Synod 2016 instructed the denominational staff of the Christian Reformed Church to look into the feasibility of developing new curriculum for churches to use. Budget constraints and the closing of Faith Alive Christian Resources ended the development of new curricula in 2013.
Synod 2016 noted that Synod 2013 was assured that the core functions of Faith Alive would continue, “yet synod gave no clear guidance concerning the future of developing and supporting Christian Reformed Church curricula.” Delegates noted that there is an ongoing need for distinctively Reformed curricula, though such new curricula may be costly.
Women’s adviser Elaine VanLaare said that, as a children’s worship director, she has noticed that churches in her area are not using curricula from the denomination. “The way [our denomination’s curricula] is presented is not current enough,” she said. “We need a new way forward in figuring out how to support families in the spiritual development of their children.”
“It’s exciting to see the desire for more materials,” said Steve Timmermans, executive director of the CRC. “What we also understand is that we have to balance all these wants with the dollars we have. I trust that we as staff will take it very seriously and see what we can do to make it all work.”
Synod 2016 is meeting at Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Mich., from June 10-17. For continuous Banner coverage, please 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. Unless noted otherwise, all photographs are by Karen Huttenga.
About the Author
Roxanne VanFarowe is a freelance writer who claims both Canadian and American citizenship and grew up in the Christian Reformed Church. She is a member of Blacknall Presbyterian Church in Durham, North Carolina.
