Retired from the seminary on August 31, 2010. Served 24 years as Professor of Church Polity, eight of those with the additional responsibility of VP for Academic Affairs. Served at Synod of the CRCNA for two years as a delegate and for twenty years as an adviser.
...meetings of officebearers are in principle open to the membership unless they are declared to be in executive session. The latter happens routinely at meetings of the consistory and the diaconate (when particular members and their circumstances are discussed each time) and it happens occasionally when a council feels the need. A good example of that would be a discussion on nomination for elders and deacons. Nonetheless, meetings of council, certainly, are typically open, and it is good when members of the congregation take an interest and attend as visitors
(p. 216, Christian Reformed Church Order Commentary)
Article 43 of the Church Order speaks of licensure given by the classis for persons to have the right to exhort. Commissioned Pastors also receive the right to preach after they have been examined by classis and subsequently ordained. This is covered in Article 24.
The council is not permitted to use a "lay person" who has not been given the right to exhort of preach by the classis for preaching in his or her own church.
If you wish to get "behind" these regulations, I urge you to read my commentary on Article 43. The commentary is available from Faith Alive Resources, our denominational publishing ministry.
Dear “Karen”: I’m so sorry to hear this story from you. You are not alone. Unfortunately, there are many others with a similar story. Like you, those people do not know what to do either or where to turn. I’ll do my best to describe the “ins and outs” as you requested. First of all, my response depends on your age. I cannot tell from your letter whether you are an adult, so I am going to describe a response to a minor and then a response to an adult. If you are a minor (under age eighteen in most states and provinces), you should know that sexual abuse of a minor by an adult is a crime whether or not the abuser is a pastor. If the abuser is a pastor, the abuse is also a serious form of church leader misconduct, a violation of professional ethics, a betrayal of your trust, and a sin. Although it might be very difficult for you, you should tell a parent or a stepparent what has happened. If you cannot tell your parent or stepparent or if they do not believe you, then tell your story to an adult—perhaps an elder of your church, a youth leader, or a school teacher—it doesn’t really matter who, as long as it is an adult that you trust. If you live in Canada, all adults are legally responsible to report the allegation. If you live in the United States, some adults must report an allegation of abuse because of their professional responsibilities while other adults do not have to report. Then two things should happen to prevent the sexual abuse from happening again. First, the adult you confide in should report your allegation to the local police. By law, the adult should report the allegation within twenty-four hours of hearing about it. Second, that same adult or the police should inform the church’s executive or leadership group of your allegation. You didn’t say whether he’s your pastor or the pastor of another church. But that doesn’t matter. The church needs to be told. The police will interview you and the pastor separately, and they will interview others as well. It takes some time to conduct a thorough investigation. After all the interviews are done, it is possible that criminal charges will be filed. There could be a trial, especially if the pastor claims he is innocent. If he is found guilty of abusing you or if he pleads guilty to abusing you, he will likely be punished. I can’t say what the punishment might be, but you should understand that any punishment is the result of his abuse and not because you reported the abuse. The church’s leaders should take action too. The church should at least suspend him for a period of time, or they should remove him from the pulpit and prevent him from being a minister again in that church or another church. Throughout this experience, you will find it helpful to have a counselor to talk to. Your friends will be very supportive to you, but you may not want to share all the details with them. Besides being a good listener, a counselor can also help sort through all the feelings you’ll have through the investigation and trial. All this may sound scary and overwhelming to you. I am not trying to frighten you. There really isn’t another way to prevent you from being hurt again by the pastor, or to prevent him from hurting someone else. I hope you find the courage to tell someone, and that the abuse stops. This is my advice if you are a minor. If you are an adult, I am just as saddened and disturbed by your story as if you were a child. My advice, however, is a bit different. First of all, I hope you’ll make an appointment with a counselor or therapist as soon as possible. Please don’t delay. Depression is a very natural reaction to the sexual violation and the betrayal you have experienced. But depression, anger, and sadness can also be overwhelming at times, so you should not face these emotions alone. As an adult, you have different choices than does a child. One of your choices is to go to the police with your story. If the events took place a long time ago, the police may or may not be able to investigate your story. The laws in your community may also affect whether or not charges can be filed. Another choice is to approach the Christian Reformed Church. The churches in the denomination have been challenged to understand the gravity of your situation, and the classes in the denomination are providing Safe Church Teams so that you have a safe place to go with your story. The conduct you describe might be sexual misconduct. Sexual misconduct occurs when a minister does not observe appropriate relationship or physical boundaries. Sexual misconduct usually includes exploiting a person for the power and control that it gives the other person. While it may look as if the relationship between the two people is “consensual,” in fact it is not because the minister is in a position of power and authority over a parishioner and has violated the sacred trust of his office by his conduct. The minister is always responsible to safeguard the relationship with the parishioner. When boundary violations occur, the minister should be held accountable. This is a very serious matter. And I hope my indication of the road to take now, even if it is a difficult one for you, is the right one for you and for the church. If this person is guilty of sexual misconduct, he must not be allowed to continue in office. Despite your own pain, we hope you will help us prevent further hurt and humiliation to even one more person. Unfortunately, once ministers cross these boundaries, more incidents usually follow. The Christian Reformed Church has a network of Safe Church Teams that are convened to hear stories like yours. If a team is not located near you, your expenses to travel to that team’s location will be provided for you. In addition, Safe Church Teams offer claimant advocates to assist those who have allegations of sexual misconduct committed by a minister. To get started and bring your story forward, you may contact a claimant advocate, a Safe Church Team chairperson, or the chairman of the church council to whom this pastor is accountable. If the offender is your minister, you may feel more comfortable calling a claimant advocate or team chairperson, but you certainly may approach someone on your council that you can trust. If the offender is a minister of another congregation, you can call either the claimant advocate, team chairperson, or a person on that church’s council. Usually the claimant advocate makes the call, but you could choose to make the call. If all of this begins to sound too difficult or impossible in some way, please know that the claimant advocates and Safe Church Teams are made up of professionals who are knowledgeable in sexual misconduct dynamics. You do not have to worry about confronting the minister alone or at all. The Safe Church Team will form a panel that will meet with you, accompanied by the claimant advocate, and then they will meet separately with the accused minister. When both parties have been fully heard, the panel will consider whether your allegations are more probable than not. You and the minister will be notified of the panel’s findings; the panel also notifies the executive committee of council. The council will then meet to decide on what should be done. Once again, the claimant and the minister do not meet face to face, but they will both be notified of the council’s decision. If the council judges that the allegations are more likely than not to have occurred, the council should initiate steps of discipline. It is likely that the minister will then first be suspended. If he claims to be innocent, a formal hearing will be held. If he pleads guilty or it is determined that he is, in fact, guilty of an offense, it is likely that he will then be deposed. If, on the other hand, the council judges that the charges you have brought are not likely to have occurred, then the matter could end. However, the chairperson of the advisory panel and the claimant advocate might challenge the decision of council. They could submit a copy of the panel’s report and of the council’s action to the Interim Committee of the classis. This committee presents a report to the next meeting of that classis. This is done to make sure that there is no partiality in the way that your allegations have been responded to in a “more local” setting. When this difficult road of appeal has been followed, and still no action is being taken against the minister for whatever reason, you and your claimant advocate still have the right of appeal from what the classis has decided in the matter. That appeal may be addressed to the synod of the Christian Reformed Church. It meets once a year and has a special committee that can hear the case in confidence. It will then provide the following synod with well-formulated recommendations. So you have representatives from the entire denomination at your disposal to address this serious matter. “Karen,” I’ve just given you a lot of stuff to digest. If you have any further questions, please know that you may contact me at the telephone number listed below my signature. I will keep our conversations confidential and not reveal them to anyone. Or you may write back. Either way is fine. I also encourage you to contact the denominational Safe Church Ministry at 616-224-0735. The ministry has a website with information on how to contact a claimant advocate or a Safe Church Team chairperson. I wish you much strength in all of this. I understand that this minister has hurt you. I hope you will experience a church that wants to end that hurt. The church does not want to bury its head in the sand. It wants and needs the opportunity to help you now. Just getting the word out to others will be difficult but, in the end, I am confident it will lighten your load and lead you on new roads to joy. Grace and peace to you.
On that same page 119 of my Commentary, my advice for those who are not (or not yet) ordained is "Do not raise your arms and pronounce the salutation and the benediction. You will undoubtedly upset someone if you do. Instead, change these pronouncements into prayers: "The Lord bless us and keep us ..."
Then, indeed, I advise such folk not to "do the laying on of hands" but have the chair of the elders and the chair of the deacons do it because they ARE ordained and because Synod 2001 ruled that official acts of ministry are entrusted to the church's ordained leaders, not to a specific office. That reference in on page 294.
You are also free to call all of what I write a "bunch of hokey" (or any other similar expression) since it is what it says it is, a Commentary, but nobody should undercut the authority of the Church Order itself. We have covenanted to observe it faithfully.
I am happy to do so. In a document we prepare for students at Calvin Theological Seminary, we enumerate seven items from tradition and Church Order that we deem to be “official acts of the ministry” (Article 53): the greeting or salutation, the blessing or benediction, the assurance of pardon, the reception or dismissal of members, the ordination of officebearers, the preaching of the Word, and the administration of the sacraments. The preaching of the Word is a recent addition by Synod 2001, and students, of course, are licensed to proclaim it, to “exhort.” The other six items do not all carry the same weight. Our advice about them follows. Do not raise your arms and pronounce the salutation and the benediction. You will undoubtedly upset someone if you do. Instead, change these pronouncements into prayers: “The Lord bless us and keep us . . .” The assurance of pardon is undoubtedly a word of Scripture, and the student pastor is perfectly free to read it. Say, “The Lord says in Isaiah 1: ‘Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow.’” Reception or dismissal of members is really the act of the consistory as a whole. I see no reason why you couldn’t welcome people into adult confessing membership on behalf of the elders who have met with them. This makes good sense, especially if you were the one who, as an intern, led a number of young people to make public profession of their faith. It makes less sense for you to announce dismissal if you have not been involved in discipling the person(s) involved. Ordaining elders and deacons is also the act of the local council. If you are involved in that, the council must give its permission, and it must be clear to the congregation that it’s really the council doing the installing. Involve the chair of the elders and the chair of the deacons to make the point visibly. Have them—not you—do the laying on of hands, for example, since they are ordained and you are not. The sacraments, given our theology, are clearly to be administered by ordained persons, either a minister of the Word, a ministry associate, or—as a legitimate exception—an elder identified by the classis as having the authority to do so if no minister or ministry associate is available. We advise you as a student not to administer baptism or the Lord’s Supper. Finally, remember that you are not licensed to solemnize a marriage. Conducting funerals is another matter and, if it makes good sense, feel free to do so if requested by the family.
The interpretation of Article 53 you report certain councils holding is definitely not acceptable. When the article says "Worship services," it means all worship services, in your own as well as other congregations. When it then calls for licensure to exhort, it is referring back to Article 43 (license by the classis) and Article 22 (students, by the denomination -- Board of Calvin Seminary). Councils that permit a person to exhort without licensure by the classis are in violation of the Church Order. If they wish to start or continue such a practice, they must ask synod to change the Church Order so that, in amended form, it is allowed. Of course, Article 53 does say that an unlicensed person appointed by the consistory may "read a sermon," that is, literally read one prepared by a minister of the Word and approved by the council. If you then ask why is all this the case, the answer is that councils are accountable to the classis in the important task of guarding the pulpit so as to maintain good Christian and Reformed preaching in accordance with who we are as a denomination.
I get this question a lot, so I suppose this phenomenon is fairly widespread. I can certainly understand the desire to have this grandson baptized. I can also fully understand the thought that covenantal theology ought to allow for this sort of thing, especially if one believes that the covenant line runs through the church as well as the (biological) family. The fact is that among those who uphold covenantal theology, this has been a long-debated issue that has surfaced on many occasions and is often described as the issue of the “halfway covenant.” The debate goes all the way back through previous centuries. The theological problem is made more complex when the mother or father opposes the baptism or at least does not consent to it. In that case, the issue of legal custody arises. Historically the church has always respected the rules of civil society with respect to custody of children. In line with churches of the Reformation throughout history, the CRCNA holds that children of believers ought to be baptized. Next, we hope, expect, and pray for a profession of faith of the baptized at an age of understanding so that the covenant line or believers’ line is then visibly extended throughout the generations. We wrestle with why children fall away and always keep praying on their behalf that they will return. Nonetheless, and in tune with our expectations, we do not give non-confessing parents the right to present children for baptism. Fallibly, to be sure, we draw boundaries for the sake of the purity of the church. Grandparents do not have the right to present grandchildren for baptism unless the child’s parents are out of the picture entirely and they have actually received legal custody or, as sometimes happens, actually adopted the child. That’s the current position of the CRCNA. I have seen some exceptions made to that position with which I do sympathize. In one case that comes to mind, the grandparents had unofficial yet very strong control so that they, in fact, were providing the chief nurturing influence. But going down the road of exceptions to our policy is nonetheless fraught with some difficulty, and I believe that exceptions should be made only for very compelling reasons. Here we need a great deal of wisdom and discernment. After all, our historic policy is also wrapped in much wisdom. At the same time, we rejoice in a situation like yours where the parents have no objections and the grandparents are allowed, perhaps even encouraged, to bring the child into the life and ministry of the church. We must not forget, though, in our rejoicing, that as he gets older it will become more and more difficult for him because of the obvious contradiction in modeling between one generation and another. How do we help? Here’s one reason why it was so necessary for our churches to move toward the scenario where children ages seven to twelve are encouraged to make an “early” profession of faith—where, at their level of understanding, they express their love for the Lord and their desire to be nurtured within the Christian community. I hope that your congregation does this as a routine practice. This, I think, is the direction to go, namely, that the grandchild is enfolded in every possible way (with a presentation in worship short of baptism and then in church school) and steadily encouraged to make such an ageappropriate profession, whereupon baptism can take place. It would have to be the case, to be sure, that the parents of a minor in their custody do not object and provide that permission in writing. But it would be a powerful witness to the child’s parents and would speak eloquently of a God whose covenantal promises are being fulfilled in our eyes even if, right now, a generation is seemingly skipped. The community continues to pray and support. When he is fourteen, his parents’ lifestyle—if still the same—will look very tempting. Hopefully he’ll resist and make an additional adult profession some four years down the road. What a thrilling thing that would be for you! I realize I probably haven’t convinced you at an emotional level. I’ve given you the long-held stance of the churches of the Reformation. I could reach back into theology textbooks of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. I could give you stories of children being baptized by the church just because three generations back their ancestors were members, and what happened to churches like that in the long run. But I’ll leave it at this for now. Feel free to fire back.
Yes, Dutchoven, I am quite aware that this happens. And with respect to the exceptions that are always there, I assure you that I am not a legalist and a wink from the classis is sometimes OK. What I don't accept is that churches start doing this on a regular basis. I've heard of one that has a young person as an "apprentice," taught the entire seminary curriculum by the ordained pastor on the scene, truly believing that one day he can become a candidate that way. I think that's just wrong and it shows how some do not covenant to follow the rules faithfully in spite of their vows of ordination, submitting to the government of the church.
One more thing. Emerging congregations, whether an initial plant or one that has reverted from organized status, are not obliged to follow the Church Order. They should move in that direction, of course, anticipating organized status down the road, but an unordained person leading an emerging congregation is not a violation of the Church Order.
I'll gladly forward to you the section of my book on Article 56 which includes this question and answer.
I'll use the e-mail in the Yearbook. If that's no longer valid, please e-mail me and give me an updated address.
My book is readily available from Faith Alive Resources or even Amazon.com. Perhaps you can convince your council to have at least one copy in the church library.
I am being encouraged to contribute to this discussion. I will do so shamelessly by asking you all to read pages 133-135 of my Christian Reformed Church Order Commentary to gain some historical perspective on this issue of limited or permanent tenure and to read pages 136-138 of that commentary to see what can be done about a "high turnover rate" that sometimes impedes our ministry. You will be amazed, when you read the latter part, how flexible our Church Order really is on this issue of how long a term might run........ (No, I do not make royalties on the sales of this commentary, but your buying it if you haven't done it already will definitely support our Faith Alive Resources agency).
Posted in: Who can attend council meetings?
...meetings of officebearers are in principle open to the membership unless they are declared to be in executive session. The latter happens routinely at meetings of the consistory and the diaconate (when particular members and their circumstances are discussed each time) and it happens occasionally when a council feels the need. A good example of that would be a discussion on nomination for elders and deacons. Nonetheless, meetings of council, certainly, are typically open, and it is good when members of the congregation take an interest and attend as visitors
(p. 216, Christian Reformed Church Order Commentary)
Posted in: License to Exhort -- May a council use an approved lay person lead in worship, including preaching?
John,
Article 43 of the Church Order speaks of licensure given by the classis for persons to have the right to exhort. Commissioned Pastors also receive the right to preach after they have been examined by classis and subsequently ordained. This is covered in Article 24.
The council is not permitted to use a "lay person" who has not been given the right to exhort of preach by the classis for preaching in his or her own church.
If you wish to get "behind" these regulations, I urge you to read my commentary on Article 43. The commentary is available from Faith Alive Resources, our denominational publishing ministry.
Posted in: What to do when you have been abused by a pastor?
Dear “Karen”: I’m so sorry to hear this story from you. You are not alone. Unfortunately, there are many others with a similar story. Like you, those people do not know what to do either or where to turn. I’ll do my best to describe the “ins and outs” as you requested. First of all, my response depends on your age. I cannot tell from your letter whether you are an adult, so I am going to describe a response to a minor and then a response to an adult. If you are a minor (under age eighteen in most states and provinces), you should know that sexual abuse of a minor by an adult is a crime whether or not the abuser is a pastor. If the abuser is a pastor, the abuse is also a serious form of church leader misconduct, a violation of professional ethics, a betrayal of your trust, and a sin. Although it might be very difficult for you, you should tell a parent or a stepparent what has happened. If you cannot tell your parent or stepparent or if they do not believe you, then tell your story to an adult—perhaps an elder of your church, a youth leader, or a school teacher—it doesn’t really matter who, as long as it is an adult that you trust. If you live in Canada, all adults are legally responsible to report the allegation. If you live in the United States, some adults must report an allegation of abuse because of their professional responsibilities while other adults do not have to report. Then two things should happen to prevent the sexual abuse from happening again. First, the adult you confide in should report your allegation to the local police. By law, the adult should report the allegation within twenty-four hours of hearing about it. Second, that same adult or the police should inform the church’s executive or leadership group of your allegation. You didn’t say whether he’s your pastor or the pastor of another church. But that doesn’t matter. The church needs to be told. The police will interview you and the pastor separately, and they will interview others as well. It takes some time to conduct a thorough investigation. After all the interviews are done, it is possible that criminal charges will be filed. There could be a trial, especially if the pastor claims he is innocent. If he is found guilty of abusing you or if he pleads guilty to abusing you, he will likely be punished. I can’t say what the punishment might be, but you should understand that any punishment is the result of his abuse and not because you reported the abuse. The church’s leaders should take action too. The church should at least suspend him for a period of time, or they should remove him from the pulpit and prevent him from being a minister again in that church or another church. Throughout this experience, you will find it helpful to have a counselor to talk to. Your friends will be very supportive to you, but you may not want to share all the details with them. Besides being a good listener, a counselor can also help sort through all the feelings you’ll have through the investigation and trial. All this may sound scary and overwhelming to you. I am not trying to frighten you. There really isn’t another way to prevent you from being hurt again by the pastor, or to prevent him from hurting someone else. I hope you find the courage to tell someone, and that the abuse stops. This is my advice if you are a minor. If you are an adult, I am just as saddened and disturbed by your story as if you were a child. My advice, however, is a bit different. First of all, I hope you’ll make an appointment with a counselor or therapist as soon as possible. Please don’t delay. Depression is a very natural reaction to the sexual violation and the betrayal you have experienced. But depression, anger, and sadness can also be overwhelming at times, so you should not face these emotions alone. As an adult, you have different choices than does a child. One of your choices is to go to the police with your story. If the events took place a long time ago, the police may or may not be able to investigate your story. The laws in your community may also affect whether or not charges can be filed. Another choice is to approach the Christian Reformed Church. The churches in the denomination have been challenged to understand the gravity of your situation, and the classes in the denomination are providing Safe Church Teams so that you have a safe place to go with your story. The conduct you describe might be sexual misconduct. Sexual misconduct occurs when a minister does not observe appropriate relationship or physical boundaries. Sexual misconduct usually includes exploiting a person for the power and control that it gives the other person. While it may look as if the relationship between the two people is “consensual,” in fact it is not because the minister is in a position of power and authority over a parishioner and has violated the sacred trust of his office by his conduct. The minister is always responsible to safeguard the relationship with the parishioner. When boundary violations occur, the minister should be held accountable. This is a very serious matter. And I hope my indication of the road to take now, even if it is a difficult one for you, is the right one for you and for the church. If this person is guilty of sexual misconduct, he must not be allowed to continue in office. Despite your own pain, we hope you will help us prevent further hurt and humiliation to even one more person. Unfortunately, once ministers cross these boundaries, more incidents usually follow. The Christian Reformed Church has a network of Safe Church Teams that are convened to hear stories like yours. If a team is not located near you, your expenses to travel to that team’s location will be provided for you. In addition, Safe Church Teams offer claimant advocates to assist those who have allegations of sexual misconduct committed by a minister. To get started and bring your story forward, you may contact a claimant advocate, a Safe Church Team chairperson, or the chairman of the church council to whom this pastor is accountable. If the offender is your minister, you may feel more comfortable calling a claimant advocate or team chairperson, but you certainly may approach someone on your council that you can trust. If the offender is a minister of another congregation, you can call either the claimant advocate, team chairperson, or a person on that church’s council. Usually the claimant advocate makes the call, but you could choose to make the call. If all of this begins to sound too difficult or impossible in some way, please know that the claimant advocates and Safe Church Teams are made up of professionals who are knowledgeable in sexual misconduct dynamics. You do not have to worry about confronting the minister alone or at all. The Safe Church Team will form a panel that will meet with you, accompanied by the claimant advocate, and then they will meet separately with the accused minister. When both parties have been fully heard, the panel will consider whether your allegations are more probable than not. You and the minister will be notified of the panel’s findings; the panel also notifies the executive committee of council. The council will then meet to decide on what should be done. Once again, the claimant and the minister do not meet face to face, but they will both be notified of the council’s decision. If the council judges that the allegations are more likely than not to have occurred, the council should initiate steps of discipline. It is likely that the minister will then first be suspended. If he claims to be innocent, a formal hearing will be held. If he pleads guilty or it is determined that he is, in fact, guilty of an offense, it is likely that he will then be deposed. If, on the other hand, the council judges that the charges you have brought are not likely to have occurred, then the matter could end. However, the chairperson of the advisory panel and the claimant advocate might challenge the decision of council. They could submit a copy of the panel’s report and of the council’s action to the Interim Committee of the classis. This committee presents a report to the next meeting of that classis. This is done to make sure that there is no partiality in the way that your allegations have been responded to in a “more local” setting. When this difficult road of appeal has been followed, and still no action is being taken against the minister for whatever reason, you and your claimant advocate still have the right of appeal from what the classis has decided in the matter. That appeal may be addressed to the synod of the Christian Reformed Church. It meets once a year and has a special committee that can hear the case in confidence. It will then provide the following synod with well-formulated recommendations. So you have representatives from the entire denomination at your disposal to address this serious matter. “Karen,” I’ve just given you a lot of stuff to digest. If you have any further questions, please know that you may contact me at the telephone number listed below my signature. I will keep our conversations confidential and not reveal them to anyone. Or you may write back. Either way is fine. I also encourage you to contact the denominational Safe Church Ministry at 616-224-0735. The ministry has a website with information on how to contact a claimant advocate or a Safe Church Team chairperson. I wish you much strength in all of this. I understand that this minister has hurt you. I hope you will experience a church that wants to end that hurt. The church does not want to bury its head in the sand. It wants and needs the opportunity to help you now. Just getting the word out to others will be difficult but, in the end, I am confident it will lighten your load and lead you on new roads to joy. Grace and peace to you.
Posted in: License to Exhort -- May a council use an approved lay person lead in worship, including preaching?
John,
On that same page 119 of my Commentary, my advice for those who are not (or not yet) ordained is "Do not raise your arms and pronounce the salutation and the benediction. You will undoubtedly upset someone if you do. Instead, change these pronouncements into prayers: "The Lord bless us and keep us ..."
Then, indeed, I advise such folk not to "do the laying on of hands" but have the chair of the elders and the chair of the deacons do it because they ARE ordained and because Synod 2001 ruled that official acts of ministry are entrusted to the church's ordained leaders, not to a specific office. That reference in on page 294.
You are also free to call all of what I write a "bunch of hokey" (or any other similar expression) since it is what it says it is, a Commentary, but nobody should undercut the authority of the Church Order itself. We have covenanted to observe it faithfully.
Posted in: What are the "licensed to exhort" boundaries?
I am happy to do so. In a document we prepare for students at Calvin Theological Seminary, we enumerate seven items from tradition and Church Order that we deem to be “official acts of the ministry” (Article 53): the greeting or salutation, the blessing or benediction, the assurance of pardon, the reception or dismissal of members, the ordination of officebearers, the preaching of the Word, and the administration of the sacraments. The preaching of the Word is a recent addition by Synod 2001, and students, of course, are licensed to proclaim it, to “exhort.” The other six items do not all carry the same weight. Our advice about them follows. Do not raise your arms and pronounce the salutation and the benediction. You will undoubtedly upset someone if you do. Instead, change these pronouncements into prayers: “The Lord bless us and keep us . . .” The assurance of pardon is undoubtedly a word of Scripture, and the student pastor is perfectly free to read it. Say, “The Lord says in Isaiah 1: ‘Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow.’” Reception or dismissal of members is really the act of the consistory as a whole. I see no reason why you couldn’t welcome people into adult confessing membership on behalf of the elders who have met with them. This makes good sense, especially if you were the one who, as an intern, led a number of young people to make public profession of their faith. It makes less sense for you to announce dismissal if you have not been involved in discipling the person(s) involved. Ordaining elders and deacons is also the act of the local council. If you are involved in that, the council must give its permission, and it must be clear to the congregation that it’s really the council doing the installing. Involve the chair of the elders and the chair of the deacons to make the point visibly. Have them—not you—do the laying on of hands, for example, since they are ordained and you are not. The sacraments, given our theology, are clearly to be administered by ordained persons, either a minister of the Word, a ministry associate, or—as a legitimate exception—an elder identified by the classis as having the authority to do so if no minister or ministry associate is available. We advise you as a student not to administer baptism or the Lord’s Supper. Finally, remember that you are not licensed to solemnize a marriage. Conducting funerals is another matter and, if it makes good sense, feel free to do so if requested by the family.
Posted in: License to Exhort -- May a council use an approved lay person lead in worship, including preaching?
John V.,
The interpretation of Article 53 you report certain councils holding is definitely not acceptable. When the article says "Worship services," it means all worship services, in your own as well as other congregations. When it then calls for licensure to exhort, it is referring back to Article 43 (license by the classis) and Article 22 (students, by the denomination -- Board of Calvin Seminary). Councils that permit a person to exhort without licensure by the classis are in violation of the Church Order. If they wish to start or continue such a practice, they must ask synod to change the Church Order so that, in amended form, it is allowed. Of course, Article 53 does say that an unlicensed person appointed by the consistory may "read a sermon," that is, literally read one prepared by a minister of the Word and approved by the council. If you then ask why is all this the case, the answer is that councils are accountable to the classis in the important task of guarding the pulpit so as to maintain good Christian and Reformed preaching in accordance with who we are as a denomination.
Posted in: May Grandparents Present a Grandchild for Infant Baptism When the Parents Are Not Professing Member of the Church?
I get this question a lot, so I suppose this phenomenon is fairly widespread. I can certainly understand the desire to have this grandson baptized. I can also fully understand the thought that covenantal theology ought to allow for this sort of thing, especially if one believes that the covenant line runs through the church as well as the (biological) family. The fact is that among those who uphold covenantal theology, this has been a long-debated issue that has surfaced on many occasions and is often described as the issue of the “halfway covenant.” The debate goes all the way back through previous centuries. The theological problem is made more complex when the mother or father opposes the baptism or at least does not consent to it. In that case, the issue of legal custody arises. Historically the church has always respected the rules of civil society with respect to custody of children. In line with churches of the Reformation throughout history, the CRCNA holds that children of believers ought to be baptized. Next, we hope, expect, and pray for a profession of faith of the baptized at an age of understanding so that the covenant line or believers’ line is then visibly extended throughout the generations. We wrestle with why children fall away and always keep praying on their behalf that they will return. Nonetheless, and in tune with our expectations, we do not give non-confessing parents the right to present children for baptism. Fallibly, to be sure, we draw boundaries for the sake of the purity of the church. Grandparents do not have the right to present grandchildren for baptism unless the child’s parents are out of the picture entirely and they have actually received legal custody or, as sometimes happens, actually adopted the child. That’s the current position of the CRCNA. I have seen some exceptions made to that position with which I do sympathize. In one case that comes to mind, the grandparents had unofficial yet very strong control so that they, in fact, were providing the chief nurturing influence. But going down the road of exceptions to our policy is nonetheless fraught with some difficulty, and I believe that exceptions should be made only for very compelling reasons. Here we need a great deal of wisdom and discernment. After all, our historic policy is also wrapped in much wisdom. At the same time, we rejoice in a situation like yours where the parents have no objections and the grandparents are allowed, perhaps even encouraged, to bring the child into the life and ministry of the church. We must not forget, though, in our rejoicing, that as he gets older it will become more and more difficult for him because of the obvious contradiction in modeling between one generation and another. How do we help? Here’s one reason why it was so necessary for our churches to move toward the scenario where children ages seven to twelve are encouraged to make an “early” profession of faith—where, at their level of understanding, they express their love for the Lord and their desire to be nurtured within the Christian community. I hope that your congregation does this as a routine practice. This, I think, is the direction to go, namely, that the grandchild is enfolded in every possible way (with a presentation in worship short of baptism and then in church school) and steadily encouraged to make such an ageappropriate profession, whereupon baptism can take place. It would have to be the case, to be sure, that the parents of a minor in their custody do not object and provide that permission in writing. But it would be a powerful witness to the child’s parents and would speak eloquently of a God whose covenantal promises are being fulfilled in our eyes even if, right now, a generation is seemingly skipped. The community continues to pray and support. When he is fourteen, his parents’ lifestyle—if still the same—will look very tempting. Hopefully he’ll resist and make an additional adult profession some four years down the road. What a thrilling thing that would be for you! I realize I probably haven’t convinced you at an emotional level. I’ve given you the long-held stance of the churches of the Reformation. I could reach back into theology textbooks of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. I could give you stories of children being baptized by the church just because three generations back their ancestors were members, and what happened to churches like that in the long run. But I’ll leave it at this for now. Feel free to fire back.
Posted in: License to Exhort -- May a council use an approved lay person lead in worship, including preaching?
Yes, Dutchoven, I am quite aware that this happens. And with respect to the exceptions that are always there, I assure you that I am not a legalist and a wink from the classis is sometimes OK. What I don't accept is that churches start doing this on a regular basis. I've heard of one that has a young person as an "apprentice," taught the entire seminary curriculum by the ordained pastor on the scene, truly believing that one day he can become a candidate that way. I think that's just wrong and it shows how some do not covenant to follow the rules faithfully in spite of their vows of ordination, submitting to the government of the church.
Posted in: License to Exhort -- May a council use an approved lay person lead in worship, including preaching?
One more thing. Emerging congregations, whether an initial plant or one that has reverted from organized status, are not obliged to follow the Church Order. They should move in that direction, of course, anticipating organized status down the road, but an unordained person leading an emerging congregation is not a violation of the Church Order.
Posted in: What advice would you give for grandparents requesting a grandchild's baptism?
If you have it available to you, you might wish to read my answer to this exact question in Christian Reformed Church Order Commentary, pages 311-313.
Just my two-cents worth ..........
Posted in: What advice would you give for grandparents requesting a grandchild's baptism?
Jerry,
I'll gladly forward to you the section of my book on Article 56 which includes this question and answer.
I'll use the e-mail in the Yearbook. If that's no longer valid, please e-mail me and give me an updated address.
My book is readily available from Faith Alive Resources or even Amazon.com. Perhaps you can convince your council to have at least one copy in the church library.
Posted in: Once an elder, always an elder?
Steve (and others),
I am being encouraged to contribute to this discussion. I will do so shamelessly by asking you all to read pages 133-135 of my Christian Reformed Church Order Commentary to gain some historical perspective on this issue of limited or permanent tenure and to read pages 136-138 of that commentary to see what can be done about a "high turnover rate" that sometimes impedes our ministry. You will be amazed, when you read the latter part, how flexible our Church Order really is on this issue of how long a term might run........ (No, I do not make royalties on the sales of this commentary, but your buying it if you haven't done it already will definitely support our Faith Alive Resources agency).