“What message would you have us take of this island?” I asked. The answer: “That slavery happened, and that it must never happen again.”
Features
Dust and the Divine
What Lent Can Teach Us About Caring for CreationHumans are both dust and reflections of the divine. Two sacred, God-given identities meant to sit side by side, each meant to inform and contextualize the other. But what happens when the balance is thrown out of whack?
They Disagreed Well
What the CRC Can Learn From a Standout Synodical CommitteeCommittee 7 gave me a glimpse into a beautiful church: the Christian Reformed Church. These are people who hold a high view of Scripture and the confessions. These are people who love Jesus. They recognized that they have often failed to love as Jesus has called them to love, and by God’s grace they want to do better.
Every person’s journey toward healing is different. But church communities can have a significant impact on how the trauma from abuse affects a survivor.
What happens when our expectations turn to disappointment? When the predictable patterns of the past cease, like a clock with dead batteries? When somber silence replaces the upbeat tunes and ticking?
Here are five ways to delve into the icy months and glean the most reward and meaning out of the season even as we look forward to spring.
What if, instead of being caught up in hyperpartisanship, the CRC tried to provide an alternative to polarization and fragmentation in the church, society, and politics?
Classical and denominational work can be demanding, but it is another important part of ministry, several pastors agreed.
As Christian Reformed folk Americanized and Canadianized, they became part of networks of North American Christianity.
If we do not respect the historical, cultural, and linguistic differences between us and Scripture, we are in danger of distorting whatever insights we might get out of it
What enduring loves have held the CRC together more often than not over the past century and a half?
I think we all have something we’re personally moving toward, our own personal goals and pursuits—until we meet Jesus.
Clearly, the face of the once-primarily Dutch denomination is in transition. But becoming more diverse has not been easy.
It takes the kind of people who are willing to roll up their sleeves and do the dirty work of keeping sheep alive.
This kind of community might be seen as unusual or even dangerous to many of us who are used to four walls and a fence.
The most important command in the Bible, according to Jesus, begins with the charge to listen up.
The conflict over sexuality in the CRC is a symptom of deeper cultural divisions.
Building Bridges
CRC’s First Long-term African American Missionary Serves in LiberiaPritchard asked God if she could be an agent of reconciliation between Africans and African Americans.
So many people in our culture live with deep regret and defeat rather than hope and contentment and joy.
From his lofty perch on the hill called Golgotha, the man on the cross could make out a mob heading his way.
Author and art collector Forrest Fenn carefully filled a small, ornate box with gold coins, gold nuggets, jewelry, precious gemstones, and other exotic artifacts. Then he hid the box somewhere in the Rocky Mountains.
If the person you are offering care to recognizes and trusts your intentions, they are likely to receive and respond.
Intergenerational churches are those that are intentional about bringing different generations together in a mutual, influential relationship so that they can achieve common goals.
If sensuality was an obstacle in 2006, it’s a crisis now. And not just for men. This also is an issue for women.