April 2024
Download a full pdf of this issue below or find links to every feature, news, column, review, and Our Shared Ministry article included in this edition. Not the date you wanted? Find issues back to January 2016 here or use the search function at the top to find articles going back to 2005. To find something even older, The Banner archives are maintained at Calvin College's Hekman Library.
Features
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It is a true gift to be able to carry these songs with us! As I reflect on the songs that have shaped me, I find that I often turn to them to comfort me or to lift me up when I need to be reminded of something.
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Wanting to be big without the leading and loving presence of the Holy Spirit is a kind of sickness, an addiction that can lead to ruin.
News
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The Canada Ministry Board of the Christian Reformed Church in North America announced its transitional executive director has accepted the role of executive director.
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Calvin University’s Board of Trustees announced the resignation of president Wiebe Boer after a report alleging “Boer engaged in unwelcome and inappropriate communication and attention toward a non-student member of the campus community.”
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Meeting by video conference Feb. 14-16, the Council of Delegates of the Christian Reformed Church took several actions in its role as the interim committee of synod.
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Once a year, members of the Christian Reformed Church in North America are asked to respond to the denomination's annual survey covering things from giving and diaconal work to prayer and spiritual disciplines.
In Memoriam: Rev. Allan Henry Jongsma
1933-2024READ MOREA kind and approachable pastor known for his passionate preaching and pastoral heart, Allan Jongsma died Feb. 2. He was 90.
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A “faithful, honorable, and dependable man of God,” Dick Duifhuis died May 22, 2023. He was 86.
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A Korean Christian Reformed congregation reaches out to the Orlando, Fla., community with a K-pop contest, dance classes, language instruction, and more.
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More than 20 years ago a downsizing parishioner, a willing deacon, and another congregation seeing a need helped to launch an ongoing furniture ministry at Covenant Christian Reformed Church in Cutlerville, Mich.
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Adeara Recovery Centre in Edmonton, Alta., is unique in that city for allowing women to have their children with them on their recovery journey.
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Launched Feb. 1, the Better Together Project, has funding from the Lilly Endowment and a three-year plan to “build unity and relationship” in missional cohorts.
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The city of Waupun, Wisc., launched an ice sculpture festival this year. First Christian Reformed Church in Waupun joined four Christian organizations to bless their neighbors during the community event.
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한인 기독교 개혁 교회는 K-팝 콘테스트, 댄스 수업, 언어 교육 등을 통해 플로리다주 올랜도 지역 사회에 다가가고 있습니다.
Columns
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The Banner’s children’s book reviewer discovers a gem of faith and light for 8- to 12-year-old readers that’s perfect for fans of Anne of Green Gables.
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I’ve heard Christians say that COVID vaccines are “against their religion.” What do they mean? Does the Christian Reformed Church have a position?
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My time as a campus minister taught me that one of the best tools we have to deal with people’s spiritual doubts is patience.
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Mi tiempo como ministro universitario me enseñó que una de las mejores herramientas que tenemos para tratar las dudas espirituales de la gente es la paciencia.
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They demolished the Christian school building next door to our church.
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We continue to fight with our teenagers about being on their phones when we’re together. My husband’s constant glancing at his phone isn’t helping. Is this just a modern problem I need to learn to live with?
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Is it wrong to continue asking God for something over and over again? Is it a sign that the answer is “no” if you haven’t yet received it?
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If you watch closely, you can see many moments of joy in creation. Sometimes creation brings us joy, and sometimes you can see joy happening for other parts of creation.
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See some of our top picks for reading and watching for April 2024.
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At the beginning of the semester, we were all hesitant to speak up, but by the end of the semester everyone was chiming in about what they did or didn’t like.
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Although it has been so influential in the West, Christianity is not a Western religion. The gospel of Jesus was preached in Africa and Asia before Europe and North America.
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See how readers responded to recent Banner issues, articles, and columns.
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This summer I experienced a mental health crisis.
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As Christians, we believe there is a sinful nature inside us that disrupts our relationship with God and other people—and that’s not the way it’s supposed to be.
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Each one, with its unique shape and color, played a vital role in the grand design we were creating.
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I'm in a job that I never planned to be doing. I feel I should be thankful to have a job, but I'm not really sure how I feel about it or whether I should do anything about it.
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캠퍼스 목사로 사역하며 깨달은 것은, 사람들의 영적 의심에 대처하는 가장 효과적인 방법 중 하나가 인내심이라는 것입니다.
Our Shared Ministry
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Participants share about a 10-month collaborative exploration of what it truly means to be a healthy multicultural church.
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A través de los ojos de los inmigrantes y de las personas de diversos orígenes étnicos, Dios nos brinda un espejo y un lente para vernos como realmente somos.
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Through the eyes of immigrants and people of diverse ethnic backgrounds, God gives us a mirror and a lens to see ourselves as we truly are.
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The United Nations estimates that children with disabilities are 24 percent more likely to experience physical abuse and neglect than those without.
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Every week, you’ll find Susan Van Geest’s art class students from Avail Academy in Edina, Minn., outside taking pictures.
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God is weaving together the stories of a former missionary family, a pastor from Haiti, and local Christian Reformed churches into a tapestry that can welcome and empower new Haitian communities in North America.
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이민자들과 다양한 인종 배경을 가진 사람들의 시각을 통해, 하나님께서는 우리가 진정 누구인지를 볼 수 있는 거울과 렌즈를 제공하십니다.
