This past week, the Soccer Chaplains United Board of Directors unanimously voted to approve Dr Jan van Vliet to the board. As an educator and professor at Dordt College in Iowa, Jan brings a rich wealth of academic knowledge and experience to the organization. Born in the Netherlands and holding dual citizenship in the Netherlands and Canada in addition to US permanent residency, Jan possess some unique multi-cultural understandings that will be helpful for our growth.
Jan and I met in 2011 when he was a visiting scholar at Denver Seminary. The Colorado Rapids had just won the MLS Cup and a mutual friend connected us for a coffee. Since then, Jan has been on my radar as a potential partner in ministry and board member.
This past spring, when Dordt College soccer coaches participated in a soccer ID camp in Denver, Jan’s name came back to the forefront of my mind and we began discussion about Jan possibly coming onto the board. One of the primary hopes for me in Jan’s appointment will be his ability to help us strategize in regards to continuing education for our chaplains and counselors and also to help develop equivalency tracks for candidates that may not meet all of our particular criteria to be a chaplain with our organization.
I am excited to serve on the board of SCU because of the challenges that are presented by the multi-cultural and inter-faith nature of the most popular sport in the world. I hope to contribute to the educational and credentialing processes of our chaplaincy program to help ensure the spiritual needs of our professional soccer players are served in as most Christ-like a fashion as possible.
Jan holds several degrees including a Doctor of Philosophy from Westminster Theological Seminary (Philadelphia), a Master of Theological Studies from Tyndale Theological Seminary (Toronto), and a Master of Arts (Economics) from Queen’s University (Kingston, Canada). An author, translator, and contributor, Jan has a long list of projects and works that he has been involved with including the following volumes:
On Islam (2017) by Abraham Kuyper
The Rise of Reformed System: The Intellectual Heritage of William Ames (2013) . Studies in Christian History and Thought
This year, Jan was awarded the Dordt College Award for Noteworthy Scholarship and is involved in several other writing and translation projects. He is currently working on a book about Adam Smith, the fountainhead of economic thought. He has served as an elder in the United Reformed Church, the Canadian Baptists of Western Canada, and the Christian Reformed Church for which he was a synodical delegate in 2016.
Jan’s appointment now brings the Soccer Chaplains United Board of Directors to seven individuals. We are still seeking a few more members that will help grow the organization.
If you would like to learn more about Soccer Chaplains United, please email info@soccerchaplainsunited.org and go to http://soccerchaplainsunited.org
