Subscriptions and Subsidies: Numbers Spanning 160 Years

The Christian Reformed Church’s first denominational endeavors after its establishment were to publish a denominational magazine and open a theological training school, and for many years their financial fates were intertwined. The Banner of Truth (a monthly magazine in English) and De Wachter (in Dutch) each supported the school for almost 50 years, to the tune of hundreds of thousands of dollars. But as the tides of opinion and economics changed over the past century, The Banner has gone from supporting the CRC to the CRC supporting it. And that is about to end.

The CRC took the reading of its publications as a serious spiritual matter. While subscribers to the publications totaled about 20,000 families in 1930, the Publications Committee, which oversaw the two publications, lamented that at least a couple thousand families were reading neither. “Families in which no church paper is read cannot be families that live as part of the church, and in which love toward the church dwells and seeks its good,” wrote the committee. It said reading at least one of the two publications “is a matter of private soul care and the edification of the body of Christ.”

As members of the CRC became more Americanized, Banner subscriptions rose to 9,300 in 1926, while De Wachter’s had only 8,100, a trend that would continue until De Wachter was closed down in 1985.

While subscriptions lagged during the Great Depression, by the 1950s and 1960s readership was again on the rise. In 1962, there were 40,000 subscribers.

But by the mid-1970s, even with subscriptions at an all-time high, The Banner was operating at a deficit. The subscription price went from $5 to $6 per year, and advertising rates rose 10 percent. The denomination’s Board of Publications asked for support in the amount of $1.50 per family in 1975. Synod was reminded that, for years, The Banner had supported Calvin College and Seminary. After some study, synod approved support of $0.50 per family per year, eventually increasing it to $4 per family.

Subscription numbers began to rise again. In 1984 The Banner was once again self-sustaining as the subscriber rate broke the 50,000 mark, eventually rising to 51,960, the highest it would ever be.

But as the 1980s drew to a close, numbers were again sliding. In surveys, readers said the magazine came too often or it was too expensive. As divisions in the CRC increased over the issue of women in office, subscription rates dropped to 38,000, but a denominational survey showed that 70 percent of members were reading The Banner.

Ten years after The Banner had reached its all-time high, subscriber numbers had dropped by more than 16,000. The Board of Publications reported to synod that the primary reasons for this decline in subscribers was most likely due to a decreased interest in denominational matters, a continuing decline in interest in reading, and denominational division and schism. In 1997, the magazine moved from weekly to biweekly.

By 2004, with subscriptions languishing down near 21,000, synod made the decision to change from a subscription-based magazine to one that would be sent to every member, paid for by the denominational budget. In 2005, it became a monthly magazine.

Instead of counting subscriptions, The Banner was now counting issues printed. In 2006, it sent out over 100,000. Reader surveys showed an increase in readership with 80 percent either very or somewhat satisfied. Success was not to last, at least measured by printed copies. In 2017, it was down to 83,500, even as surveys showed high reader satisfaction. Annual fundraising continued to raise more funds.

In 2011, The Banner launched its website and was soon posting fresh news and features each week. In 2018, even as print numbers went down, digital numbers climbed. Three thousand readers were receiving the weekly email update and the website was averaging 80,000 pageviews per month. That year TheBanner’s app was launched, reaching 8,000 pageviews each month.

In 2025, the print run was down to 60,000 copies, but website pageviews reached 85,000 per month, the app pageviews rose to 10,000 per month, and more than 15,000 people were signed up to receive the weekly email update.

The Council of Delegates of the CRC informed Synod 2025 that it would require The Banner to once again become self-sustaining, no longer receiving denominational financial support. It will still be sent to every household.

Starting in 2026, its 160th birthday, the print magazine will be published six times per year, but its online presence will continue its robust activity.