Howard Evan Runner Collection, 1928-2004 | Heritage Hall, Hekman Library

By Paul Bremer, March 2011

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Collection Overview

Title: Howard Evan Runner Collection, 1928-2004

ID: COLL/509

Primary Creator: Runner, Howard Evan (1916-2002)

Extent: 35.0 Boxes. More info below.

Arrangement: Folder level description

Date Acquired: 00/00/2008

Abstract

Professor of philosophy at Calvin College. The collection includes biographical and autobiographical information; course notes; correspondence; speeches, lectures, and sermons; materials regarding the Groen van Prinsterer Club; articles and book reviews; positions papers; D. H. Vollenhoven and H. Dooyeweerd material; creation/evolution debate material; an unpublished book, Perspectives in Philosophy, material; subject files with comments and reflections; Association for the Advancement of Christian Scholarship (AACS), Association of Reformed Scientific Studies (ARSS), Christian Labor Association (CLA), Christian Labour Association of Canada (CLAC ), National Association for Christian Political Action (NACPA), and Institute for Christian Studies (ICS) materials; and select papers written by other authors. [See also the Campus Titles Database.]

Biographical Note

Howard Evan Runner, known as H. Evan Runner or simply Evan Runner, was born in 1916 in Oxford, Pennsylvania, to Howard Clinton Runner and Sara Mabel Watterson. In his early years Runner had a love of philosophy and language-and a desire to be a missionary. He graduated from West Philadelphia High School in 1932; from Wheaton College in 1936. Although he received a scholarship to study at the University of Illinois, he went to Westminster Seminary for advanced studies. Cornelius Van Til of Westminster convinced him to learn the Dutch language so he would be able to pursue some significant thinkers of the Netherlands. Runner went to the Netherlands in 1939 and studied with Klaas Schilder and Seakle Greijdanus at the Theological School in Kampen. He returned to the US in early 1940 and went to Harvard, studing with Werner Jaeger and was a Junior Fellow of the Society of Fellows at Harvard University from 1941-1943.

After leaving Harvard he taught English and Latin at Eastern Academy in Paterson, New Jersey. He returned to the Netherlands in 1946 to study at the Free University and began to appreciate the work of reformational philosophers Herman Dooyeweerd and Dirk Hendrik Theodoor Vollenhoven. He received his doctorate in1951 cum laude.

In 1950 he joined the Philosophy Department at Calvin College. He taught with zeal and gathered students from various disciplines into the Groen van Prinsterer Society. These students became his friends and collegues. His dedication and teaching a new vision of Christian Philosphy earned Runner the Faith and Teaching Award from the Calvin Alumni Association.

He developed a program of study which included "who the Puritans were, the meaning of the Enlightenment, its influence in America, the basic ideas of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, the nature of Scholasticism, particularly as manifested in Reformed theology, the concept of natural law, the religious ground-motives that have successively given order to the experience of Western man, the origins of capitalsm, the rise of the labor movement, etc."

Runner was instrumental in formation and leadership of the Association for the Advancement of Christian Scholarship. Many of his students established their own careers, often at Christian colleges and universities in the United States and Canada.

Runner was married to Elisabeth Hendrika Wichers. They had three children, Evan, Cathy, and Jocelyn. He died in 2002.

Administrative Information

Repository: Heritage Hall, Hekman Library

Alternate Extent Statement: Boxes

Acquisition Source: Evan W. Runner, June 2008

Related Materials: Audio recordings of some of Evan Runner's classroom lectures were recorded on cassette tape and can be found in the Campus Titles database. For more information please see https://calvin.edu/offices-services/information-technology/contact/audio-visual/titles/.

Other Note: Acc. No. 08.31

Box and Folder Listing

Browse by Series:

[Series 1: Runner Biographical and Autobiographical, 1928-2004],
[Series 2: Seminary Course Notes, undated],
[Series 3: Correspondence, 1930-1999],
[Series 4: Groen van Prinsterer Society, 1951-1976],
[Series 5: D. H. Vollenhoven Material, 1942-1981],
[Series 6: H. Dooyeweerd Material, 1933-1994],
[Series 7: Creation/Evolution Debate Material, 1953-1994],
[Series 8: Lecture Notes, 1952-1984, undated],
[Series 9: Speeches, Lectures, and Sermons, 1953-1990],
[Series 10: Papers Written, 1951-1981],
[Series 11: Perspectives Material, undated],
[Series 12: Subject Files and Comments/Reflections, 1954-1987],
[Series 13: Material re: National Association for Christian Political Action (NACPA), Association for Reformed Scientific Studies (ARSS), Institute for Christian Studies (ICS), and Christian Labor Association (CLA), 1961-1997],
[Series 14: Papers by Authors Other than H. Evan Runner, 1938-1992],
[Series 15: Varia, 1939-1981],
[Series 16: Photographs],
[All]

Series 6: H. Dooyeweerd Material --- 1933-1994

Box 12

Folder 1: Booklet by H. Dooyeweerd "Antirevolutionaire Staatkunde" --- 1933

Folder 2: Paper by H. Dooyeweerd "The Secularization of Science" --- 1954

Folder 3: Book by H. Dooyeweerd Creation and Evolution published by Groen Van Prinsterer Society --- 1967

Folder 4: Seminar by Hendrik Hart "Dooyeweerd's theory of the 'Gegenstand' relation", and notes by E.H. Runner on the lecture --- 1971

Folder 5: Article by Earl William Kenney in Fides Et Historia "Herman Dooyeweerd on History: an Attempt to Understand Him" --- 1974

Folder 6: Articles re: death of H. Dooyeweerd

Item 1: VU Magazine --- 1977
Item 2: De Watchter --- 1977
Item 3: Christianity Today --- 1977
Item 4: Beweging --- 1977
Item 5: Perspective --- 1977

Folder 7: Article in Christianity Today re: book by L. Kalsbeek entitled Contours of Christian Philosophy: An Introduction to Herman Dooyeweerd's Thought --- 1977

Folder 8: Article by H. Evan Runner in The Banner "Dooyeweerd's Passing: An Appreciation" --- 1977

Folder 9: Newsclippings re: H. Dooyeweerd's death

Item 1: Calvin College Chimes --- 1977
Item 2: Ad Valvas --- 1977
Item 3: Calvinist Contact --- 1977
Item 4: Nederlands Dagblad --- 1977

Folder 10: Paper for the Dooyeweerd Memorial Colloquium at Calvin College entitled "In Memoriam of Herman Dooyeweerd: Meaning, Time and Law" --- 1978

Folder 11: Trouw articles re: H. Dooyeweerd --- 1950-1994

Folder 12: H. Dooyeweerd's Reformation and Scholasticism in Philosophy Volume II pages 1-220 sent to H. Evan Runner by M. Verbrugge --- 1982

Folder 13: H. Dooyeweerd's Reformation and Scholasticism in Philosophy Volume II pages 221-400 --- 1982

Folder 14: H. Dooyeweerd's Reformation and Scholasticism in Philosophy Volume II pages 401-658 --- 1982

Folder 15: Unidentified essay on H. Dooyeweerd --- undated

Box 13

Folder 1: H. Dooyeweerd's Reformation and Scholasticism in Philosophy Volume III --- 1982

Folder 2: Material re: The Herman Dooyeweerd Foundation

Item 1: Lists of members, meeting minutes, goals and objectives
Item 2: Letter from Magnus Verbrugge to Glenn Andreas --- 1983-1987

Folder 3: Material re: Dedication of the Dooyeweerd Centre for Christian Philosophy

Item 1: Opening program
Item 2: Article in Christian Renewal by H. Evan Runner --- 1994

Folder 4: Articles re: Herman Dooyeweerd

Item 1: The Banner --- 1975
Item 2: The Reformed Journal. --- 1980

Folder 5: Newsclippings re: Herman Dooyeweerd, including articles in: Vrij Nederland, Trouw --- 1965

Folder 6: Paper by Herman Dooyeweerd "De Verhouding Tussen Wijsbhgeerte en Theologie" --- undated

Folder 7: Article by Herman Dooyeweerd "Tweeërlei Kritiek" --- undated

Folder 8: Paper by Herman Dooyeweerd "The Theory of Man: Thirty-two Propositions on Anthropology" --- undated

Folder 9: Runner's notes for speech at Dooyeweerd Conference --- 1961

Folder 10: Copies of H. Dooyeweerd's articles "In den Strijd om een Christelijke Staatkunde" --- undated

Folder 11: Notes by H. Evan Runner in defense of Herman Dooyeweerd --- undated

Folder 12: List of publications by Herman Dooyeweerd --- 1961

Folder 13: Notes for speech at opening of the Dooyeweerd Centre for Christian Philosophy --- 1994