Dr. Peter William Flint

Peter was Called Home on November 3, 2016 at the age of 65. He leaves behind to cherish their memories of him; wife Amanda; children Claire, Amy, Abigail (Daniel), Jason (Nadine), Taryn and Ethan; and grandchildren Jacob, Olivia, Andrew and Benjamin; as well as many, many friends, relations, colleagues and students.

Peter William Flint was born in 1951 to Alwin and Edelweiss Flint in Johannesburg, South Africa. He grew up with his two younger brothers, Tony and Lance, and their beloved dachshund and parrot. Always a keen and hardworking student, he obtained his B.A. and his Teacher's Higher Diploma from Wits (Witwatersrand) University. He began working as a teacher at Sandringham High School, was married and started a family and had four children, Claire, Amy, Abigail and Jason. During this time he never gave up on his lifelong passion for higher education. He continued to study, earning a B.A. in Classical Hebrew and an M.A. from the University of South Africa in 1983. Peter continued teaching, now as a professor at Cicira College & University of Transkei.

In 1987 Peter moved with his family to the United States to follow his dream of working on the Dead Sea Scrolls. He studied at the University of Notre Dame, spending many summers doing research in Israel & earning a second M.A. and a Ph.D. in Old Testament and Second Temple Judaism. This led to a teaching post at Southwestern College in Arizona, and then in 1995 Peter & his family and pets moved to Canada where he began work at Trinity Western University as Professor of Religious Studies. Here he helped establish and direct the Dead Sea Scrolls Institute and was appointed as a Canada Research Chair, continuing his work for 20 more years as one of the 70 official members of the Dead Sea Scrolls editors worldwide. His passion for scholarship, mentorship, research and travel was shared with his many colleagues, students, friends and community members. 

In 2000 Peter married Amanda, whom he met at TWU, and his family grew again with the addition of her children Taryn and Ethan. Peter loved spending time with all of his family, which had now grown to include 6 children, their spouses, 4 grandchildren and many more pets. He has generously shared with them his life’s many passions - far too many to list but include lifelong learning, faith, travel, humour, critical thought and compassion for animals.

Peter was a loving, humorous, spirited family man & dedicated scholar who will be greatly missed. He is survived by his mother Edelweiss, wife Amanda, children Claire, Amy, Abigail (Dan), Jason (Nadine), Taryn (Michael), Ethan, grandchildren Jakob, Olivia, Andrew, Ben, aunt Ginny, brothers Tony (Adele), Lance, nephews Jonathan, Michael and niece Hannah.

A celebration of Peter’s life will be held at North Langley Community Church, 21015-96A Ave. Langley, on Thursday, November 17 at 1:00 p.m. All are welcome to attend. In lieu of flowers, donations to the Dead Sea Scrolls Legacy scholarship fund as a tribute to continue Peter’s life work would be greatly appreciated.

“Heaven was in him, before he was in heaven”

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