We haven't discussed it but we did other things suggested in the email we all received from the CRCNA, regarding clarity of our position on this issue in the bylaws and articles of incorporation.
I wrote a 4 page summary of the report, left many things out, but that was more FYI vs for discussions.
If they participate in activities maybe one could be a study on what it means to be Reformed, and within that framework you take an in depth look at church membership as a faith commitment. One way to emphasize the membership step is by looking at what some liturgical forms used in profession of faith include, such as commitment to the Scriptures, to love, to the church, but also denying of self, renouncing Satan, etc.
1. If they are baptized members, profession of faith is their response to God's promise in baptism. In the Reformation time baptism was a way of clarifying if this baby is a Catholic of a Protestant. Today the infant baptism initiates you into this covenant community and a response to God's promise is expected if the baptism is properly understood.
2. In membership - which is a profession of faith - they are confessing their faith in a confessional church. The CRCNA is a confessional church and by joining the church publicly and officially they commit to abide by the faith commitments of this denomination. It is a privilege to know where you church stands clearly on a few important faith doctrines, etc.
3. Becoming church members in a CRCNA also demands a responsibility from them - they make the same promises that the others in the covenant community have made. They will nurture others in faith and they would submit themselves to being nurtured and also held accountable for their faithfulness to God and the Word.
4. Reading the NT is a great way to look at how the church grows. In Acts the church is exploding and expanding. It happens so quick that in Acts 15 there is an issue the church has to solve, related to doctrine and requirements - and there is a synod gathered in Jerusalem. If they are interested in how the church works as institution, invite them to participate in a classis meeting, or to sit at synod - these are open meetings. Or, invite them to look over some of the CRCNA materials, synodical records, etc. For some these may be boring for others interesting.
5. Membership in the church in the USA is voluntary. You are a baptized member though, if you were baptized as infant - that's a great start. If not a baptized member, then the emphasis should be on baptism, as a sign of obedience to Christ - that can only be done - in a confessional church - in the worship service of the congregation. And that's another great connecting point. Ecclessiology is something that may be the last thing they want to look at, but that what they are weak in, in my view. Any way you can find to teach them about the church is going to help. Also, most of the former Christians in Western Europe started to doubt and disregard the need for the church. Today they don't go to church, maybe only 4%? and that's in most cases a state church, that is, not a voluntary church (like in the USA) where if you don't go and offer your worship and money the church closes its doors. The Eastern Orthodox Church is mainly the same - struggling with high nominalism - people don't go to church but the church continues to function as an institution. Here is not the same, the US is a voluntary church. If all people would follow their example - you can say that we assume they are right not to join - how would the church look like?
If they have already made profession of faith that should have granted them membership immediately.
If not - you can revisit their profession of faith. I'm interested to see what happens with them, what moves them. I'm praying for you and for them.
Are you working for the CRCNA? Where are you located?
In our classis there is a monthly meeting with the prayer coordinators for mutual support and encouragement. These are people praying for the pastors and the church leaders and they encourage the church to prayer via many creative ways, etc.
Give them a call or order online - it's possible that they only take online orders. Also, you may call the classis Pastor for help with resources, or a church visitor - who is usually a pastor in your classis.
Our classis is incorporated because we have classis coordinators in various roles, such as diaconal, prayer, communicaitons, growth. In this case it's clearer to incorporate, I think.
In our area, West Michigan, we use the help of VIS Volunteers in Service, an organization established by CRC members to help and support deacons in their work.
VIS is helping CRC churches, and many benefit from their training, but now they're growing and helping all other churches that need help or support for the deacons.
Try calling them, here is their website, http://www.visgr.org - you can ask for Bernita if you need a name.
I have been using Alpha for youth even with adults and they loved it. No one argued that it’s not for them or that it’s boring.
I found the tool helpful for discussions - it stops every 5-7 minutes for discussions and the question appears on the screen. That’s extremely helpful, along with the toolbox sheet with additional questions for the topic.
I have not used it with youth, but it’s being used also on campuses for college students and they are engaging the material.
In terms of content, many things can be argued, but overall you can use it if you want to teach the basic Christian doctrines and to help youth deepen their spiritual disciplines.
Keith Knight raises a complex issue, in my view, but if I look only at the issue mentioned in his title - I'm not sure the solution to the problem is limited to the two choices: Article 17 or a bishop.
What if there is another solution, option? What is the solution for churches in which the pastor and the council agree on all issues, yet in the opinion of the broader assembly - the classis - they both made the "wrong" decision?
What if we can we fix the current system, before thinknig of returning to a bishop solution? What if we can help a classis be more intentional in helping out with situations of crisis or disagreement, long before they become a 'done deal'? What if the pastor of the classis, church visitors, synodical deputies, Pastor Church Relations office, etc. get involved earlier in a conflict? What if we design and work on improving all of these available avenues for conflict resolution? What if the denominiation improves the system at this stage of involvement?
One of the most attractive features of the CRCNA is the equality among church offices, decons, elders and pastors, and that is emphasized by the horizontal understanding of the CRCNA organizational structure, versus a vertical, authoritarian, structure.
Being an immigrant from Romania, I would like to briefly refer to the situation of the Hungarian Reformed Church in Romania (HRCR), which has about 700,000 members, and the denomination is led by two bishops.
The HRCR is struggling with their own structure, in fact, one of the sparks of the popular uprising in December 1989 in Romania was caused by a rift between a pastor and his bishop. It was a defiant position taken by a Hungarian Reformed priest, Laszlo Tokes, to directly disobey the order of his bishop, Laszlo Papp, who in turn was controlled by the Communist Party. When a totalitarian system established its reigh and authority over the church, it was easy for the Communist system to control denominaitions with authoritarian, hierarchical leadership structure. Why? Because they only had to control the bishops and all else - decisions made by the bishops - seemed a natural outcome of their own leadership structure.
Furthermore, the power of a bishop is not limited to appointments among the HRCR- although in our case, Keith clearly mentions that he would limie that authority to appointments only. How can we really limit the authority of a bishop to one single issue, apointing a pastor to a church? Both the church and the pastor have to be under the authority fo the bishop for that to happen. In the Hungarian Reformed Church in Romania, the authority of a bishop extends not only over the church and the pastors, but over the classis, issues, churhc polity, etc.
Is having a bishop against Reformed church order?
From a historical point of view, I am inclined to consider that a main tenet of the Reformation was to replace the hierarchy of the Roman Church. This effort was particularly clear among the Presbyterians in the British Isles.
Article 17 is an issue that may indicate the need for a simple solution: the bishop.
However, there are other problems that classis face, and I am not sure if a return to church hierarchy would help the CRCNA deal with Article 17.
Suggestions of a hierarchical system are often made in connection with other issues. At the classis level, an issue could be related to churches that are clearly declining. Article 17 may not be an issue because the pastor and the council are on the same page, and yet the classis may sense that there is nothing it can do because there is no authority of the classis over the council or the pastor.
Posted in: Ministry Evaluation Tools?
great resources, thanks!
Posted in: How Does Your Council Discuss the Synodical Study Committee Reports?
Andrew,
How did it go?
We haven't discussed it but we did other things suggested in the email we all received from the CRCNA, regarding clarity of our position on this issue in the bylaws and articles of incorporation.
I wrote a 4 page summary of the report, left many things out, but that was more FYI vs for discussions.
Grace, Daniel
Posted in: Compelling Reasons for Attendees to Become Members?
Some other reasons:
If they participate in activities maybe one could be a study on what it means to be Reformed, and within that framework you take an in depth look at church membership as a faith commitment. One way to emphasize the membership step is by looking at what some liturgical forms used in profession of faith include, such as commitment to the Scriptures, to love, to the church, but also denying of self, renouncing Satan, etc.
1. If they are baptized members, profession of faith is their response to God's promise in baptism. In the Reformation time baptism was a way of clarifying if this baby is a Catholic of a Protestant. Today the infant baptism initiates you into this covenant community and a response to God's promise is expected if the baptism is properly understood.
2. In membership - which is a profession of faith - they are confessing their faith in a confessional church. The CRCNA is a confessional church and by joining the church publicly and officially they commit to abide by the faith commitments of this denomination. It is a privilege to know where you church stands clearly on a few important faith doctrines, etc.
3. Becoming church members in a CRCNA also demands a responsibility from them - they make the same promises that the others in the covenant community have made. They will nurture others in faith and they would submit themselves to being nurtured and also held accountable for their faithfulness to God and the Word.
4. Reading the NT is a great way to look at how the church grows. In Acts the church is exploding and expanding. It happens so quick that in Acts 15 there is an issue the church has to solve, related to doctrine and requirements - and there is a synod gathered in Jerusalem. If they are interested in how the church works as institution, invite them to participate in a classis meeting, or to sit at synod - these are open meetings. Or, invite them to look over some of the CRCNA materials, synodical records, etc. For some these may be boring for others interesting.
5. Membership in the church in the USA is voluntary. You are a baptized member though, if you were baptized as infant - that's a great start. If not a baptized member, then the emphasis should be on baptism, as a sign of obedience to Christ - that can only be done - in a confessional church - in the worship service of the congregation. And that's another great connecting point. Ecclessiology is something that may be the last thing they want to look at, but that what they are weak in, in my view. Any way you can find to teach them about the church is going to help. Also, most of the former Christians in Western Europe started to doubt and disregard the need for the church. Today they don't go to church, maybe only 4%? and that's in most cases a state church, that is, not a voluntary church (like in the USA) where if you don't go and offer your worship and money the church closes its doors. The Eastern Orthodox Church is mainly the same - struggling with high nominalism - people don't go to church but the church continues to function as an institution. Here is not the same, the US is a voluntary church. If all people would follow their example - you can say that we assume they are right not to join - how would the church look like?
If they have already made profession of faith that should have granted them membership immediately.
If not - you can revisit their profession of faith. I'm interested to see what happens with them, what moves them. I'm praying for you and for them.
Grace, Daniel
Posted in: How Does Your Church Help People Develop Prayer Lives That Go Beyond Sundays?
Katy,
Are you working for the CRCNA? Where are you located?
In our classis there is a monthly meeting with the prayer coordinators for mutual support and encouragement. These are people praying for the pastors and the church leaders and they encourage the church to prayer via many creative ways, etc.
Grace, Daniel
Posted in: Do Training Materials Exist for Potential Deacons or Elders?
Harvey,
Have you checked the resources at Faith Alive?
Give them a call or order online - it's possible that they only take online orders. Also, you may call the classis Pastor for help with resources, or a church visitor - who is usually a pastor in your classis.
http://www.faithaliveresources.org/AdvancedSearch/Default.aspx?SearchTerm=elder
Grace, Daniel
Posted in: Can You Recommend Team Building Activities for Retreats?
Here is a list of them, we used the first one of the list.
https://www.huddle.com/blog/team-building-activities/
also - interesting ones here in part two:
https://www.huddle.com/blog/team-building-exercises/
However, you can keep Google-ing it and see what else you find.
Grace, Daniel
Posted in: Classis as a Corporation?
Our classis is incorporated because we have classis coordinators in various roles, such as diaconal, prayer, communicaitons, growth. In this case it's clearer to incorporate, I think.
Posted in: How Does Your Church Transition New Deacons Into Their Role?
In our area, West Michigan, we use the help of VIS Volunteers in Service, an organization established by CRC members to help and support deacons in their work.
VIS is helping CRC churches, and many benefit from their training, but now they're growing and helping all other churches that need help or support for the deacons.
Try calling them, here is their website, http://www.visgr.org - you can ask for Bernita if you need a name.
Grace, Daniel
Posted in: What methods or resources are you using at church to teach kids about stewardship?
We use Dave Ramsey for adults.
Dave also wrote a book, Smart Kids, co-authored with his daughter. It's helpful
Posted in: What suggestions do you have for an Alpha youth program?
I have been using Alpha for youth even with adults and they loved it. No one argued that it’s not for them or that it’s boring.
I found the tool helpful for discussions - it stops every 5-7 minutes for discussions and the question appears on the screen. That’s extremely helpful, along with the toolbox sheet with additional questions for the topic.
I have not used it with youth, but it’s being used also on campuses for college students and they are engaging the material.
In terms of content, many things can be argued, but overall you can use it if you want to teach the basic Christian doctrines and to help youth deepen their spiritual disciplines.
Posted in: Some Denominations Have Bishops; We Have Article 17
Keith Knight raises a complex issue, in my view, but if I look only at the issue mentioned in his title - I'm not sure the solution to the problem is limited to the two choices: Article 17 or a bishop.
What if there is another solution, option? What is the solution for churches in which the pastor and the council agree on all issues, yet in the opinion of the broader assembly - the classis - they both made the "wrong" decision?
What if we can we fix the current system, before thinknig of returning to a bishop solution? What if we can help a classis be more intentional in helping out with situations of crisis or disagreement, long before they become a 'done deal'? What if the pastor of the classis, church visitors, synodical deputies, Pastor Church Relations office, etc. get involved earlier in a conflict? What if we design and work on improving all of these available avenues for conflict resolution? What if the denominiation improves the system at this stage of involvement?
One of the most attractive features of the CRCNA is the equality among church offices, decons, elders and pastors, and that is emphasized by the horizontal understanding of the CRCNA organizational structure, versus a vertical, authoritarian, structure.
Being an immigrant from Romania, I would like to briefly refer to the situation of the Hungarian Reformed Church in Romania (HRCR), which has about 700,000 members, and the denomination is led by two bishops.
The HRCR is struggling with their own structure, in fact, one of the sparks of the popular uprising in December 1989 in Romania was caused by a rift between a pastor and his bishop. It was a defiant position taken by a Hungarian Reformed priest, Laszlo Tokes, to directly disobey the order of his bishop, Laszlo Papp, who in turn was controlled by the Communist Party. When a totalitarian system established its reigh and authority over the church, it was easy for the Communist system to control denominaitions with authoritarian, hierarchical leadership structure. Why? Because they only had to control the bishops and all else - decisions made by the bishops - seemed a natural outcome of their own leadership structure.
Furthermore, the power of a bishop is not limited to appointments among the HRCR- although in our case, Keith clearly mentions that he would limie that authority to appointments only. How can we really limit the authority of a bishop to one single issue, apointing a pastor to a church? Both the church and the pastor have to be under the authority fo the bishop for that to happen. In the Hungarian Reformed Church in Romania, the authority of a bishop extends not only over the church and the pastors, but over the classis, issues, churhc polity, etc.
Is having a bishop against Reformed church order?
From a historical point of view, I am inclined to consider that a main tenet of the Reformation was to replace the hierarchy of the Roman Church. This effort was particularly clear among the Presbyterians in the British Isles.
Article 17 is an issue that may indicate the need for a simple solution: the bishop.
However, there are other problems that classis face, and I am not sure if a return to church hierarchy would help the CRCNA deal with Article 17.
Suggestions of a hierarchical system are often made in connection with other issues. At the classis level, an issue could be related to churches that are clearly declining. Article 17 may not be an issue because the pastor and the council are on the same page, and yet the classis may sense that there is nothing it can do because there is no authority of the classis over the council or the pastor.