by Howard Spaan

Part Five: Theology

Grandma was a theologian. She not only knew Scripture, but she also did very well theologizing. On Sunday afternoons after the church service the family would gather at her home. The minister's sermon was thoroughly reviewed. Messages had to be completely Reformed in theology. However, she was also enamored with the noted evangelist, Aimee Semple McPherson. When the evangelist came to Vancouver, Grandma had to be on deck to hear her. When they made a trip to the Los Angeles area to visit friends, she made certain she was a worshiper at Angeles Temple. The evangelist was quite a showy performer, and all of us in Lynden learned every detail of her theatrics. We always had difficulty in understanding Grandma's enthusiasm for the evangelist, for her theology was not at all Reformed. Had the Reformed community recognized women preachers, it is highly likely Grandma Anna would have been in their company. Her brother, John, too knew Scripture and theology, but he was a calmer person in stating his beliefs. When the Herman Hoeksema defection took place in the Christian Reformed Church during the mid 1920s, she became a supporter of his right-wing Calvinism. In fact, during the 1940s she was instrumental in getting a Protestant Reformed "missionary" to come to town to establish a church. He lived in her home for quite a number of weeks. Grandma's two daughters were so upset that they served notice there would be a serious family rupture if she joined such a movement. So the matter was dropped, but she continued to read The Standard Bearer.

During the 1930s a number of elderly men would gather on a bench in front of Zuidmeer's bicycle shop discussing theology. Grandpa Spaan was one of these men. Whenever he would come home at an early hour, it was a signal at our house that he was cornered in the theological debate. That was time to come home to be reinforced with more theological ammunition and then return to the bicycle shop to continue the debate. After Grandma's input he seemingly would be successful in the discussion.

I also have recollections of Uncle John Slotemaker. The Slotemakers and Spaans would come together every now and then. I always remember Uncle John, the poet. Just a few years ago someone discovered a poem written by Uncle John. It was addressed to my Dad, who apparently must have been critically ill when he was in his early twenties. I have no idea what illness he had, but the poem was a beautiful encouragement in the Christian faith for one who was facing death. As a young child our family attended the First Christian Reformed Church. When the pastor entered the sanctuary followed by the elders and deacons, one man who was close to being a perennial elder would not be seated in reserved seats near the pulpit, for he would march up the aisle, up the stairs to the gallery, and seat himself among the upper teen and early twenties young fellows. That was Uncle John Slotemaker, who had a good rapport with these fellows. His task was to keep order, for sometimes those fellows could be unruly.

By the time I was ten years of age, my parents decided they should seriously consider transferring their membership to the all English speaking Second Christian Reformed Church. Grandma strongly opposed this possibility. She had a strong feeling that worship should be in the Dutch language. Besides she had heard the minister of the Second Church preach and concluded he missed the mark of solid teaching. In this she was proven correct, for this pastor suddenly resigned after being in the ministry for twenty years. He told his ruling body he was preaching something he didn't believe all these years. Grandma was an astute thinker. After a new pastor came to the Second Church, our family transferred there over the opposition of Grandma. A few years later, on the issue, apparently, of language, she lost in her opposition to Uncle Cornie's family transferring to the Third Christian Reformed Church.

Continue to Part 6---Anna 1865-1957