Distinguished Alumni: Jim De Jong

During Calvin Theological Seminary’s 150th anniversary year, we are honored to recognize Rev. Dr. James “Jim” De Jong as one of the two recipients of the 2026 Distinguished Alumni Award. His life and ministry reflects decades of faithful service to the church, the classroom, and the global mission of the seminary. His leadership and witness are part of the continuing story of God’s faithfulness through Calvin Seminary. His influence continues to shape pastors, scholars, and congregations around the world. We are grateful to celebrate Jim’s legacy and enduring impact.

A Family Legacy Rooted in the Seminary

Dr. James “Jim” A. De Jong’s connection to Calvin Theological Seminary began long before his presidency. A native of Paterson, New Jersey, and the son and grandson of pastors in the Christian Reformed Church, Jim was raised within a family deeply shaped by the church, ministry, and the Reformed faith. When reflecting on receiving the 2026 Distinguished Alumni Award during Calvin Seminary’s 150th anniversary year, he found himself thinking not only about his own life and vocation, but also about generations of family members whose lives had been intertwined with the seminary.

On both his paternal and maternal sides, Jim can trace a remarkable legacy of graduates, professors, pastors, and theological leaders connected to Calvin Seminary. In many ways, Calvin Seminary’s work had been forming his family — and eventually him — for generations. Reflecting on that legacy, Jim described having “marinated in the spirit and the strength of that Reformed worldview” for 85 years. The seminary’s influence, he said, had shaped not only his own life, but the life of his wider family across generations.

Formation, Study, and Early Teaching

After graduating from Calvin College in 1963 and Calvin Theological Seminary in 1966, Jim earned a Th.D. from the Free University of Amsterdam in 1970. He was ordained that same year and went on to teach at Trinity Christian College and Dordt College before being called, unexpectedly, into leadership at Calvin Seminary.

Leading Through a Complex Season

Appointed president in 1982, Jim served from 1983 to 2001. His presidency came during a complex season in the life of the Christian Reformed Church, as the denomination wrestled with questions surrounding academic freedom, social change, and the role of women in the church. Through those years, Jim emphasized theological commonality while remaining open to difference, seeking to train students deeply in the fundamentals of Calvinistic Protestantism and a rich, world-engaging Reformed faith.

Building for Community and Mission

That vision shaped some of the most significant developments in Calvin Seminary’s history. During Jim’s tenure, the seminary building was enlarged and remodeled, student housing facilities were acquired, the Student Center was constructed, and the Ph.D. program was added to the curriculum. These developments also required Jim to step into a role he had not expected: fundraiser. No president before him had carried that responsibility in quite the same way, but when the need for student housing became clear, Jim took up the work of inviting donors into the seminary’s mission. He later described meeting with dedicated donors as “a spiritually exciting, humbling, moving experience.” Those conversations were rarely just about money. Often, they became spiritually rich conversations about theology, preaching, and the future of the church.

For Jim, facilities were never merely buildings. As more students came to Calvin Seminary from beyond Calvin College and without established networks in Grand Rapids, student housing and the Student Center created spaces where students could live, study, worship, eat, and support one another. Dr. Neal Plantinga, President Emeritus, later described the Student Center as one of Jim’s best contributions, recognizing that much of seminary formation happens outside the classroom, in the conversations and relationships that shape students for ministry.

Expanding Calvin Seminary’s Global Reach

Jim’s presidency also helped expand Calvin Seminary’s multicultural and global reach. During his tenure, the seminary continued work in multicultural education through centers in Chicago, Rehoboth, New Mexico, and Los Angeles, including significant ministry among Korean students. The development of the Ph.D. program carried that global vision even further. From the beginning, the faculty understood the program as a global enterprise, explicitly committing that half of those admitted would come from overseas. Jim later pointed to the Ph.D. program as one of the key turning points in Calvin Seminary becoming a global community. Looking back, he described the development of the program not simply as an institutional accomplishment, but as a moment when “the Lord opened those doors.”

The goal was not merely to expand Calvin Seminary’s academic offerings, but to serve the worldwide church by preparing theological educators who could teach, write, and lead in their own contexts.

Continuing Service to the Reformed Tradition

Jim’s service did not end with retirement. He helped found the Dutch Reformed Translation Society, whose first major project was translating Herman Bavinck’s Reformed Dogmatics into English. He chaired the society for twenty years and translated hundreds of Abraham Kuyper’s meditations, helping readers encounter the devotional heart behind Kuyper’s public theology.

A Rich, World-Affirming Faith

Today, Jim and his wife, Lois, continue to be part of the wider Calvin Seminary story. Together they raised three children: Kurtis, Kristin, and Kyle. Jim remains animated by the same vision that shaped his presidency: a Reformed faith that is rich, full, world-affirming, and deeply engaged in service. His word to Calvin Seminary graduates captures the heart of that vision: “Live into the biblical Word of God until it lives out of you.”