Synod 2017, the general assembly of the Christian Reformed Church (CRC), meeting in Palos Heights, Ill., took time from its schedule to receive greetings from the conference of CRC chaplains, meeting in Grand Rapids, Mich., via video feed. The chaplains are celebrating 75 years of officially recognized chaplaincy in the CRC. For at least 25 years before that, CRC pastors served hospitals including Pine Rest in Michigan and Bethesda in Colorado. More than 150 Christian Reformed chaplains now serve not only in hospitals but in the military, industry, and other settings. Rev. Ron Klimp, outgoing director of chaplaincy, characterized the work of chaplaincy as ministering to “lives in crisis.” He introduced the new director, Rev. Sarah Roelofs. She will address synod in person next week.
Synod 2017 is meeting at Trinity Christian College in Palos Heights, Ill., from June 9-15. For continuous coverage, download the Banner app on your mobile device or follow The Banner Magazine on Facebook or @crcbanner on Twitter. You can find more tweeting by following hashtag #crcsynod. News stories will be posted at thebanner.org several times daily. For CRC Communications releases and the webcast, please visit crcna.org. Unless noted otherwise, all photographs are by Karen Huttenga.
About the Author
Clayton Libolt was the long time pastor of River Terrace Church in East Lansing, Mich. Since his retirement, he has served in a variety of interim positions. He is presently serving as the interim senior pastor of Sonlight Community CRC in Lynden, Wash.