“Progress” Predictible? – People, such as this writer, who think the church in its traditional beliefs and practises was Spirit-led and biblical are called conservatives (the kind of word which makes the nose turn up slightly as reflection of some sort of disgust). People who want “change” are called progressives. That word stands for everything that is forward-looking, innovative, exciting and even “reformational” (after all, a truly Reformed church is by definition one that is undergoing continuous alteration and improvement).
There is a new teacher at Calvin Theological Seminary, official training-school for future pastors in the Christian Reformed Church. His name is Hemy de Moor, recently promoted at the Free University, Amsterdam with the degree Doctor of Theology. Dr. de Moor addresses himself in his doctoral thesis (Equipping the Saints, privately published, available from the author c/o Calvin Theological Seminary, Grand Rapids, MI) to the matter of office in the church.
This is not an attempt to review the book. That is done by Dr. Paul Schrotenboer, General Secretary of RES, in a recent issue of Calvinist Contact. We have his word for it that “de Moor chooses for admitting women to all the offices” since “Biblical revelation does not provide us with a rigid structure of role assignments (sic!) for all time” (Again sic!).
Evidently the Christian Reformed Church acting through the Calvin College and Seminary board of trustees has no objection to the teaching of this point-of-view to its prospective pastors!
The Future of the CRC – It is good fun to read the Calvin Chimes. One can learn a great deal from it. There is, for example, a raging controversy on the campus of John Calvin College about there–institution of cheerleaders at varsity basketball games. (One young lady reportedly threatened to transfer to Hope College if this significant feature of campus life was not restored—take that!) And so you know why Christian Reformed fans at basketball games are so quiet? Because of their Dutch roots and Calvinistic doctrines, that’s why! No wonder we can only despise both.
All kidding aside, Chimes does offer interesting reading by obviously talented young people, and it isn’t all about silly things. There is an important series on a truly important issue under the awesome heading “The Future of the CRC.” The writer is Editor in Chief, Patrick Jasperse. He takes it upon himself to ask various “leaders” in the church to tell him what they see in their prophetic crystal balls regarding the future of our beloved church. Their response is, I guess, encouraging. “Most of the leaders do not believe that there will be a schism in the Christian Reformed Church. Individual members (both those who oppose women deacons and those who believe women should be permitted to be elders and ministers) will continue to leave and a few congregations, such as Lynwood (IL), may break away. But at present the denomination as a whole is not threatened.”
My first observation is that this typical denominationalistic pragmatism, the kind of thing Chimes has been ridiculing for at least as many years as I have known it. Even though such impressive voices as Leonard Hofman (denominational stated clerk), Wilbert M. Van Dyk (now an executive officer of Calvin Seminary and long-time pastor of the prestigious Plymouth Heights CRC, Grand Rapids) and Jacob Eppinga (even longer-time pastor of LaGrave Ave. CRC, Grand Rapids, and recent president of synod) say that denominational loyalty and morale is just great. What difference does it make if the positions taken by the church are wrong?
A second observation I want to offer is that these articles (Chimes, October 3, 10) reveal another sickening characteristic. It is reflected in this kind of paragraph:
And, finally, and most interestingly, research for this article shows that the actual discontent in the denomination has been exaggerated. While the issues are constantly raised by periodicals such as Outlook and Christian Renewal, groups such as the Committee of Concerned Members of the Christian Reformed Church and the Reformed Fellowship, and outspoken conservative leaders such as Henry Vander Kam and W. Robert Godfrey, their mind–set represents only a small segment of the denomination.
A few quick observations (or questions):
1. What is this “mind–set” business? I happen to know both Vander Kam and Godfrey rather well. They are, I’m sure, people whose minds are set on being committed to the infallible Word and the historic Reformed creeds, a commitment they see as something required by their Lord. I do not believe that their convictions are born out of some peculiar set of character traits. To suggest that they are, borders on something less than kind and brotherly treatment.
2. Who ever said that those wretched and troublesome conservatives ever thought that their positions were the overwhelming convictions of the majority of Christian Reformed people? Who can be blind to the fact that confessionally committed people in the CRC have not won a single battle for a long, long time at synod? On principle I have always resisted people who say, “It is of no use to appeal to synod,” and still do, but the facts in recent years are apt to make anyone who dares to resist the current trends very discouraged as to the mere possibility of receiving a fair hearing. 3. All of Chimes’ “leaders” together do not convince me that they or I really know what the CRC will be ten years hence. When I see the resistance to almost every distinctive feature of CRC doctrine and practise, I worry, of course. I heard a bright, dedicated young mother say recently, “I left the Roman Catholic Church to come to the CRC because I wanted to be ruled by Scripture alone. When I see and hear what people are doing in our church with the Scriptures, I fear for my children.” In the eyes of current CRC leadership role models (I use that term without endorsement) she is just another dissident without much following. That may comfort some, but it haunts me!