obituary: Peter Feddema

Unfortunately, following translation I had to make myself (using Google Translate). Thanks to Wim Janse for the improvements. ——————————————– Last sunday, the sad news reached me that Peter Feddema, the man behind the English translations of the GoedBericht-site, had died Saturday (October 10, 2015)  at the age of 85 years. Peter and I had a weekly email contact several times because of the translations that he sent me. In particular, the last year, it became clear that his physical condition was becoming weak. In early March he even wrote me that he did not expect to reach his birthday (March 28th) … Peter was born in 1930 and grew up on a farm in Drenthe (Netherlands) as the third oldest of a family of eight children. In 1949 his parents decided to emigrate with all the children to Ontario, Canada. In 1948 (so still in the Netherlands) Peter came to know Marjorie and she decided to follow Peter in 1951 and settled in Canada as well. In 1953 they married and their marriage was blessed with three children, two sons (1955 and 1958) and one daughter (1961). They also have six grandchildren and one great-grandchild (he wrote me about that in 2009). After his arrival in Canada, Peter worked on the farm and this he has done until 1956. From 1954 until 1959 he studied to get his papers as a teacher. Until 1968 he was intensively involved in Christian education. This changed when he, in that same year, turned from the Christian Reformed Church and joined (for more than ten years) the Worldwide Church of God of H.W. Armstrong. From 1969 to 1989, Peter was a teacher at a public school in special education for children of 12-14 years. In 1989 his work in education ceased, and until his full retirement in 1996, he worked part-time as a courier. He once wrote to me:

… if I had the ability to do so, I could write a book, relating the ups and downs of changing countries, of changing jobs and of changing from being a born-Calvinist to becoming a temporary Arminianist to becoming a Scriptural Universalist.

In our e-mail exchange Peter wrote to me in English and I always wrote back to him in Dutch. And we both understood each other perfectly, despite his Dutch was substantially better than my English. Around 1979 Peter and Marjorie came into contact with the Concordant Publishing Concern. It became clear to them that God is the “Savior of all people” and that He will be “all in all” eventually. This universal message of joy never left them. The special place of the apostle Paul as “a teacher of nations” became clear to them and therefore many topics were placed in a totally new perspective. Six years ago, in 2009, Peter and Marjorie got to know the GoedBericht-website and in May that year I received enthusiastic emails about the video messages and other studies. Soon we were sent monthly donations. From 2011 onwards, Peter started to translate weblogs of the GoedBericht-site for friends in Canada. He sent them to me and at first I just put them in an English-Facebook community. But when the number of translations became so many, the idea arose to create a separate English blog on the GoedBericht site. Thus the GoedBericht-website received a much greater range! Peter has in the last years of his life given his all to this work. When I wrote a blog, nearly always within a day, he provided the translation for me. Occasionally, it could even happen that the translation of the blog was send to me at an earlier time than that I had written the blog! That had to do with the eight hours time difference between the Netherlands and Ontario. Thursday October 1st I received Peter’s latest blog translation. No. 625 since 2011 !! Peter had a tremendous drive to pass the Good Message and to adopt a subservient therein. Mails I received from him were supplemented with appreciative words, but also with questions and commentary that was well thought out. And he certainly did not spare me in his criticism. And sometimes this was not tender. One time it even happened that our working together seemed to come to an end. I never met Peter face to face, I have even never spoken with him, yet but I seem to have come to know him well in recent years. I had the impression of him as being a very honest man. Also very serious and certainly not a ‘seize the day’ type. He was intelligent, a perfectionist, but probably also rigid in the eyes of some. But the love of God and his Word was everything to him. In life and death. Our messages always ended with “the best (is yet to come!).” Obviously, because the Good Message is simply a message of hope and expectation! Of course Peter’s death is sad, particularly for his wife who now is left in the nursing home where they were both recently moved. And of course there is also sadness among the children, grandchildren and all of those who were dear to him. But (to speak with Paul) “we are not like those who have no hope.” Because death has not the last word but GOD’S LIFE! And therefore I say: Peter, thank you for so much work and support. Rest in peace and I will see you on that great Day! The best (is yet to come!) -André- Translated from: in memoriam: Peter Feddema ————————————————– Recently I received an email from someone in the US in which the following was written.

I live in the USA. You don’t know me, but Peter Feddema was my Bible teacher and my friend. (…) If it were not for Peter translating your blogs, I would not have been able to read and learn many precious truths that you have written about in your blogs. (I cannot read or speak Dutch – I only know English) I miss emailing with Peter very much. And I miss reading your new blogs, too. I will still visit your English site and look at the older blogs though. I even hope that you might find another translator, so I can continue reading your new blogs, too.

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