Leonardus "Bert" Laeyendecker (18 June 1930 – 8 August 2020) was a Dutch sociologist. He was professor of sociology at Leiden University from 1973 to 1989. He specialized in sociology of religion.

Life

Laeyendecker was born on 18 June 1930 in Utrecht.[1] He obtained his doctorate in social geography at the University of Amsterdam in 1967 under professor S. Hofstra with a thesis titled: "Religion and conflict: the so-called sects in sociological perspective".[2] From August 1967 to October 1973 he was lector of sociology at the University of Amsterdam. In October 1973 he became professor of sociology at Leiden University.[1] His appointment ended in February 1989 due to a reorganization.[1][3] From 1989 to 1992 he served as director of the Multidisciplinary Center for Church and Society (Dutch: Multidisciplinair Centrum voor Kerk en Samenleving).[3]

During the 1960s Laeyendecker started research on sociology of religion, especially that of the Catholic Church in the Netherlands, and continued to do so throughout his career.[3] Kees de Groot and Erik Sengers stated that Laeyendecker was one of the greatest sociologists in the Netherlands between the 1970s and 1980s.[4]

In early 1970, Laeyendecker resigned as Father Augustinian because of Clerical celibacy in the Catholic Church which was also propagated by Dutch Cardinal Bernardus Johannes Alfrink.[5] In 1993 Laeyendecker concluded that the Second Vatican Council had inspired a counter-reaction and that official authority of the Catholic Church over believers had greatly diminished in the second half of the 20th century.[6]

Laeyendecker was elected a member of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1989.[7]

He died on 8 August 2020 at the age of 90.[8]

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Leonardus Laeyendecker" (in Dutch). Leiden University. Archived from the original on 20 June 2020.
  2. ↑ "Dr. L. Laeyendecker, 1930 -" (in Dutch). University of Amsterdam. Archived from the original on 22 June 2020.
  3. 1 2 3 Herman Noordegraaf (22 September 2014). "Maatschappijkritiek van oudheid tot heden" (in Dutch). Banning Vereniging. Archived from the original on 16 May 2019.
  4. ↑ Sociologies of Religion: National Traditions. BRILL. 7 August 2015. p. 147. ISBN 978-90-04-29758-6.
  5. ↑ Marc van Dijk (18 October 2013). De paus van Amsterdam: biografie van Huub Oosterhuis. Atlas Contact, Uitgeverij. p. 141. ISBN 978-90-450-2651-0.
  6. ↑ Kees de Groot (13 September 2017). The Liquidation of the Church. Taylor & Francis. p. 57. ISBN 978-1-317-10476-6.
  7. ↑ "Leo (Bert) Laeyendecker". Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences. Archived from the original on 11 May 2020.
  8. ↑ "Overlijdensbericht Bert Laeyendecker". NRC Handelsblad. 13 August 2020. Archived from the original on 13 August 2020.
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