May 2011
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
Jihad: What Does the Qur’an Really Say?
Putting our questions directly to a Muslim scholarREAD MOREZacharia al Khatib was studying at the University of Alberta while Tom Oosterhuis was the Christian Reformed chaplain there. Afte
Mash’Allah: Whatever the Will of God
Islam in the context of its desert homeREAD MOREWhen my wife and I arrived in Kuwait a few years ago, we thought we’d brought with us an informed perspective on the Middle East
Our Fundamental Identity
An adoptive father and a daughter of Chinese immigrants reflect on the significance of baptism.READ MOREAbout two years ago, while driving to a preaching engagement in a Christian Reformed congregation that had invited me for the first time
The Hardest Death of All
The death of a child stands alone on the scale of heartbreak.READ MOREDeath is an inevitable part of life. Every death hurts.
News
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Operating a preschool wasn’t part of the plan, but for Hope Community CRC, unexpected blessings resulted.
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Two California churches build prefab houses in the church parking lot before delivering them to Mexico.
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Like Cinderella, the musicians who jam at The Bridge Community Christian Reformed Church all have to be home before curfew.
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Proposed covenant is a new way for officebearers to affirm the CRC’s doctrinal standards, if Synod 2011 approves it.
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The denomination’s Board of Trustees announced that Rev. Gerard Dykstra has resigned for personal and family reasons.
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A Fort Lauderdale congregation takes multiple trips to help Haiti.
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CRC members in Edmonton volunteer to prepare tax returns for people with low income.
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Orland Park CRC assembled 2,000 school supply packs for children in Haiti.
In Memoriam: Rev. Elton Piersma
March 17, 1927 — February 8, 2011READ MORERev.
In Memoriam: Rev. Wesley Timmer
September 23, 1935 — February 6, 2011READ MORERev.
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Bonnie Nicholas has started as interim director of the denomination’s Safe Church ministry.
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Houston Christian School brought home the provincial girls’ basketball title.
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Whitinsville Christian School brings home the trophy.
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Discovery CRC has adopted a block near their church. They’ll donate food, host events, and pray for the community.
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A Grand Rapids, Mich., church used mini-grants to initiate unique ministries.
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Changes to pension fund rules in Canada mean ministers must work longer and churches pay more.
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Rev. Rick Admiraal’s first pastoral charge will find him behind bars in Iowa.
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Two or three times each year, Christian Reformed churches send representatives to classis, a regional grouping of churches.
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Caleb Vandenberg placed first in Ontario and third in Canada for his solution to sanitation issues in Ethiopia.
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Sunnyside Christian High won the state championship.
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Kari and Chad Bonnema gave birth to their own adopted twins through embryo adoption.
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A recent conference for youth workers was about making time for God.
Columns
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According to Sir Francis Bacon, “There is no excellent beauty that hath not some strangeness in the proportion.” And accor
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Relationships
Q. I’m a mother raising three teenage boys on my own and I’m totally overwhelmed.
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Christian parents want their children to love God and to grow in faith. This parenting h
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Gracious Lutherans
When I saw the April Banner, I was pleased to see the Christus Rex from the chapel of Valpara
Love Wins?
Taking a look at Rob Bell’s latest bookREAD MOREFull disclosure: to date, I have embraced all that I’ve read from Rob Bell.
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A former drug addict testifies to God’s faithfulness.
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According to Xinran, the question most often asked by Chinese girls adopted into Western families is “Why didn’t my Chines
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“There’s only one you in this great big world; make it a better place.” “If you make a wrong turn, circle back
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A father believed his son was spending too much time playing computer games.
Return to Wonder
Our world is thick with miracles.READ MOREThroughout history, human beings have been struck by the wonder of mysteries we do not fully understand.
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Have you ever been caught outside in a thunderstorm? Were you afraid you’d get struck by lightning or hit by a falling tree?
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Opus Dei founder Josemaría Escrivá became a priest during the early rumblings of the Spanish Civil War.
True Dialogue
Reminding ourselves how to speak politely—especially when it comes to controversial topics.READ MOREIt won’t be a quiet week in Bannerland.
U.S. Budget Cuts Could Harm Poor
U.S. budget cuts may result in much less help for people who have low incomes.READ MOREI attended a meeting recently in Washington, D.C., that left me deeply disturbed.
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Great for your next church or youth retreat, this website offers 2,000 activities including group games, fun skits, silly camp songs,
Why Give?
A pessimist’s paradoxREAD MOREAt a time when budgets have been pruned and purse strings tightened, the outpouring of generosity following Haiti’s devastating
Our Shared Ministry
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Leanne Talen Geisterfer and a few others climbed carefully down the slippery side of a hill in Nueva Suyapa, Honduras, using old tires
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Because Synod 2012 has been requested to adopt the Belhar Confession as a fourth confession for the Christian Reformed Church, CRC off
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Habib, a 40-year-old teacher (name changed to protect his identity), heard about Jesus Christ for the first time on Back to God Minist
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As a church deacon and a theology student, Basona Areng was looking for something to deepen her leadership skills.
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Rev.
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Luke Leisman fell in love with astronomy while playing pond hockey under starry skies.
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Christian Reformed Church pastors who have started new churches across North America and worldwide are applauding the formation of the
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Have you noticed how excited new parents are when a child speaks his or her first words?
