The Body of Christ and the Body Politic

A recent survey asked Canadians how much influence they thought religious communities should have in public life. One in 10 people said “a major influence” and four in 10 said “some.” That means roughly half of us think that faith communities have a role to play in the way our country operates (Angus Reid, 2017). Almost no one seems to agree, however, on the degree and type of influence.

In a few weeks, delegates from across North America will meet together for the annual Synod of the Christian Reformed Church (CRC) to discuss the direction of the church and make decisions that affect its future. The CRC’s 1,094 congregations are split up into 48 groups of Classes, mostly by geography but in a few notable cases by hermeneutics. Each year, individual Classes can send Overtures to Synod – documents they’ve prepared petitioning for change. Of the 20 Overtures submitted for discussion this June, three focus on issues of justice – from very different angles.

From southwest B.C., Overture 12 asks the church to foster more discussion on biblical principles for Christian citizenship. “We live in challenging times,” writes Nick Loenen, a member of Overture 12’s drafting committee. “Many families cannot talk to each other about Jesus and politics. That should not be! We have a common confession; we need to find each other by listening to the Bible.” By focusing on the Bible’s teachings, he says, the church’s members can be a reconciling influence in today’s broken world.

The other two Overtures take a different stance, asking the denomination to scale back its political engagement. Stick to ecclesiastical matters, Classis Minnkota in Minnesota and Classis Columbia in Oregon/Washington ask. The institutional church should limit itself to preaching and teaching, Doug Vande Griend of Overture 14’s committee says, and let individual members “do their ‘politicking’ via other organizations or individually.”

Implications

To help CC readers, CRC members and delegates to Synod understand the issues at stake, we’re giving these Overtures a significant amount of space in this issue. We have invited thoughtful reflections on the topic from a variety of writers and urge you to continue the conversation at home and in church fellowship. Be quick to listen. Ask good questions. These are not new conversations – this is not the first time Christians have wondered whether politics and church business belong together. We can learn from history as well as each other. What role does the CRC have in Canada and in the United States today? Decisions made at Synod 2018 in response to these three Overtures will answer that question.

Pastor Dan Brown of Kingston, Ont., notes that Synod often unhelpfully conflates the Office of Social Justice (OSJ), which has offices in Canada and the U.S, with the Canadian Centre for Public Dialogue (CPD). If Synod makes a decision relating to one agency, both will be affected. Will the American Overtures impact how Canadian CRC agencies operate? Doug Vande Griend admits that, “I don’t want these Overtures to have anything to do with Canada.” Can Synod say, “‘This doesn’t apply to Canada’?” he wondered.

More on YouTube
Pastor Paul Vander Klay hosted two YouTube discussions on the Overtures: On April 19, “Should Christian Reformed Church Agencies stop Political Lobbying?”  And on May 1, “Can Churches Teach Political Discipleship without Dividing into Partisan Camps?”