Vol 69 Issue 18

Mr. Wigger is an elder in the Protestant Reformed Church of Hudsonville, Michigan. We begin this issue of the church news with some catching up in the area of trios and calls being considered by various of our denomination’s pastors. First we report here that Rev. R. Dykstra declined the call he was considering to serve as pastor of the Southwest PRC of Grandville, MI. After that decline, the council of Southwest formed another trio, consisting of the Revs. R. Cammenga, J. Slopsema, and C. Terpstra. At a congregational meeting held on June 9, Southwest decided to extend a call...

May 12, 1993  Southwest Protestant Reformed Church Classis East met in regular session on Wednesday, May 12, 1993, at Southwest PRC. Each church was represented by two delegates. Business for this session was routine; classis adjourned before noon. First PRC brought, via its credentials, a request for classis to express itself on divorce and remarriage. This request was declared to be illegally before the classis. Classical appointments were granted to Southwest according to the following schedule: May 23 – Spriensma, May 30 – Gritters, June 13 – Woudenberg, June 20 – Bruinsma, June 27 – Kuiper, July 11 – Joostens,...

Rev. Cammenga is pastor of the Protestant Reformed Church of Loveland, Colorado. There is a strong movement in our day to legitimize the sin of homosexuality. The homosexuals (or gays, as they are called) have not only come out of the closet, but are demanding public acceptance of their homosexuality. They defend their life-style as an “alternative life-style.” And they insist that their homosexuality be respected as a legitimate “sexual preference.” A great deal of interest in the gay rights movement has been sparked recently on account of the adoption by the citizens of Colorado of Amendment 2 which prohibits...

Rev. VanOverloop is pastor of Bethel Protestant Reformed Church in Elk Grove Village, Illinois. The only way to do the work of evangelism and missions is by proclaiming a “limited” atonement! “But,” it is objected, “how can mission work be effective if you cannot say that Christ died for all?” “How can one press the claim of the Gospel upon an individual, if it cannot be said to that person that Jesus died for him?” For centuries these rhetorical questions have been stated as charges against the Reformed faith, as objections which are supposed to show the fallacy of this...

Rev. Miersma is pastor of the Protestant Reformed Chuch of New Zealand. As cold waters to a thirsty soul, so is good news from a far country.  Proverbs 25:25 Greetings from New Zealand! As we are refreshed by the good news which we receive from you, so we pray that likewise you may be refreshed in hearing form us. There are many thousands of miles separating us, a distance which seems to shrink with each letter that arrives in the mail box. Several years have gone by since you have heard from us in the form of a newsletter in...

Mrs. Lubbers is a wife and mother in the Protestant Reformed Church of South Holland, Illinois. “Called unto liberty” Galatians 5:13 Ranking right up there on any American’s priority list is freedom. Personal freedom, religious freedom, and societal freedom are considered to be not only a privilege but the right of each and every one of us. Our nation was forged on the anvil of freedom. In an eloquent statement, memorized by schoolchildren throughout this land, the Declaration of Independence reads: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their...

Nonsensical, Simplistic, Paranoid, Theologically Biased, Rationalistic Re “The Date is 1924” (Standard Bearer, May 15), I find it both distressing and annoying that the editor does the very thing for which he castigates other churches. It is ludicrous to suggest that there is one single date that accounts for all the woes of the Christian Reformed Church (CRC). I wish to God that the Protestant Reformed (PRC), Canadian Reformed, and others would stop this nonsense. I wish they would cease being so myopic and realize that church history is far more complicated than suggested by this editorial. Not every thing...

*This procedure was adopted by the 1993 synod of the PRC. 1. A minister from another denomination desiring entrance into the ministry of the Protestant Reformed Churches under Article 9 of the Church Order shall apply to the Protestant Reformed classis nearest to which he resides. a. The minister making application shall have publicly resigned his ministry and his membership in his former congregation and denomination. b. The minister making application shall meet with and seek the advice of a nearby Protestant Reformed consistory. 1) The consistory shall interview the minister sufficiently to make recommendations to the classis concerning the...

The Protestant Reformed Churches in America (PRC) met in their annual synod from June 8 through June 14. It was a larger synod than those of the past. Each classis sent five ministers and five ruling elders for a total of twenty delegates. The officers chosen by the delegates were Rev. James Slopsema, president; Rev. Ron VanOverloop, vice-president; Rev. Barry Gritters, first clerk; and Rev. Dale Kuiper, second clerk. Protests and Overtures Synod gave judgment on several overtures and protests. Among them were the following. Classis West proposed a procedure to be followed in receiving ministers from other denominations. Synod...

Rev. VanBaren is pastor of the Protestant Reformed Church of Hudsonville, Michigan. “Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: they shall prosper that love thee. Peace be within thy walls and prosperity within thy palaces. For my brethren and companions’ sakes, I will now say, Peace be within thee. Because of the house of the Lord our God I will seek thy good. “ Psalm 122:6-9 We live in a troubled world. We live among churches that face all kinds of problems. There is great apostasy. In these circumstances it is urgent that we pray for peace – the peace of...