Resonate Global Mission just doesn't resonate. It is a 'sell out' to all that is Christian Reformed.
It seems as though Christian Reformed Home Missions and Christian Reformed World Missions were ashamed of our identity in selecting a new name and it ignores the denomination's rich heritage.
Christian Reformed World Missions, especially, was a "brand" (to use today's secular lingo) that was recognized around the world, built upon a century of mission work.
"Resonate Global Mission" lacks missiological, pedagogical and theological context. The choice of the name change is a branding sellout to corporate America, as was World Renew before it.
Why not Christian Reformed Missions? It says who we are, clearly and unambiguously. When the new name was chosen, was there a board discussion around whether or not this new missions entity was still 'Christian' or still 'Reformed"? And does 'Resonate' bring any clarity at all to our reformed perspective when it comes to mission?
Perhaps it was all about branding and about trying to attract secular donors who might inexplicably be turned off by a Christian Reformed label. Perhaps "Resonate" seemed generic enough and safe enough to appeal to a broader non-Reformed audience.
There appears to be a trend towards shedding our denominational identity so that we become more appealing to our secularized world. Churches increasingly call themselves community churches rather than Christian Reformed churches, and now our flagship mission agencies have done the same.
These name changes will diminish both the identity and the mission of the church.