Flying Through the Stars He Studied

On October 9 Mart de Groot passed to his rest at his home in County Armagh, Northern Ireland.

Renowned for his distinguished work in astronomy, he served for 18 years (1976-1994) as the eighth director of the Armagh Observatory. In 1997 he followed a new calling into pastoral ministry, serving the Irish Mission in several congregations, including Belfast.

It was during his time in Belfast that he mentored a young intern, Adam Keough, who now serves as president of the Irish Mission. It was both fitting and moving that Keough was invited to deliver the homily at the funeral service on October 12 at Banbridge Adventist Church, which is shared here.

“Mart was a proud husband, a father, a grandfather, a great-grandfather. He was known affectionately within his family as ‘Opa’. But, apart from being a family man, Mart was more than this to so many. To his family he was known as Mart, Opa. But to others he was Pastor Mart. To others, Mart de Groot. To others, Dr. de Groot. To others, Mart, the astronomer.

“He was a family man. But he was also a well-traveled lecturer, an internationally known astronomer and cosmologist, a local church pastor, a guest speaker on creation and science, a church planter, an elder, a supervisor, and much more. In his own words, after being asked explicitly about his involvement in the Adventist Church over many years, he replied in his own humorous way: ‘I had nearly every function in the church at some point, except the role of deaconess.’

“To me, he was my senior pastor when I started ministry, someone who didn’t just do it because he was asked to—but someone who took me under his wing, guided me, protected me, nurtured me, and sometimes, rightly, admonished me with grace.

“We gather to celebrate the life of Mart, who was known to many of us in various ways. And the amazing thing is that those of us here today represent just a tiny fraction of those whose lives he has touched. As I was reflecting . . . what words I would use to describe Mart. I came up with many, of course, but focused on two.

Mart and Willemien de Groot in front of the Seal of the Armagh Observatory, which they made together for the 1990 Bicentennial Celebrations. (Photo: Courtesy of the Armagh Observatory and Planetarium)

Humble

“Mart was not one of these people who would go around saying, ‘Oh, you know what, I wrote a book on such and such.’ Yes, he wrote plenty, but he’d likely never tell you! Only by accident would you find he’d been lecturing in Italy, or [that he] knew more than five languages fluently, and a few others not quite so fluently! Only in deep conversation would you discover the wealth of knowledge and how deeply he had dug into understanding Genesis 1 and 2. Or that the Seventh-day Adventist Geoscience Research Institute had made a documentary about him entitled ‘Seeking Understanding: Stories of Faith and Science.’ A humble man indeed.

God-fearing

“The second word I’d use to describe Mart: God-fearing. But when I say fearing, I mean ‘in awe of God,’ someone who was in awe of who God was, and what the universe tells us about the character of God.

“His daughter Nelly Magee read from Psalm 19. Like another great son of Northern Ireland, C. S. Lewis (1898-1963), who called it ‘the greatest poem in the Psalter and one of the greatest lyrics in the world,’ Mart cherished these verses as the theme of his life:

“ ‘The heavens declare the glory of God;
the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
Day after day they pour forth speech;
night after night they reveal knowledge’ (Ps. 19:1, 2, NIV).

Long Before

“Long before there was Wi-Fi, the signal from heaven never cut out. Long before there were radio waves, the heavens were already broadcasting the glory of God. Long before satellites circled the earth, the stars were sending out praise. Long before humankind sent messages from the moon, the moon was already sending messages about God. Long before Netflix streamed movies into our homes, the heavens streamed the glory of God from the first day of creation.

“To Dr. de Groot: Every star was a witness, every planet a praise report, every sunrise and sunset a new notification that God is good! Mart traveled the island of Ireland and the islands of the world, sharing the beauty of the universe and the character of the God who created it.

At His Core a Disciple of Christ

“While the first half of Psalm 19 speaks of the universe and God as its creator, the second half of the psalm is not nearly as well-known! But they spoke to Mart just as much as the preceding verses.

“ ‘The law of the Lord is perfect,
refreshing the soul. . . .
The decrees of the Lord are firm,
and all of them are righteous.
They are more precious than gold,
than much pure gold,
they are sweeter than honey’ (Ps. 19:7-10, NIV)

“To anyone who knew Mart, they knew of his deep love for Willemien. Companions who stood by each other’s side for over 61 years of married life—in the Netherlands, in Chile, in Northern Ireland. Inseparable—until now. But even Willemien would be proud to say, ‘Mart loved his Lord even more than me.’

“At his very core Mart was this—a disciple of Jesus Christ. A humble, God-fearing disciple. Someone whose understanding of the universe led him to love God more and more. A man who trusted that God’s Word is true, valid, applicable today, and useful for making the world a better place. A pastor and scientist who explained the Word of God to others, but who never forgot to take time daily to allow the Word of God to penetrate into his own heart.

With Victor Hulbert, former Communication director for the Trans-European Division and host of the show In Conversation, Mart de Groot shares his passion for observing the cosmos. [Photo: Courtesy of Hope Channel UK]

Flying Through the Stars He Studied

“In 2006, nearly 20 years ago, Mart and I sat together in the hospital room of a dying person, surrounded by their family. Mart took his Bible and read the following words from the Gospel of John, with confidence:

“ ‘Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going’ (John 14:1-3).

“We gather to say our final goodbyes and to lay Mart to rest. We lay to rest a man whose faith was unwavering. Someone who, as a pastor and elder, compassionately sat in the presence of a mourning family, reading Scripture to remind them of the hope of the second coming of Jesus Christ. Jesus said: ‘I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die’ (John 11:25). He also shared with the family the encouraging words of 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18. Those words which Mart read to others are now to read us.

“As I was reminded on the day Mart died, the next thing Mart will experience after that resurrection morning is that he will arise to meet the Lord in the air.

“While alive, he studied the stars. But on that resurrection morning, he will fly through those very stars which he studied, to the kingdom of heaven.

“May this hope and the presence of our great God bring you peace and comfort at this time.“

The Research 

As an astronomer, de Groot’s research was a combination of curiosity and philosophical reflection. His tenure at the Armagh Observatory advanced stellar and solar research, particularly in the areas of variable and emission-line stars, interstellar dust, and long-term solar activity. It also led to the observatory becoming known for its collaborative, international research ethos and its emphasis on systematic sky monitoring.

Furthermore, his research made significant contributions to the understanding of stellar envelopes and circumstellar environments. He also promoted public engagement with astronomy, advocating for science education as a means to cultivate awe, humility, and a sense of moral responsibility toward the natural world.

A Facebook post on behalf of the Adventist-run Geoscience Research Institute said: “Today we received the sad news of the passing of our longtime friend and colleague, astronomer Mart de Groot. He leaves a rarely matched legacy of scientific achievement and fidelity to Christ. Mart engaged in cutting-edge research on a strange star that varies in brightness named P Cygni, due to its location in the Cygnus (swan) constellation.”

Would You Move to An Exoplanet?

Of the many articles de Groot has written, one in particular invites the reader to consider living somewhere else in the Milky Way, with the question “Would you move to an exoplanet?” And de Groot takes the reader through various reasons as to why this may or may not be possible. His conclusion?

“Considering the huge amount of fine-tuning required for a livable planet, we should contemplate the possibility that the Creator of the universe has had a special purpose for creating earth and its inhabitants, and that earth’s uniqueness is a result of design rather than of accident.”

For de Groot, whether gazing through the telescope or opening the Scriptures, every pursuit—in research, reflection, writing, leadership, preaching, and teaching—was inspired by a single, enduring question: What is God really like?

The original version of this commentary was posted on the Trans-European Division news site.