News

A 15-year-old after-school ministry program in Wyoming, Mich., is launching new programs to serve students.

A pilot program has brought together an intergenerational group of graduate students, social justice and policing consultants and senior pastors to determine what to do before, during, and after crises of racial injustice arise.

Two cases—Our Lady of Guadalupe School v. Morrissey-Berru and St. James School v. Biel—that involve a “ministerial exemption” to civil rights protections will be decided on this month.

Berny Niemeyer, a church planter and pastor who lived for more than a decade with Alzheimer’s Disease, died May 20.

Jim Versluys, who served for 33 years as pastor to several Christian Reformed congregations, died May 15.

A gentle, wise servant of God, Bill DeJong died May 30 at age 90.

Thirty-three people signed a public post accusing author Chris Heuertz of  “spiritual and psychological abuse." The Christian publishing company Zondervan responded by halting a documentary project and suspending promotion of two of his books.

Religion News Service reports that a June 18 decision by the U.S. Supreme Court is receiving praise from faith groups across the religious spectrum. The ruling temporarily halts  efforts to rescind the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which grants legal protection to undocumented immigrants who were brought to the U.S. as children.

For the first time in its 163-year history, the Christian Reformed Church canceled its annual synod due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Council of Delegates met to deal with matters from the Agenda for Synod 2020 that couldn’t wait.

In a short service of lament, the CRC’s Council of Delegates recognized the pain and hurt of racism and heard black pastors call for more than this moment of recognition.

With a 28-15 vote the CRC’s Council of Delegates approved the Synod 2019-proposed change to the way money is collected for joint ministries.

The Council of Delegates, acting on behalf of Synod 2020, approved the candidacy of 36 men and women to serve in the Christian Reformed Church, sending them off in a special Zoom presentation.

Most CRC ministry leaders signed on to a statement about racism. Reginald Smith, director of diversity and former director of CRC Race Relations, declined to sign. The Council of Delegates debated whether to support the statement.

At its special June meeting, the CRC’s Council of Delegates decided to continue its work in governance restructure, despite a protest from two Ontario congregations.

The 25th anniversary of women’s ordination in the Christian Reformed Church will be recognized, though the proposal for 15 months of events was scaled back to the summer of 2021.

A June 15 ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court makes employment discrimination against LGBTQ persons illegal in all 50 states. Religion News Service reports it has important implications for religious organizations.

The first church in Munster, Ind., Munster Church celebrates 150 years of ministry this August.

From replacing school nutrition programs to large-scale food pantry distribution, three Christian Reformed churches in three cities are using community partnerships to help fill gaps.

The Grand Rapids Association of Pastors issued a statement and gathered pastors to show unity June 4. Christian Reformed clergy and seminary leaders are among those who signed the statement.

Classis Georgetown, a regional group of Christian Reformed congregations in western Michigan, has developed a pilot program to provide support to spouses of pastors within the classis.

Churches for Middle East Peace, a coalition that actively promotes a comprehensive resolution to conflicts in the Middle East, released a letter to Congress on June 2, “opposing unilateral annexation of the Occupied West Bank.”

Rev. Cecil Van Niejenhuis, co-director of the office of Pastor Church Resources since 2017, is retiring in June, the same month he turns 65.