Obituary: Jack Van Impe

With Rexella

Noted televangelist Jack Van Impe, 88, who had a 68-year-career and, with his wife of 67 years Rexella Shelton Van Impe, appeared on his television program as recently as ten days ago, has died.  He had suffered from a variety of health issues in recent years.  He didn't look all that healthy when I watched his more recent broadcasts, but he also was getting up there in years.  It isn't every day that people who are way past retirement age are still very, very active as the Van Impes were.

Jack Van Impe would have turned 89 next month.

The couple  began their televangelism career around 1970.

On their show, they sat behind a desk you would see on a television newscast and discuss events of the day in light of their interpretation of the Bible.  The Van Impes were based in Michigan.

In earlier times, Jack would do the standard sermon, while Rexella would sing and also was involved with his sermons.  Rexella wasn't any "helpmeet" by conservative "evangelical" standards--she was a full partner with Jack, and you could tell he was crazy about her and was proud of her.

Rexella is or will be  88 years old this year, just a year younger than Jack.  I don't believe they had any children.

Van Impe was born in Freeport, Michigan in 1931, the son of two Belgian immigrants. Jack’s father Oscar worked in a Plymouth auto factory by day and as a musician in the Detroit beerhalls by night. Oscar taught young Jack to play the accordion—sometimes, as Jack would later recall in his conversion testimony, with violent and drunken beatings.

Oscar and Marie Louise Van Impe had a conversion experience at an independent Baptist church that embraced the label fundamentalist in 1943. A week later, 12-year-old Jack walked to the front of the church to profess his own faith. The Van Impes stopped going to beerhalls and started preforming gospel music in area churches. The young Van Impe soon felt a call to ministry.

He was ordained in an independent Baptist church in 1951, after graduating from Detroit Bible College, and joined Youth For Christ as a musician around the same time as the late Billy Graham. Franklin Graham tweeted his condolences, saying Van Impe’s “life demonstrated the importance of ‘laying up these words of Mine in your heart and in your soul’ (Deuteronomy. 11:18). May we all be inspired to do the same.”

I believe this is the final episode where Jack appears.  It was just ten days ago.  More recent videos from the YouTube channel appear to be sermons recorded earlier.  I don't know how long this video will remain:




Many people in and outside of televangelist circles thought Van Impe's ideas were not biblical, and a few thought him outright nuts, but quite frankly what he said is standard among the NAR crowd dominating the conversation with the religious right these days.