The Banner

Eastern Avenue Christian Reformed Church rejected Jim Lucas in 1998, declining to offer a call for his ministry to LGBTQ people. In May 2022 the congregation formally apologized and welcomed Lucas home.

Known for his authenticity and passion for justice, pastor and missionary Gerald Hogeterp died June 16 at age 80.

The cultural enrichment committee of Wyoming, Mich., was looking for a place for the city to hold its annual Juneteenth celebration. Dana Knight, a committee member, also found a new church home.

For one Iowa church, a Vital Worship grant started a congregation-wide initiative to expand Sunday worship to the other six days of the week.

Among the most notable phenomena we have encountered across the churches we visited was a conspicuous absence of hospitality.

We have all been adopted into the family of God. But my experiences have given me a deeper understanding of that reality.

In June 2021 Pastor Joel Ringma put out a video request to his Terrace (B.C.) Christian Reformed Church community: consider registering as a living donor for a congregant who needs a kidney. One year later Ringma was the match undergoing surgery along with recipient Chad MacDonald, now recovering.

Alan Noble explores how the simple truth that we belong to God reframes the way we understand ourselves, our families, our society, and God.

Brandon Heath’s new pop album includes the Top 10 hit “See Me Through It.”

Christian publishers are catching up in efforts to publish fiction by BIPOC authors.

In this book, Rebekah Eklund explores how the Beatitudes have affected readers across differing eras and contexts.

A drifter investigates a series of murders in a small town and uncovers a conspiracy.

With compassion and insight, Five Little Indians chronicles the desperate quest of these residential school survivors to come to terms with their past and, ultimately, find a way forward.

A church plant grown out of Redeemer CRC in Sarnia, Ont., is testing out what a church can look like when it’s only online.

What goes into reporting from synod? Glad you asked!

As I look back on my time as executive director of the CRCNA, it seems improbable that so much has happened in the life of our church and denomination in such a short time (February 2020 to June 2022).

Delegates and advisers to Synod 2022 were surprised when they returned to their places on the plenary floor after one break.

The earth is filled with hills, valleys, and mountain ranges that are all uniquely different.

Online dating. Dating apps. Texting. Social media. Endless swiping in search of forever love. It seems like the more ways technology offers to "connect" us, the less connected we actually are.

Comprising Thom Yorke and his longtime Radiohead-bandmate and Academy Award-nominated composer Jonny Greenwood as well as the drummer Tom Skinner, The Smile releases their debut album.

A pastor and chaplain who had a passion for meeting people and spreading the gospel, John Van Hemert died May 26 at age 85.

John Malestein, a distinguished Calvin Theological Seminary alumnus, “lifted up Jesus Christ in everything.” He died May 31 at age 98.

Members of the denomination young and old have concerns about our future.