This book reads like a novel, with four pastors as the main characters and church meetings as the plotline in the story of one church. Yet this is actually immersive journalism, based on four years of recording details about the real life, internal workings of one congregation. Circle of Hope tells of the rise and…
From scheduling facilities to doctrinal clashes, the pitfalls of communication can cause a host of challenges. For Pastor Ryan Chau and the staff of three congregations at Edmonton Chinese Baptist Church (ECBC), these challenges are written in triplicate for their trilingual church community. “Complex theological concepts can be really hard to communicate,” Chau explains, noting…
I was raised in the Christian Reformed Church (CRC) in Canada. Its rich Reformed tradition fed my curiosity, encouraged debate and dialogue and allowed room for questions and doubt. I found it liberating, healing, inclusive and inviting, full of hope for those seeking meaning and purpose. But it no longer feels that way to me….
If I’m honest, I’d rather look away from Synod this year. But I haven’t always felt that way. In years past, I’ve been a keen watcher of the Christian Reformed Church (CRC)’s annual denominational meetings that are usually held at Calvin University in Grand Rapids, Michigan. There’s one evening of Synod watching that I remember…
Can we be strong and weak? Many would reject this as unrealistic, but it’s a paradox that provides hope for the leadership complexities facing the church today and the Christian Reformed Church (CRC) specifically. In his book, Strong and Weak, Andy Crouch explores this paradox and provides a helpful framework for flourishing leadership. A framework…
Karissa Sovdi’s Surviving Christianity Unmarried is a rare book on singleness that left me feeling genuinely seen. At first I dreaded another Christian book on singlehood: well-meaning clichés and shallow encouragements that feel galaxies away from the lived experience of being single in the church. Sovdi’s uniquely invitational work disarmed my hesitation. Her writing is…
Kyla Gillespie’s just-released memoir, TransFormed, tells the story of growing up in Nanaimo, B.C. as a girl who never felt at home in her body. Her story includes playing professional women’s hockey in the early 2000s, alcohol addiction, same-sex attraction and relationship breakdowns. Starting in 2011, Gillespie officially changed her name to Brycen and began…
Across Canada, many Christian boards and church councils carry an unspoken expectation: composure equals competence. Especially in governing meetings, and particularly for the most senior staff leader, emotions are often subdued, if not quietly discouraged. The intent is understandable. Boards want clarity, objectivity and wise decision-making. (Have you ever seen a synod or church council…
After 27 years with the Canadian Council of Churches (CCC), including two terms as General Secretary from 2018-2026, Peter Noteboom will step into semi-retirement at the end of June. Ecumenism – working for the visible unity of the church across denominational lines – has been his calling and life-work. “This job of General Secretary is…
Hollywood seldom portrays faith well. On one hand are glossy depictions of near-perfect characters who prosper if they pray hard, look right and win enough converts. On the other hand, Christianity is displayed as destructive and colonial. What happens to the stories in the middle, the ones that expose the harm of the church while showing…
I was ordained as a Minister of the Word and Sacraments over 45 years ago. It happened on a Thursday night because of Halloween, of all things! The elders of the rural Southern Alberta congregation that had called me, a 25-year-old seminary graduate, to be their pastor, had first scheduled the event for Friday night….
Contentment. That seems to be the church’s greatest sin. We’re content to sit in our usual seat during worship, content to celebrate the status quo when it comes to worship style, preaching style and a gradually declining church attendance. We’re content to coast. For many of us, when we think of church growth, we think…
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