Ben Wigger is an elder in the Protestant Reformed Church of Hudsonville, Michigan. First, another in our series of church profiles. The Protestant Reformed Church of Kalamazoo, Michigan, was organized in 1927, following a break with the Rev. Danhof and his congregation. At first there were eleven families; and they held their first services in the Y.M.C.A., then in a store building, and later in a duplex, which also served as a parsonage. Kalamazoo’s first pastor was Rev. Wm. Verhil, who came in 1932. He was followed by Rev. J.C. Kooistra, and by Rev. H. Veldman in 1941. During these...

January 13, 1988  Classis East met in regular session on Wednesday, January 13, 1988 at the First Protestant Reformed Church, Grand Rapids, Michigan. All the churches were represented by two delegates. Rev. B. Woudenberg was the chairman for this session. Classis received reports from its stated clerk, its classical committee which included the submission of a Ministerial Certificate of Dismissal and Testimonial for Rev. R. Miersma who is now in New Zealand, and from the church visitors.  Faith Church requested classical appointments for its evening service (Rev. Bekkering, it was reported will occupy the pulpit for the morning service.) The...

The NIV (The Making of a Contemporary Translation), Kenneth L. Barker, Editor; Grand Rapids, Michigan, Zondervan Publishing Co. (Academic Books); 177 pp. (paper). [Reviewed by Prof. H.C. Hoeksema] This little book is a memorial volume, written in memory of the late Dr. Edwin H. Palmer, who was executive secretary of the NIV Committee on Bible Translation. Dr. Palmer died on September 16, 1980. The authors of the various chapters of this book are fourteen of the original translators of the NIV, including Kenneth Barker, the editor. The nature of the book is apologetic, i.e., it is an explanation of various...

Ronald H. Hanko is pastor of Trinity Protestant Reformed Church, Houston, Texas. 2. The characteristics of Christ’s human nature. Because of various errors that have arisen in the history of the church there are certain characteristics of Christ’s human nature that have been emphasized in church doctrine. These are worth our study, not just because of the errors they contradict, but because each of them helps us understand the wonder and significance of Christ’s humanity for our salvation. There are usually five of these characteristics or attributes that are given, the reality, completeness, weakness, sinlessness, and centrality of Christ’s human...

Herman C. Hanko is professor of Church History and New Testament in the Protestant Reformed Seminary. The problem of euthanasia is a difficult and complex one, partly because the term is used for so many different procedures and under so many different circumstances. Generally speaking, the term can refer: to withholding of that which is necessary to sustain life. But one can withhold life support equipment such as respirators or heart-lung machines; one can even withhold food and water, whether given by mouth or given intravenously. That is one kind of euthanasia, usually called. passive euthanasia. But there is another...

John A. Heys is a minister emeritus in the Protestant Reformed Churches. Of Boaz we read in Ruth 4:13 that he “took Ruth, and she was his wife.” And it is interesting to note the fact that the Hebrew word here translated as “take” is in our King James Version of the Bible translated as “take away” no less than 793 times. That is about four times as often as it is translated simply as take, receive, fetch, bring, or several other words which are used once or twice in a slightly different way. It certainly cannot be denied that Boaz took...

Gise J. Van Baren is pastor of the Protestant Reformed Church of Hudsonville, Michigan. “‘The Reverend’s’ last stand” An interesting defence of the title “Reverend” in addressing the minister of the Word is presented in the Calvinist Contact, Sept. 25, 1987, by Rev. Carl D. Tuyl (the periodical explains: “Pastor Carl is a reverend in the First Christian Reformed Church of Kingston, Ontario). There is among us of late a sort of linguistically reformatory movement which attempts to banish the title “reverend” from ecclesiastical vocabulary. Some grammatically enlightened persons in our midst have discovered that “reverend” is an adjective that requires...

Ronald L. Cammenga is pastor of the Protestant Reformed Church of Loveland, Colorado. “The lawful calling of those who have not been previously in office, consists: First, in the ELECTION by the consistory and the deacons, after preceding prayers, with due observance of the regulations established by the consistory for this purpose, and of the ecclesiastical ordinance, that only those can for the first time be called to the ministry of the Word who have been declared eligible by the churches, according to the rule in this matter; and furthermore with the advice of classis or of the counselor appointed...

George C. Lubbers is a minister emeritus in the Protestant Reformed Churches. The LORD, the high and lofty God, continues to speak in His controversy with His people, whom He addresses as “my people”. Let us continue to listen attentively to the LORD’S earnest plea as established in justice and mercy. The verse reads: “O my people, remember now what Balak king of Moab consulted, and what Balaam the son of Beor answered him from Shittim to Gilgal; that ye may know the righteousness of the LORD,” Micah 6:5. When we study this text, we notice that the following elements call...

In “Voices” (The Banner, December 28, 1987) there appears an exchange between the Rev. Rein Leestma, a Christian Reformed minister in Lynwood, Illinois, and Dr. Richard R. De Ridder, of Calvin Seminary. It concerns the old questions in the area of Reformed church government, whether the Christian Reformed denomination is a federation of churches (as Leestma maintains) or constitutes one church (as De Ridder maintains, and as the singular name of the denomination, Christian Reformed Church, would seem to indicate). It is not my intention to enter into the dispute between Leestma and De Ridder, except to make two remarks: 1) It...