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Bastiaan Van Elderen, New Testament scholar and archaeologist, passed away on August 1 at Grand Rapids at the age of 79. At the funeral services James VanderKam of Notre Dame, recalled how Dr. Van Elderen demonstrated continuing interest in his former students.
Bas, as he was known to his friends, was a graduate of Calvin College and Calvin Theological Seminary, where he taught for more than a quarter of a century. At the 2004 commencement he received the Seminary's distinguished alumni award. He also served as a professor of New Testament at the Free University in Amsterdam from 1984 to 1990.
Bas was the director of the American Center of Oriental Research in Amman, between 1972 and 1973 . He excavated churches at Hesban and Madaba, and the theater in Abila, Jordan. He dug as well at Nag Hammadi, and Wadi Natrun, Egypt.
Bas served as the president of the Institute for Biblical Research (1981-83, 1996 - 2001). He was the executive director of the Scriptorium in Grand Haven, Michigan, from 1997 until 2000. He organized international conferences on the Bible at the Scriptorium's manor house near Hereford, England. The collection of papers of the last conference on the Dead Sea Scrolls was dedicated to Bas. It was his friendship with Emanuel Tov, which enabled Bas to bring a major exhibition of the Dead Sea Scrolls to Grand Rapids in 2002-03.
Bas was an ordained minister in the Christian Reformed Church. He is survived by his wife Vivolyn, several children, grandchildren and even a great grandson.
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