Classis East met in regular session on Wednesday, May 14, 1986 at Holland. Each church was represented by two delegates. Rev. M. Joostens was the chair of this session. The main item of business at this meeting was the consideration of an appeal from a brother who had protested a consistory’s decision concerning the remarriage of a divorced person. The consistory’s position (summarized) was that since the person in question had been married to a divorced person, the marriage was no marriage at all but an adulterous relationship. The only legitimate marriage is the first marriage; any other “marriages,” even...

THE GREAT REVERSAL, Ethics and the New Testament, by Allen Verhey; Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1984; 246 pp., $13.95 (paper). (Reviewed by Prof. H. Hanko) It does not come as a surprise that Verhey, in his analysis of the ethics of the New Testament, adopts a higher critical approach, because he has made his higher critical views public for several years. This, of course, makes the book of little value to one who receives the Scriptures as God’s infallible rule for faith and life. The blurb accompanying the book reads: There is no denying, writes Allen Verhey, that churches...

Gise J. Van Baren is pastor of the Protestant Reformed Church of Hudsonville, Michigan. It was in August of 1981 that additional help was obtained for Alice. Though each family member had a day of the week to assist, that no longer was sufficient. The demands on John’s family were becoming too great again. So a nurse was obtained who could come two days a week. The nurse was Barb—one could not have asked for a better—and Alice enjoyed her help and presence (though at first she refused to concede a need for a nurse). Often it was Barb who...

Herman C. Hanko is professor of Church History and New Testament in the Protestant Reformed Seminary. Contraception has become so common that the whole practice is hardly called into question any more. Even in the one denomination which forbids the use of contraception, the Roman Catholic Church, over half of the members are reported to practice it. For many years it has been hailed as a major medical breakthrough, which will succeed in curbing the earth’s population. It has been rigorously promoted as a valuable tool of population control. The doomsayers who have bombarded us with propaganda about terrible times...

(Kuyper has been talking about the role which the magistrate must take in the work of church reformation. In the last paragraph he spoke vehemently against Article 36 of our Belgic Confession which gives to the magistrate the right to exterminate heresy. Although Kuyper does not deny that the magistrate is called to enforce both tables of the law, he insists that the magistrate has not the right to punish the heretic with capital punishment.) 63. Concerning Reformations Which Already Exist and Their Distinct Character. Because the Reformation of the sixteenth century is usually considered to be the Reformation, many live under...

The 46th annual Protestant Reformed Young People’s Convention, hosted by the young people of South Holland, IL will be held from Monday, July 28, through Friday morning, August 1, in South Holland and on the campus of Valparaiso University, in Valparaiso, IN. All Conventioneers will register at the Protestant Reformed Church in South Holland (16511 South Park Ave.) on Monday, from 12:00 PM to 4:00 PM. The first speech will be given in the auditorium of the Protestant Reformed Church in South Holland. Activities are planned in the area for the evening. The young people will spend the night in...

Mr. De Graaf was one of the organizers of Alive ’85. (In response to two, separate recently published articles in The Standard Bearer, by Professor Decker and the Editor, Rev. Hoeksema). Much has been said in this publication about ALIVE ’85, the evangelistic crusade held in September of 1985, which was sponsored by 146 churches of which 104 were Reformed or Christian Reformed. As chairman of the ALIVE ’85 committee, I would like to address some of the concerns expressed by Professor Decker and Rev. Hoeksema. First, Dr. John Guest, the evangelist of ALIVE ’85, confirmed in writing prior to his...

Robert D. Decker is professor of New Testament and Practical Theology in the Protestant Reformed Seminary. The great joy of a minister of the gospel is not easy. In fact, it is very difficult. The ministry involves a great deal of hard work. Sermon preparation takes much time and effort. To prepare two good sermons each week is no small task. Catechism classes must be taught and Bible study societies must be led. There are various pastoral labors which must be done: visiting the sick, comforting the sorrowing, family visitation, etc. The minister is called upon to chair consistory meetings, serve on...

For the delegates to synod the Seminary Graduation Program on Tuesday evening, June 17, was a refreshing change of pace; and for the large audience, in which all the area churches were represented and which more than filled the auditorium of First Church, it was a most enjoyable evening. For the graduates, of course, this evening marked the achievement of the goal for which they had been striving for several years. There were four graduates: from our own churches, Messrs. Russell Dykstra, Steven Key, and Charles Terpstra, who received a regular diploma, and who were the first graduates from our...

This year’s synod met in the beautiful and commodious new building of the First Protestant Reformed Church of Grand Rapids. By decision of Synod of 1985, the synod this year was scheduled to convene on Tuesday, June 10, which implied that the pre-synodical service, under the auspices of First Church, fell on Monday evening. The Rev. J. Kortering, president of last year’s synod, led this service; his sermon, based on Joshua 1:8, 9, will be included in the printed Acts. On Tuesday morning synod convened. The officers elected were: Rev. D. Engelsma, president; Rev. J. Slopsema, vice president; Rev. B. Gritters,...