The Banner

1924 – 2005

1917 - 2005

Award shows frustrate me.

Imagine a major national television network that features a prime-time gospel presentation every week. Unbelievable? Nope.

I recently traveled with CRWRC worker Ary Vreeken from Niamey, Niger, to a village called Bangiri about two hours away.

Why don’t you do a story about a boy who is blind?”

You’re gonna be okay.”

A dear person in your congregation is diagnosed with cancer. Another is going through a divorce.

Higher Education Before the Face of God

Consciously or unconsciously, we all live our lives coram deo—“before the

Last month I introduced this column by telling you that August would usher in major transitions in denominational leadership.

Also known as “the manse.” I lived in three of them—church-owned housing. What a joy! No taxes to pay. No repairs.

When a bride and groom say wedding vows and sign a marriage certificate, they make their love and commitment to each other official.

Write On!

An astute third-grader once asked me, “Do you ever wonder if life is real?

Twelve years ago my wife, Coby, and I found ourselves facing some of the most significant crossroads and challenges of our lives.

When we decided to send our three children to a Christian day school, we weren’t operating under the influence of “CRC auto-

Q. An article in the March 2005 Banner (p.

The president of the university where I worked as a campus minister once told me about a call he received from an irate parent:

Have you ever written a spiritual autobiography? You know, a story about your own faith journey.

Apology Corrected

I read with interest your “Apology Accepted” story in the July 2005 Banner.

Synod 2005 approved a proposal for the orderly exchange of ministers between the Christian Reformed Church and the Reformed Church in A

One summer night in the late 1950s, when church was a more serious, formal occasion and the "Reverends" wore black tie and tails when pr