A Mighty Soul-Saving Army Against Communism. William Fetler (1883-1957) and Twentieth Century Culture Wars

In this article, I want to take a fresh look at the life and work of Fetler and his anti-communist campaigns. First, I will give a short overview of his life, focusing on his position towards the Russian Bolsheviks. Second, I will explore the anti-communist ideas of William Fetler from the conceptual framework of culture wars. The concept culture wars has become an expression for secular-Catholic conflicts across nineteenth-century Europe. In these conflicts, sparked by the emergence of constitutional and democratic nation states, Catholics and anticlerical forces struggled over the place of religion in a modern polity.7 In current historical research, in which the scope of this concept is extended to the twentieth century, Christian anti-Communism and communist anticlericalism in the interwar period is studied, arguing for the need for further investigation of the struggle between Christianity and atheism.8 One of the components of culture wars is emotional discourses, as studied by Manuel Borutta for the German Kulturkampf in the 1870s.9 However, in historical studies, language and discourses of culture wars are not studied in depth. In this article, therefore, I want to focus on the anti-communist discourse of William Fetler. Central is the question of how William Fetler interpreted his mission in the context of the struggle with Communism. In his publications and speeches, Fetler used military metaphors, like ‘war’, ‘victory’, ‘army’ or ‘weapons’ frequently to accuse the atheism of the Bolsheviks. I will point out three components of Fetler’s war idiom here. In the first place, Fetler argues for the existence of a worldwide war between Communism and Christianity. Second, the only outcome of this war will be a victory for Christianity, because of the power of the Bible and the Holy Spirit. In the third place, revived Christians should fight as warriors of Christ in the ‘mighty soul-saving army’.10 Fetler’s use of war discourse introduces a new perspective to the study of transnational anti-Communism in the twentieth century. By way of conclusion I will consider possible reinterpretations of the concept of culture wars for future historical research

Contested Crossing of Missionary Borders. William Fetler and the Russian Missionary Society in the Netherlands, 1931-1936

This article explores the dynamics of Dutch Protestantism in the interwar period, focusing on the case of the Latvian Baptist pastor William Fetler and his Russian Missionary Society. In 1931, Fetler started his campaign in the Netherlands. A broad coalition of religious elites from the established churches responded to his call to action and supported him in raising funds for Russian mission. Over time the actions of Fetler were accompanied by fierce debates surrounding his personality, theological position, and financial practices. Notwithstanding the fact that Fetler’s opponents could not make substantial arguments against him, the debates continued until 1934. The debates in the Dutch press and the disagreement among the leading Dutch theologians disturbed the Dutch missionary public. The people who supported existing organisations for Russian missions were willing to support Fetler as well as his RMS, but they held back because of the open quarrels over Fetler’s reliability. In 1934, the Dutch teacher Van Schaardenburgh argued that Fetler had started missionary activities within the Netherlands. Because of Fetler’s Dutch revivalist movement, Grosheide decided to resign as chairman of the Committee of Reference for Fetler’s action. Grosheide’s resignation caused a collapse of support for Fetler in the Netherlands. Theological differences thus became highly problematic and caused Fetler’s exit from the margins of Dutch Protestantism

Biologische zuivel van geiten

De productie van biologische zuivelproducten van geiten is relatief nieuw. Het gaat hierbij vooral om kaas. Daarnaast wordt in beperkte hoeveelheden yoghurt en melk geproduceerd

Frederik Johan Krop: strijder voor geloofsvrijheid in Nederland en Rusland

Op 5 april 1923 werd in het wijkgebouw Geloof en vrijheid van de hervormde gemeente van Rotterdam de Vereniging Protestants Nederland opgericht. Eén van de oprichters van de Vereniging, dr. Frederik Johan Krop (1875-1945), was hervormd predikant in de Rotterdamse gemeente

The South African Reserve Bank : blowing winds of change (Part 1)

Since the early twentieth century, the South African Reserve Bank ('SARB' or 'Bank'), a creature of statute, has functioned as the central bank of the Republic of South Africa (RSA). In this capacity, it has served and been subjected to the ever-changing needs and demands of the financial system in the RSA. These circumstances require a measure of flexibility, since the Bank needs to grow and change like a living organism in response to the needs and demands of the financial system and the economy it serves. This process of continuous evolution in response to the needs and demands of the financial system in the RSA is inevitable in order to ensure and maintain broadly based public support for the operations of the Bank. It is similar to other central banks that have evolved for centuries in matters such as their assigned tasks, their relationships to their respective governments, their interaction with financial markets, and their internal management and decision-making processes.http://www.jutalaw.co.za/catalogue/itemdisplay.jsp?item_id=3602am201

The South African Reserve Bank : blowing winds of change (Part 2)

The global financial crisis, which started in about August 2007 and appears to have peaked in September 2008, could be regarded as a phase of the evolution of financial markets under the radical financial deregulation process that began in the late 1970s, predominantly in overseas countries.The first part of this article appeared in (2013) 25 SA Merc LJ 342-361.http://www.jutalaw.co.za/catalogue/itemdisplay.jsp?item_id=3602am201

Much ado about nothing? Legal principles on money, bank and their clients after Joint Stock Company Varvarinskoye v ABSA bank Ltd

A fairly recent case that involved important issues pertaining to money, banks and their clients was Joint Stock Company Varvarinskoye v ABSA Bank Ltd & Others ([2008] 3 All SA 130 (A) (‘Joint Stock’)). In my analysis I will discuss the role and nature of money and banks, as well as important features of relevant legal principles of banking law. The judgment is considered against this background in order to determine its potential impact and influence on banking law and in general on the business of banks.http://www.jutalaw.co.za/catalogue/itemdisplay.jsp?item_id=360