RMCNews – Denver, Colorado … Reinder Bruinsma, known to readers of RMC Mountain Views magazine as a contributing author, was appointed on April 26 by King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands as knight of the Order of Oranje-Nassau. A surprise to him and his wife, Aafie, the news became a joyful surprise to many of his readers, colleagues, and friends around the world.
“My wife and I were more or less abducted to the town hall of Zeewolde, where we were received by Gerrit Jan Gorter, the mayor of our town,” Bruinsma shared to his blog readers. The mayor said the King was “pleased” to bestow this honor on him. “Because of Corona restrictions, he was not allowed to pin the decorations on me, but asked my wife Aafje to do so,” he commented.
Readers of Mountain Views recognize Dr. Bruinsma’s name for his regular contributions in which he comments on issues and developments in the international church. He has served the Seventh-day Adventist Church in publishing, education, and church administration on three continents, including as secretary of Trans-European Division and president of the Netherlands Union. A prolific writer, Bruinsma has authored numerous books, the latest of which is I Have a Future: Christ’s Resurrection and Mine.
“Our contact and ensuing friendship date back to the 1980s when we were engaged in the publishing ministry in Europe,” Rajmund Dabrowski, editor of Mountain Views, recalled. “Listing Reinder’s church positions would be rather futile, though including communication is more than appropriate as he was appointed director of communication of the Trans-European Division, a position I vacated in 1994.”
Dabrowski added, “My endearment to Reinder includes his love of life, his honesty in the way he expresses his views, all laced with a dry sense of humor.”
“For me it became obvious that we should invite Reinder to write for our magazine. We are blessed to share in his thinking and in his scholarly approach to issues which we often talk about. He challenges the church to stay in the conversation,” Dabrowski shared.
Hearing about Bruinsma recognition, Ed Barnett, RMC president, commented, “That is amazing. I am proud of my Dutch brother. We are blessed to be ministered to by Reinder Bruinsma in the Rocky Mountain Conference on such a regular basis. Congratulations, Brother Bruinsma.”
The Order of Oranje-Nassau was established in 1892, to honor Dutch citizens in the Kingdom of the Netherlands (including the islands in the Caribbean), who have “rendered exceptional service to society.” The Mayor acknowledged that, “the work of the church is also very much part of society,” Bruinsma commented.
He further added, “I will have to explain to my foreign friends that being a “knight” in this Dutch order does not have the same meaning as receiving a “knighthood” in England, and that they do not suddenly have to address me as “Sir.”
—RMCNews; Facebook photo.
