Tjaart van der Walt: slaaf van Christus – δοῦλος Χριστοῦ

Abstract

Tjaart van der Walt: slave of Christ – δοῦλος Χριστοῦ Tjaart van der Walt has carried an array of titles: from Boy, to Young Man, to Mister, to Reverend, to Doctorandus, to Doctor,to Professor, to Rector, to Vice-Chancellor, to CEO, to Ambassador! But the one title he gladly accepts, is “slave of Christ” – or in the Greek he loves so much: δοῦλος Χριστοῦ (doulos Christou)! This has become typical of him and his life: a slave taking his instructions from Jesus Christ as his Owner, his Κύριος (Kurios), being willing to – in each situation and in relationship with any person or organisation – put on his slave clothing, roll up his sleeves, and serve! In this narrative of the life of Tjaart van der Walt we do not want to share lists of successes and failures, but rather we survey the serving life of this “slave of Christ”, as if from an Archimedes vantage point. The present, November 2011, is this Archimedes vantage point.