Rebecca Konyndyk DeYoung spoke at the 2021 January Series: “Sin is not a game,” she said, “and deep down we know it.”
As cases of COVID-19, the respiratory disease caused by a novel coronavirus first recognized in Wuhan, China in December 2019, grow in North America, ongoing news is expected from the Christian Reformed Church's congregations and ministries. These are stories connected to the virus, disease, and public health response.
- READ MORE
- READ MORE
Nearly half of white evangelicals in the U.S. (49%) said their faith grew stronger due to the coronavirus outbreak—more than any other group, according to a new Pew Research survey.
- READ MORE
The World Communion of Reformed Churches (WCRC), an ecumenical group to which the Christian Reformed Church of North America belongs, is calling its Communion members into what it calls a discernment process over the COVID-19 pandemic.
- READ MORE
Libertas Christian School made headlines this past November for maintaining a staunch opposition to statewide mask mandates in Michigan.
- READ MORE
The Banner shares a glimpse of the experience of three women, in New York and in British Columbia, serving in essential health services through the pandemic.
- READ MORE
Campus ministers serving universities through the COVID-19 pandemic have an opportunity to share hope in meaningful ways with a world asking a lot of questions.
- READ MORE
The Canadian Council of Churches, the Canadian Interfaith Conversation, and the Canadian Multifaith Federation co-hosted a discussion Dec. 3, welcoming Justin Trudeau to talk about the value of faith communities in a time of pandemic.
- READ MORE
Some Christian colleges and universities are reporting record enrollment this past term, despite delivering education in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.
- READ MORE
In Ontario and in British Columbia, Friendship Ministry groups—those designed to bring friendship to adults of varying abilities—have made special connections despite pandemic gathering restrictions.
- READ MORE
The Gathering Place, a community outreach founded by three Thunder Bay, Ont., Christian Reformed congregations 35 years ago, continues to serve the community, with some adaptations to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
- READ MORE
Prompted by COVID-19 to worship outdoors or online, churches are seeing God move in new spaces. A pastor in New York City and in Grimsby, Ont., shared experiences with The Banner.
- READ MORE
On Thanksgiving, the Elgersma family from Community Church of Richmond Hill, Ont., helped to make a longstanding community dinner tradition ‘to-go’ for 2020. The outreach will now continue as a monthly meal-making event.
- READ MORE
Global Coffee Break, a small group Bible study ministry, turned 50 in 2020 but the coronavirus pandemic put the celebration of that milestone on hold.
- READ MORE
In the COVID era, I have noticed Christians to be deeply divided about a matter that just one year ago would have seemed very trivial: wearing masks.
- READ MORE
As educators face unexpected challenges in the COVID-19 pandemic, members of River Rock Community Church in Rockford, Mich., are ‘adopting’ teachers at two nearby elementary schools to offer monthly encouragement.
- READ MORE
Hope Community Church in Riverside, Calif., has been hosting parking lot worship services, with the help of an FM transmitter, in order to stay connected in person while maintaining a healthy distance.
- READ MORE
When the Grand Rapids Public Schools opened with only online learning for the first nine weeks of this academic year, First Christian Reformed Church in Grand Rapids, Mich., decided to support students in their community with an in-person daily homework club.
- READ MORE
Bethel CRC and Wolf Creek Community Church, two Christian Reformed congregations in Lacombe, Alta., hosted a one-day immersive Bible story experience to replace their usual Vacation Bible School during the COVID-19 pandemic.
- READ MORE
Like a scratched record album, her life is stuck on “repeat” and can only move forward when the needle is bumped, and we remind her of the events of the past.
- READ MORE
Things were a little different this year.
- READ MORE
While closed church buildings affected the typical distribution of print material in this COVID-19 time, one northern B.C. pastor had a solution. As an avid cyclist, Joel Ringma decided to deliver the magazines himself.
- READ MORE
Knowing that worship leaders and churches would be scrambling to meet the needs of their congregants, the group tabled its agenda and began to create resources.
- READ MORE
Denominational ministries of the Christian Reformed Church in North America have received help from U.S. and Canadian government grant and loan programs amid COVID-19 economic struggles.
- READ MORE
Instead of singing to fans on European stages this spring and summer, singer Ann Vriend in Edmonton, Alta., is building community from her front-porch stage every Sunday afternoon.