Student Profiles

Introducing Dathan Pleiter

Hello everyone! My name is Dathan Pleiter, and this is my lovely wife and friend, Katrina (nee Wanders). Maybe I should begin with my name, which is kind of the elephant in the room. I come from a family of seven, four boys and one girl. My brothers all have strong biblical names, named after noble and faithful prophets, priests, and kings. So I began to wonder, what Godly believer was I named after? Turns out, I shouldn’t have asked that question. “Dathan” wasn’t a godly character at all, but an infamous rebel, who was swallowed up by the earth. Round the same time, the bible song writer, Jamie Soles, released a new song, “Korah, Dathan, and Abiriam.” One line particularly struck me as young child, “Never name your children this, if you want people to admire ‘em.” So, there I was with an existential crisis at all of age 6. (For the record: the bible never gives such a prohibition).

My growing up years began in British Columbia. From there our family moved to Western Australia, where I lived until I moved to Ontario to pursue theological and pastoral training at CRTS. When I was young boy, I wanted to become a pastor. However, as I entered my early teenage years my aspirations changed. Fighter pilot was where it was at; there was something about breaking the sound barrier at Mach 2 that appealed to my more juvenile sensibilities. But a carrier as pilot was not meant to be (the height and math requirements may have had something to do with that). During this time, God placed it on my heart to pursue the ministry, which was confirmed by the encouragement of my parents and other mentors. Upon the completion of my undergraduate in Philosophy and Ancient History, and part-time studies with Rev. Dr. Anderson, I moved to Ontario in the summer of 2018 to begin seminary training.

During this time, I met Katrina. Well, actually, we met at convocation (other than church, you can’t get a more sanctified place to meet a girl). In the June of last year, we were married, and have experienced the joys of walking alongside each other in life. It is amazing to see where God has led our lives over these past four years. Through the various internships of the pastoral training program (Rev. R. Bredenhof, Rev. E. Onderwater, Rev. J. VanWoudenberg, Rev. Greg Bylsma), conversations with fellow peers, and mentoring of friends and other brothers and sisters in the faith, God has impressed upon our hearts his love for us in Jesus Christ. After graduating seminary in 2022, Katrina and I headed to Western Australia for year-long vicariate in Southern River, with Rev. Dirk Poppe as mentor. We have thoroughly enjoyed this additional internship. It has been such a privilege to proclaim the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ over this past year, to walk alongside of life with members of the congregation, and to work with gifted elders and deacons. We are very grateful for the opportunity. During the vicariate, God blessed Katrina and I with a wonderful baby boy, who has filled our home and our lives with much joy.

Much has changed in the last year, but we are very grateful for the way God has lead our lives. As it now stands, I plan on presenting myself to Classis on the 28th of July here in Western Australia (Classis North of the Free Reformed Churches) to become eligible for call. Although we look ahead with mixed emotions, we trust that God will equip us to walk in the footsteps of our saviour, Lord, and King, Jesus Christ, wherever they may lead.