Two or three times each year, Christian Reformed churches send representatives to classis (a regional grouping of churches). Delegates at those meetings review and make decisions about their shared ministries and practice mutual accountability for their individual ministries. Here are highlights from the most recent classis meetings:
•Classis Arizonaapproved a request from The Village congregation to begin the process of becoming an official part of the Christian Reformed Church in North America. The classis also budgeted $3,000 for a pastors’ peer mentoring group.
•Classis California South welcomed the High Power Hispanic congregation in Santa Ana and Mission Community Church in Anaheim as official congregations in the CRCNA. Classis also noted the 25th anniversary of Yung Kwang Presbyterian CRC in Las Vegas. And classis approved a proposed revision to Question and Answer 80 of the Heidelberg Catechism (one of the doctrinal creeds of the CRC), to be sent to the denomination’s Interchurch Relations Committee for consideration.
•Classis Central California decided, by a narrow margin, not to authorize its churches to ordain women in the offices of elder, minister, and ministry associate.
•Classis Grand Rapids North created a fund to help its congregations support Christian day school education.
•Classis Hamilton informed its churches that one of its congregations fired an unordained pastoral worker for sexual misconduct.
•Classis Holland decided that churches must pay at least half their classical ministry shares to be eligible for classis grants. This decision will take effect in 2007.
•Classis Muskegon decided that students in the Masters of Divinity program at Calvin Theological Seminary will have first priority in receiving funding support from classis.
•Classis Pella welcomed Great Light Korean Church of Dallas, Texas, as an emerging congregation.
•Classis Red Mesa approved requests from seven churches to reduce the amount of denominational ministry shares they are expected to pay.
•Classis Toronto discussed First CRC of Toronto’s ministry to homosexuals and postponed a decision to a later date (see Banner, November 2005, p. 12).
—Banner News Correspondents
