A report to Synod 2014 from the Sermons for Reading Services Committee noted that written sermons for reading services are now available on a website instead of booklets previously commended to every church council room. Rich De Lange, reporting to synod, indicated that there’s a continuing desire for these sermons to be available to churches temporarily without a pastor. However, he said, “the Committee for Reading Services is finding it . . . harder to get new sermons because pastors are not writing out their sermons.”
Rev. Joshua Van Til, Classis Columbia, asked about video sermons. “Why not get a list of sermons by the best available preachers in the room using the technology we have today?” Synod president Scott Greenway expressed his concern about being replaced by video. “Congregations could find out it really works,” he quipped.
Other delegates indicated that not all churches have the technology to show video of sermons, having to remain content with those faithfully provided by the committee.
Ken Benjamins, the committee’s chairperson, informed the delegates that where the sermons are available on the website, information is given about their author and a possible website where the sermon can be viewed or heard in its original context. Synod voted to continue the work of providing written sermons.
Synod 2014 is meeting at Central College in Pella, Iowa, from June 13-19. For continuous Banner coverage, please follow The Banner on Facebook or @crcbanner on Twitter. You can find more tweeting by following hashtag #crcsynod. News stories will be posted at www.thebanner.org several times daily. For CRC Communications releases, webcast, and live blogging, please visit www.crcna.org/synod. Unless noted otherwise, all photographs are by Karen Huttenga.
About the Author
George Vink is retired after 50 years as a Christian Reformed pastor. One of his sons is an accident investigator for the Calgary (Alta.) Police Service, and his two brothers are retired from that position. He and his wife, Shirley, are members of Covenant CRC in Cutlerville, Mich.