Our World Belongs to God: A Contemporary Testimony, first adopted by the Christian Reformed Church in the 1980s as a testimony, will not be raised to the status of a confession (alongside the Belgic Confession, the Canons of Dort, and the Heidelberg Catechism).
Synod 2011 delegates decided that with the CRC actively debating the status of the Belhar Confession, the denomination already shows considerable “confessional vitality,” and that 2011-2012 is not a good time to consider promoting the Contemporary Testimony.
Classis British Columbia North-West, a regional group of churches, had asked synod to revise the role of the testimony. “Giving the Contemporary Testimony the status of confession would acknowledge the role it already plays in much of the denomination,” the classis stated.
For more coverage while synod is in session, including webcasts, photos, a discussion forum, reports, and more, see the Synod 2011 website.
About the Author
Dan Postma is an occasional reporter for The Banner.