I haven’t really had much free time over the past couple of days, but I did want to step back in and give another.
This morning I went to worship at Lester Reformed Church, my Grandma Hoogeveen’s church. I haven’t seen my grandma nor worshipped with that congregation in years. They’ve recently built a new facility which, although quite a bit smaller than I would have advised, is beautiful and welcoming. Talk about a morning – we accidently showed up the morning they spent celebrating a week of Vacation Bible School. It’s absolutely amazing how many children they have.
This evening I had dinner with my uncle Elliott (a delegate at Synod this year), my parents, aunt, a few cousins and my other grandma – hoofta! Everyone is well.
From a synod standpoint, it’s been a busy day, but I’d really like to go back a day and note the way synod handled the two recommendations I was most concerned about: R33 and R34. R33 attempted to institute a policy by which one classis could review the actions of another classis (on the issue of commissioned pastors), R34 would have made it possible for classes to ordain elders.
Both are deeply problematic to me. The first, because classes are not accountable to one another and I am at loathe to open the door for one classis to oversee another. For those of you who don’t understand RCA polity, let me explain. A classis is a regional body with the authority to open/close/etc. churches, ordain ministers and a variety of other very powerful privileges. Each of our 40-some classes are responsible solely to their regional synods (the next larger assembly). They are, however, not directly accountable to one another. Other than living in denominational covenant with one another, each is responsible for handling its own business as it sees fit (as long as it’s within the guidelines of the Book of Church Order. R33 would have changed that – problematic, at best.
The second, is an issue to me because the ordination of elders and deacons is solely the privilege of a local congregation. Classes simply do not have the right – it’s akin to separation of national vrs states’ rights in the United States government. The process of discerning the qualities of elders and deacons is done by a local congregation – and only by a local congregation. I don’t believe a classis has the ability (even if it was given the authority) to discern such things. I get the argument that this is for new church plants, but I don’t buy it. I think it’s a backwards way to make it possible for classes to ordain elders solely for the purpose of serving as commissioned pastors. (A topic I’ve written on before and may again….)
By God’s grace, both recommendations were well handled. R33 was revised to make the regional synod the oversight body – which it already was, so the autonomy of individual classes are protected. R34 was referred to the Commission on Theology. While it wasn’t the best possible option (to deny the recommendation outright), it does give me hope – perhaps the commission on theology will see how deeply inappropriate it is for a classis to ordain someone whom a local congregation may well have good reasons for not having ordained (maybe it will even consult the commission on church order – who really should be handling it).
I told several people that these were my two most concerning recommendations, so I thought I’d at least report what happened.
More tomorrow…..
Grace and peace,
`tim
