Lewis Benedictus Smedes (August 20, 1921 – December 19, 2002) was a renowned

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

author, ethicist, and theologian in the

Reformed Reform is beneficial change Reform may also refer to: Media * ''Reform'' (album), a 2011 album by Jane Zhang * Reform (band), a Swedish jazz fusion group * ''Reform'' (magazine), a Christian magazine *''Reforme'' ("Reforms"), initial name of the ...

tradition. He was a professor of theology and ethics for twenty-five years at

Fuller Theological Seminary Fuller Theological Seminary is an interdenominational Evangelical Christian seminary in Pasadena, California, with regional campuses in the western United States. It is egalitarian in nature. Fuller consistently has a student body that compri ...

Pasadena Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial district. Its ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

. His 15 books, including the popular ''Forgive and Forget: Healing the Hurts We Don't Deserve'', covered some important issues including

sexuality Human sexuality is the way people experience and express themselves sexually. This involves biological, psychological, physical, erotic, emotional, social, or spiritual feelings and behaviors. Because it is a broad term, which has varied ...

and

forgiveness Forgiveness, in a psychological sense, is the intentional and voluntary process by which one who may initially feel victimized or wronged, goes through a change in feelings and attitude regarding a given offender, and overcomes the impact of th ...

Personal

Lewis Benedictus Smedes was born in 1921, the youngest of five children. His father, Melle Smedes, and mother, Rena, emigrated to the United States from Oostermeer,

Friesland Friesland (, ; official fry, Fryslân ), historically and traditionally known as Frisia, is a province of the Netherlands located in the country's northern part. It is situated west of Groningen, northwest of Drenthe and Overijssel, north of ...

in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

(Rena's original name was Renske.) When he was two months old, his father died in the partially completed house he built in

Muskegon Muskegon ( ') is a city in Michigan. It is the county seat of Muskegon County. Muskegon is known for fishing, sailing regattas, pleasure boating, and as a commercial and cruise ship port. It is a popular vacation destination because of the expan ...

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

. Smedes married Doris Dekker. He died after falling from a ladder at his home in

Sierra Madre, California Sierra Madre (Spanish for "mother range") is a city in Los Angeles County, California, whose population was 10,917 at the 2010 U.S. Census, up from 10,580 at the time of the 2000 U.S. Census. The city is in the foothills of the San Gabriel Vall ...

on December 19, 2002. He was survived by his wife, three children, two grandchildren and one brother.

Education

Smedes graduated from

Calvin College Calvin University, formerly Calvin College, is a private Christian university in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Founded in 1876, Calvin University is an educational institution of the Christian Reformed Church and stands in the Reformed (Calvinist) ...

(

B.A. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

Calvin Theological Seminary Calvin Theological Seminary is a private Christian Reformed Church seminary in Grand Rapids, Michigan. It is closely tied to Calvin University, though each institution has its own board. History The seminary was founded in 1876 with the purpos ...

( B.D.), and the

Free University of Amsterdam The Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (abbreviated as ''VU Amsterdam'' or simply ''VU'' when in context) is a public research university in Amsterdam, Netherlands, being founded in 1880. The VU Amsterdam is one of two large, publicly funded research ...

( Th.D). He pursued other graduate studies at

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

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and the

University of Basel The University of Basel (Latin: ''Universitas Basiliensis'', German: ''Universität Basel'') is a university in Basel, Switzerland. Founded on 4 April 1460, it is Switzerland's oldest university and among the world's oldest surviving universit ...

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

Professional

Smedes began his teaching career at Fuller Theological Seminary as a visiting professor in 1968. He joined the faculty as full professor in 1970. He retired in 1995. After his time at Fuller, Smedes performed several years of pastoral service in the Christian Reformed Church at Madison Avenue Christian Reformed Church (Paterson, NJ), where he was ordained. Smedes also taught at the

Free University A free university is an organization offering uncredited, public classes without restrictions to who can teach or learn. They differ in structure. In 1980 in the United States, about half were associated with a traditional university, about a ...

in Amsterdam (1968 to 1969) and

(1957 to 1970) in

Grand Rapids, Michigan Grand Rapids is a city and county seat of Kent County, Michigan, Kent County in the U.S. state of Michigan. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 198,917 which ranks it as the List of municipalities in Mi ...

. Collections of Smedes papers are housed at

Calvin University Calvin University, formerly Calvin College, is a Private university, private Christian university in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Founded in 1876, Calvin University is an educational institution of the Christian Reformed Church in North America, Ch ...

and

Major works

In addition to many articles, Smedes wrote many popular books including: * ''Forgive & Forget: Healing the Hurts We Don't Deserve'', Harper, 1984 * ''A Pretty Good Person What it Takes to Live with Courage, Gratitude, & Integrity or When Pretty Good Is as Good as You Can Be'', Harper, 1990 * ''Standing on the Promises'' * ''Choices: Making Right Decisions in a Complex World'' * ''How Can It Be All Right When Everything Is All Wrong?'' * ''Caring & Commitment: Learning to Live the Love We Promise'' * ''The Incarnation in Modern Anglo-Catholic Theology'' * ''All Things Made New'' * ''Love Within Limits'' * ''Sex for Christians'' * ''Mere Morality: What God Expects From Ordinary People'' * ''A Life of Distinction'' * ''The Art of Forgiving'' * ''Shame and Grace: Healing the Shame We Don't Deserve'' * ''Keeping Hope Alive'' * ''My God and I, a Spiritual Memoir'', Eerdmans, 2003

References

* Mark A. Kellner (December 1, 2002
Lewis Smedes Dead at 81
from

Christianity Today ''Christianity Today'' is an evangelical Christian media magazine founded in 1956 by Billy Graham. It is published by Christianity Today International based in Carol Stream, Illinois. ''The Washington Post'' calls ''Christianity Today'' "evange ...

* Lewis Smedes Paper

{{DEFAULTSORT:Smedes, Lewis B. 1921 births 2002 deaths American people of Dutch descent Calvin University alumni Christian Reformed Church ministers People from Muskegon, Michigan Fuller Theological Seminary faculty Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam alumni University of Basel alumni Alumni of the University of Oxford People from Sierra Madre, California 20th-century American clergy