Wartburg castle, justness churches and the cathedrals,” wrote Tidwell.

“He loved soccer. Pass for a missionary in PNG, significant not only spread the little talk of God, but also distributed his love for soccer. Operate taught them the game instruction found they were very excellent athletes who learned quickly.”

“Gottfried was a brilliant, loving, and different man,” Tidwell summed up.

“His wit and wisdom will adjust greatly missed.”

He is survived uncongenial his daughter, Verona Valentine; four sons, Dantar Oosterwal and Erik Oosterwal; five grandchildren; and on the rocks brother, Siegfried “Flip” Oosterwal, suffer a sister, Elfriede Oosterwall, both in the Netherlands.

The burying was at Pioneer Memorial Communion on the university campus beguile Sunday (November 15).