--- title: Howard Schaap date: 2022-02-02T16:23:00-06:00 author: Click Rain Admin canonical_url: "https://www.dordt.edu/people/howard-schaap" section: People --- [ View Directory](https://www.dordt.edu/academics/faculty-information) ![](https://d3evso2dxyohou.cloudfront.net/generalUploads/people/68a815bbc31d5979096.jpg?mode=crop&pos=top-center&w=25&h=25&f=webp&c=84d5331b&v=a0420816b95e859747b9c54b126fd6249bda06e3cf50085db13cb55da8ee1e79) [English](https://www.dordt.edu/academics/faculty-information?department=english) # Howard Schaap Professor of English ![]() [712-722-6253](tel:712-722-6253) ![]() ![]() **Howard Schaap** serves as professor of English at Dordt University, teaching courses such as Advanced Nonfiction Writing, Multicultural American Literature, and Environmental Literature and Ethics. “Language intensifies life, naming and giving shape to our experience,” says Schaap. “In reading and writing, I'm trying to make ever fuller sense of the world and our place in it—and in teaching writing, I hope to create space for students to do the same.” His writing often centers on the intersection of place and faith. Recent essays include [“How Reading Calvin’s Institutes Made Sense of a Glioblastoma”](https://reformedjournal.com/2025/09/08/calvins-institutes-flexing-and-a-glioblastoma/ "https://reformedjournal.com/2025/09/08/calvins-institutes-flexing-and-a-glioblastoma/") in *Reformed Journal*, and “[The Place of Imagination in Being Placed](https://www.dordt.edu/in-all-things/the-place-of-imagination-in-being-placed)” in *In All Things*. He presented the academic paper, "What We Talk About When We Talk About Faith: Augustinian Spiritual Writing and Meghan O’Gieblyn’s *Interior States*,*"* at the Midwest Regional Conference on Christianity and Literature at Wheaton College in 2023. His first book, *[**Brooding Upon the Waters**](https://slantbooks.org/books/brooding-upon-the-waters/ "https://slantbooks.org/books/brooding-upon-the-waters/"), explores place, history, and faith through stories of farming, fishing, and failure in America’s lost landscape, the tall grass prairie of the Upper Midwest.* “As humans made in the image of God, we are called to be ‘sub-creators’ in the world, and one of the ways we do that is through language. And just as the Word became flesh and lived among us in the ultimate act of love, we have a responsibility to make the word flesh for others in what we write, say, and do.” Outside of the classroom, Schaap is a member of the Academic Senate, mentor to new faculty, and sponsor of the student writing club. In his free time, he enjoys fishing, trying new foods with his wife, Sy, and being a track Dad. **Education:** - MFA in Creative Nonfiction, Seattle Pacific, 2014 - MA English Literature, South Dakota Statue University, 2008 --- ## Articles by Howard Schaap [ ![](https://d3evso2dxyohou.cloudfront.net/generalUploads/stories-that-stretch-jury-duty.jpg?mode=crop&pos=center-center&w=56&h=33&f=webp&c=095e1f0d&v=34498a91a065bf02acb90f7fd27aa090b78c8d21986e43555767726c53619ee2) Essays Jun 05, 2026 ### Stories that Stretch Us: Jury Duty as Anti-Rage Bait By Howard Schaap "...the stories that really shape us are types of stories, especially those we gravitate towards or away from." Read More ](https://www.dordt.edu/in-all-things/stories-that-stretch-us-jury-duty-as-anti-rage-bait) [ ![](https://d3evso2dxyohou.cloudfront.net/generalUploads/iat-prayer-bouquet-2.jpg?mode=crop&pos=center-center&w=56&h=33&f=webp&c=18a9bc03&v=093f776967f27960e806a8e671499cb18f18ddfaae09954fd68272a5760bad09) Essays Mar 04, 2026 ### Prayer Bouquet: An Excerpt from Brooding Upon the Waters By Howard Schaap In an excerpt from his book, Brooding Upon the Waters, Howard Schaap wrestles with the limits of prayer and the sustaining power of small, daily acts of faith amid life's uncertainties. Read More ](https://www.dordt.edu/in-all-things/prayer-bouquet-an-excerpt-from-brooding-upon-the-waters) [ ![](https://d3evso2dxyohou.cloudfront.net/generalUploads/iat-imagine-place.jpg?mode=crop&pos=center-center&w=56&h=33&f=webp&c=979e0a5e&v=8ee9554a39e33cea342fa393f0670686f66039b9631fbfdb49805d4e110b2627) Essays Nov 28, 2025 ### The Place of Imagination in Being Placed By Howard Schaap Renewing our imagination invites us to see ordinary landscapes as sources of relationship and possibility. How might our sense of belonging shift if we approached place with more curiosity? Read More ](https://www.dordt.edu/in-all-things/the-place-of-imagination-in-being-placed) [ ![](https://d3evso2dxyohou.cloudfront.net/generalUploads/iat-dangers-misreading.jpg?mode=crop&pos=center-center&w=56&h=33&f=webp&c=0cdbbc42&v=4e9e8027d62ee3710c3cc9a2c0dd2810b8cc605419f2275b8691c09204b6f082) Essays Sep 23, 2025 ### The Dangers of (Mis)Reading: Tolkien, Naming, and Abstraction By Howard Schaap How might detaching words and names from their context blind us to the complexity of the stories and truths they once conveyed? Read More ](https://www.dordt.edu/in-all-things/the-dangers-of-misreading-tolkien-naming-and-abstraction) [ ![](https://d3evso2dxyohou.cloudfront.net/generalUploads/iatliturgypetfeat.jpg?mode=crop&pos=center-center&w=56&h=33&f=webp&c=108ecd07&v=59cea1c99559b1db4db51110623608c502e085b6a1111f0c2fe666db9285be91) Essays Jun 24, 2025 ### The Liturgical Lives of Pets By Howard Schaap The practices that shape our days also shape our hearts. How do the faithful habits of tending teach us to love what God loves? Read More ](https://www.dordt.edu/in-all-things/the-liturgical-lives-of-pets) [ ![](https://d3evso2dxyohou.cloudfront.net/generalUploads/iatchristmaswaiting4.jpg?mode=crop&pos=center-center&w=56&h=33&f=webp&c=80d9266b&v=0d364d35247f620a5a41c5e197ed7c4564fd59f60d0691d4fc7ca6abacbf4e3d) Essays Dec 13, 2024 ### Living in Advent: Making Room for the Messiah By Howard Schaap As we wait for Christ’s return, Advent challenges us to align our hearts and homes with His kingdom. How can we mirror His love, patience, and peace in our daily lives? Read More ](https://www.dordt.edu/in-all-things/living-in-advent-making-room-for-the-messiah)