What is happening in the CRCNA?

It has been a confusing time in the Christian Reformed Church in North America (CRCNA) since Synod 2022, as members of the denomination continue to wrestle with the implications of the CRCNA’s position on human sexuality. Fourteen churches in Canada have left the denomination, with a dozen or more others having disaffiliation discussions. The rest of the denomination’s approximately 240 churches in Canada are still discussing their response or have accepted the denomination’s position.

When previous CRCNA ecumenical gatherings, called synods, addressed matters of sexuality (including same-sex relationships), they did so primarily through pastoral guidance, allowing local congregations to apply these teachings in the context of their own ministries. But Synod 2022 changed that long-standing practice and elevated the issue to one of doctrinal obligation.

The minutes of Synod 2022 record this motion:

“That synod affirm that ‘unchastity’ in Heidelberg Catechism Q. and A. 108 encompasses adultery, premarital sex, extramarital sex, polyamory, pornography and homosexual sex, all of which violate the seventh commandment. In so doing, synod declares this affirmation ‘an interpretation of [a] confession’ (Acts of Synod 1975, p. 603). Therefore, this interpretation has confessional status.”

With that motion passed, the CRCNA now operates as if it has four confessional standards: the Heidelberg Catechism, the Belgic Confession, the Canons of Dort and Synod’s interpretation of unchastity. All pastors, elders and deacons must now sign their agreement with these standards at every level of church life – local, regional (classical) and synodical. While some office bearers say they are grateful for the clarity offered by Synod’s decisions and that they have always understood “unchastity” by this definition, others disagree. They say they cannot, in good conscience, affirm this new interpretation.

According to Chelsey Harmon, pastor at Bridge Community Church in Langley, B.C., at least 22 ordained ministers have ended their active ministry in the CRC in Canada for reasons related to this issue. For the past few years, Harmon was a member of the First Wave Steering Committee, a group of ministers who navigated the disaffiliation process in 2024 and 2025.

“There will be a second wave of ministers leaving, and in Canada, it is likely to be bigger than the first,” predicts Harmon. She says most pastors on this journey are now connecting with each other through Toward Canada. This group held an All Canada Church Summit in November that had 31 ministers from 22 CRCs in Canada attend. Their website says those involved in the movement are now exploring “a new kind of Reformed fellowship in Canada.”

For lay leaders, their decisions to stay or leave the CRC over this issue are much harder to track. But Christian Courier’s survey last January was able to get responses from 1199 Canadian members of the CRC. The survey found that 63 percent of non-clergy respondents are no longer willing to sign the covenant of office bearers, while 27 percent are happy to continue signing. The remaining 10 percent weren’t sure. Rather than promoting unity, the decision of Synod 2022 seems to have deepened division within the CRCNA.

Implications and questions

Many CRC families include members who identify as LGBTQ. Pastors and elders now face the difficult task of ministering to these individuals within a framework that restricts sexual expression to heterosexual marriage. Under the new confessional requirement, same-sex couples cannot be members in good standing, nor can their marriages be recognized. This raises profound pastoral questions: How can the church maintain its theological convictions around unchastity while remaining a place of belonging for all who seek to follow Christ?

Within the CRCNA’s structure, synod is the highest decision-making body and its rulings are binding on all lower assemblies. When a decision gains confessional status, every classis is expected to uphold and enforce it. Traditionally, major denominational decisions originated in local congregations, moved through classes and then reached synod after a careful process of discernment over a year or more. Synod 2022 did not follow this pattern. The motion to make unchastity confessional did not come from the Human Sexuality Report (HSR) committee, a classis or a local congregation; it came from the majority report of the advisory committee reviewing the HSR during synod itself. Were delegates fully aware of the long-term implications of the motion they adopted?

Some CRC members, churches and organizations question whether the process was consistent with Reformed principles of church governance or whether it reflected an approach more common in fundamentalist Christian denominations. In a letter supporting the Institute for Christian Studies’ (ICS) decision to disaffiliate from the CRC a year ago, philosopher and theologian Nicholas Wolterstorff described changes in the CRC as “heartbreaking.”

“The denomination that gave birth to ICS no longer exists,” wrote Wolterstorff. “There is no genuine and open theological discussion. It’s all political, all about gaining victory for one’s own party.”

Al Postma, Executive Director-Canada for the CRC, acknowledges the hurt the denomination is experiencing and wrote in a September Postma Post newsletter:

“Synod has gotten a lot of attention as we’ve been sorting some things out as a community. But I increasingly hear from people who are ready to look forward locally, regionally and nationally. So am I.” In a follow-up newsletter in December, Postma says he hopes the denomination can come together around a shared sense of purpose and leadership.

As congregations and classes now discern their place within the CRCNA, three possible paths lie ahead: continued alignment, peaceful dissent or disaffiliation. The central question remains: How can a confessional Reformed denomination remain faithful to its theological convictions while extending grace to those who differ? The answer to that question will shape not only the future of the CRCNA but also its witness to a watching world.

Our changing world

Beyond denominational debates, broader cultural and scientific developments also shape how Christians understand human sexuality. The number of people identifying as LGBTQ in Canada has risen significantly in recent decades. While social and cultural explanations are often emphasized, some scientists suggest that environmental factors may also play a role.

Since the 1990s, researchers have shown that certain environmental chemicals, known as endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs), can interfere with hormonal systems in both humans and wildlife. Common EDCs include substances such as DDT, bisphenol A (BPA), phthalates and PCBs (Polychlorinated Biphenyls). These compounds can mimic or block hormones like estrogen and testosterone, even at extremely low concentrations. Exposure during sensitive stages of development, such as in the womb or during puberty, can alter reproductive organ formation, reduce fertility or affect sexual behaviours. In wildlife, EDCs have been linked to the feminization of male fish, while in humans, they may contribute to earlier puberty in girls and decreased sperm counts in men. Environmental factors can influence sexual development in profound ways. Perhaps as Christians continue to study our changing world, our churches will grow in empathy and awareness of human complexity.