As the Council of Delegates of the Christian Reformed Church met May 6 to 8 in Grand Rapids, Mich., the 60-member ecclesiastical board processed several items for the denomination’s upcoming synod (annual general assembly), heard about new pledges towards ministry shares, met and approved three candidates for staff positions—editor-in-chief of The Banner, director of ReFrame Ministries, and director of Thrive—and said goodbye to 10 members finishing their terms.
The Council of Delegates, made up of delegates from each of the CRC’s 49 classes (regional assemblies) and up to 10 at-large delegates, serves synod in between meetings of synod. It typically meets three times each year.
Departing Members, New Appointments
Council of Delegates members are appointed by synod to three-year terms and may serve up to two consecutive terms. Outgoing members at the May meeting included Steve Bussis (Classis Yellowstone), Jeff Dykema (Arizona), and Bonnie Zigterman (Northern Illinois), who each served one term, and Rachel Bouwkamp (Grandville), Thomas Byma (Greater Los Angeles), Jill Feikema (Illiana), Tabitha Manuelito (Red Mesa), Drew Sweetman (Muskegon), Michael Ten Haken (U.S.-at-large), and Melissa Van Dyke (Canada at-large), who have each served two.
Elected as officers for the coming fiscal year are chair Andre VanRyk (B.C. South-East), vice chair Chuck Adams (Wisconsin), secretary Lloyd Hemstreet (Zeeland), and treasurer Peter Meeveld (Huron).
The Council recommended 12 nominees to synod to be appointed for a first term and 10 continuing members to be appointed for a second term. The Council discussed a change in process for recommending members to a second term, which will, if approved by synod, involve evaluation by classis, or the Council of Delegates’ executive committee in the case of at-large members, before the nominee is recommended to synod for re-appointment.
Ministry Shares
The Council gave thanks for a $600,000 increase in received pledges from U.S. member congregations of the Christian Reformed Church since February, which allowed for a budget adjustment, directing $408,000 toward Resonate Global Mission for the next fiscal year.
Ministry shares are the pledged contributions of member churches toward shared ministry, governance, and the denomination’s communication and support services. Mike Johnson (Classis Rocky Mountain), chair of the Council’s Resonate committee, said instead of a 6.5% decrease in its portion of the shared funds, the mission agency is getting a 12% increase, which is an encouraging “seedbed for the church-planting initiative.”
Jeff Bolt, U.S. director of advancement for the CRCNA, said 70% of U.S. churches have submitted a pledge, which is a record high since the implementation of the pledge-based system in 2020. “The estimates (of available pooled money) we were using at first (in projected budgets) were lower than what we can now expect (based on the received pledges),” Bolt said, explaining the $600,000 increase.
Drew Sweetman (Muskegon), chair of the Council of Delegates’ finance committee, said, “It was noted that ‘we are currently in a strong financial position.’ When I look back on my six years on the Council of Delegates, it struck me that we really have no business making that kind of statement today, but God is good, and he has provided more than we could have imagined or expected. Remember God’s faithfulness just with this simple statement.”
The Council approved the following ministry share allocation for the next fiscal year. Director of partnership administration Roberta Vriesema said the percentages only reflect the portion to be allocated from the received undesignated ministry share giving. “If you think that the percentage coming from ministry shares to specific items indicates priority, it’s not the full picture. The overall revenue (and then overall spending) reflects that.”
Portion of ministry shares to the CRC Office of the General Secretary is 22.4%; CRC Ministry Offices (U.S. and Canada), 20.1%; Resonate Global Mission, 16.1%; ReFrame Ministries, 5.6%; Thrive, 21.5%; Canadian Justice Ministries, 5.7%; Calvin University, 2.9%; and Calvin Seminary, 5.6%.
Synodical Assignments
The Council of Delegates reviewed, received, or approved to pass on to synod a number of reports and updates requested by past synods. Most items received no or little discussion, including a collection of rubrics for board membership for the various boards and committees of denominational organizations, requested by Synod 2025.
“It’s not our job to approve the rubrics but take note that the work has been done and ask that synod also acknowledge that,” Rob Toornstra (Columbia), chair of the Council’s synodical services committee, said.
The Council did spend a significant amount of time discussing the proposed 10-year strategic plan for church planting, requested by Synod 2025, and endorsed it to go to Synod 2026.
It also concurred with the Office of General Secretary on a decision to print an appeal coming to Synod 2026. Ordinarily appeals, which can be sent to synod in dispute of a decision or ruling by a narrower assembly, are not public, but they can be made so if the parties involved agree and if the matter is deemed to be of sufficient significance such that its adjudication would be beneficial to the whole denomination. The appeal in question is from an elder in Classis Columbia relating to confessional-revision gravamina deemed by his church council and classis to be unnecessary because the elder’s “views (on two matters—the office of pastor and what is disallowed in the second commandment) are within the breadth of the CRC’s interpretation.”
The elder’s questions and the response from the classis will be included in the supplemental material to Synod 2026, to be made available online from synodical services.
The Council of Delegates commended a report from Thrive’s church discernment consultant Sean Baker on work with churches considering disaffiliation, and asked that a version of it be made available to synod, “especially as it can address continued confusion in the system.”
Other Matters
The Council of Delegates approved a new job description for director of communications, a role held by Kristen Vanderberg until March, when she left for a role with Indwell, a supportive housing organization in Ontario. The Council laid out the planned search process, intended to be complete by October, and gave thanks for Vanderberg’s 27 years of service to the denomination.
The Council took note of general secretary Zach King’s upcoming sabbatical from June 24 to Sept. 23; noted the annual denominational diversity report and adopted changes to streamline diversity reporting processes in the future; recommended that synod suspend the practice of holding a noon-hour luncheon at synod to honor retirees; recommended that synod no longer require the COD and general secretary to ensure the physical publication of an annual yearbook; and recognized and thanked retiring ReFrame director Rev. Kurt Selles (as of July) and Thrive director Rev. Lesli van Miligen (as of end of May).
About the Author
Alissa Vernon is the news editor for The Banner.