Rev. Bruce Adema has been appointed the new director of Canadian ministries for the Christian Reformed Church in North America. Adema’s appointment was made by the denomination’s Board of Trustees at its September meeting.
Adema currently works as a theological educator and church planter in the Philippines for Christian Reformed World Missions. Prior to that, he served as pastor in St. Albert (Alta.) Christian Reformed Church for five years.
Adema sees his new position as a work in progress. “We have a new administrative structure, so it seems some experimentation will go on. I think the murkiness will abate, and I’m willing to live with the vagueness around the edges,” he said. He expressed appreciation for the binationality of the CRC. “It’s a unique thing about us. Other churches haven’t been able to hold together over the border as well as we have,” he said. “I appreciate that Canadians are equal partners in the denomination and continue to work and serve the Lord together.”
Adema said the most pressing issue he sees facing the CRC is growing congregationalism. “Members of churches don’t think of themselves in a denominational context,” he said, “and many people in our churches, not just in the pews but also in the pulpit, don’t know how to articulate what it means to be Reformed.”
Adema will take up his new duties in the summer of 2006 after he completes his term of service in the Philippines.
About the Author
Gayla Postma retired as news editor for The Banner in 2020.
