ALTO REFORMED CHURCH
  • Home
  • Who We Are
    • Our Mission >
      • Missionaries
    • Our History
    • Our Beliefs
    • Our Staff & Leaders
    • Our Policies
  • Get involved
    • Grow and Connect >
      • Men's Ministry
      • Women's Ministries
      • Youth Group
    • Discover Your Strengths
    • Prayer Ministries
    • Church Directory
  • Messages
    • Jesus
    • Christmas 2022
    • It Starts at Home
    • Hope Lives Here
    • Re-forming Me
    • Gabriel
    • Tough Questions
    • AMEN Archives
  • Resources
  • Contact
  • Online Giving

Should We Leave the RCA? (Part 2)

10/4/2018

1 Comment

 
By Kevin Van Wyk
This is a major question we face for the immediate future, and what I will address here. If you missed part one, check it out in the July AMEN. However, I want you to remember this is not the only major issue we face... how will we reach our neighbors with the love of Jesus? How will we more effectively develop our members to be deployed as Christ-like leaders? 
​
In part one of this series, I mentioned some steps our consistory was challenged to take. In that effort, they have appointed a task force.
The members of the Alto 2020 Task Force include Bill Bruins, Randy Bresser, Jane Chené, Ron Daane, Bridgette Flier, Cory Kok, Gloria Mulder, Jalen Peters, Lillian Schouten, Barb Schroeder, Carl VanderKooi, Burt Wiersema, Sarah Zeatlow (and Pastor Kevin as ex officio member).
The consistory has given the group the following four tasks.
  1. Determine and articulate our “must haves” (non-disputables) in a denomination.
  2. Articulate where we disagree with the RCA.
  3. Influence the RCA to make appropriate changes.
  4. Develop a contingency plan for leaving the RCA.
 
The Task Force has now met twice and taken several steps forward. First, we have articulated 13 issues to research, discuss, and address. The issues are... 
  1. Discipline: The RCA polity and rules do not allow discipline of heretical classes.
  2. Formula of Agreement
  3. World Council of Churches
  4. The Joint Declaration on Justification
  5. Seminaries: A. Western & B. New Brunswick
  6. Colleges: Central, Hope, Northwestern
  7. Women in Leadership: Egalitarian, Complementarian, or “a disputable issue”
  8. Bureaucracy: RCA polity has too many rules and regulations, which prevent and slow action.
  9. Belhar Confession
  10. Assessments: The amount, How we are assessed, Where it goes… 
  11. RCA Statements on Contemporary Issues: https://www.rca.org/Positions
  12. Sexuality stance and beliefs... The Great Lake Confession
  13. Reformed Theology. Biblical Authority. Our Statement of Faith, RCA Confessions, and Creeds
 
Second, we outlined why being a part of a denomination is valuable.  The discussion points included...
  1. As a group you can do more.
  2. When trials come with pastors, the classis is there to help, stand beside us. 
  3. Meeting Christians from other areas gives broader and different perspectives.
  4. It’s dangerous to think we are in power with no accountability. 
  5. A confessional church stands together.
  6. We should pursue Jesus’ desire for unity (John 17) and not let individualistic culture rule. 
  7. We do need by-laws to guide decisions and have policies.
  8. For pastoral support and networking.
  9. It’s not a union for pastors to get big pensions.
 
Third, we discussed issue #13. Particularly, we reviewed reformed theology and our Statement of Faith, which you can read here https://www.altoreformedchurch.org/our-beliefs.html. While there was desire to add some clarity to a couple points, we affirmed the statement. This will lay a foundation for all the other issues.
 
Finally, we determined a timeline for our work. We plan to meet twice a month in order to work through the issues above by our Spring Classis meeting. This way we will speak into the RCA’s 2020 Vision Team early on in their work and potentially send overtures to the Classis for the 2019 General Synod. From that point, we will continue to speak into the RCA and begin to develop a contingency plan.
 
During this time of uncertainty, I urge you to continue to…
 
            Pray: to seek God and beg him to work in powerful ways
            Trust: to rest in God’s power and wisdom
            Focus: to be about our mission to reach the lost
            Love: to graciously deal with others
 
God is at work in all this and I look forward to seeing what he will do.
1 Comment
term papers written link
11/25/2018 07:39:36 pm

Church should reform people and help them change their lives for the better. It's not supposed to leave us more confused. This is how exactly I felt when I was young. How come it seemed that God only favored a few groups of people and not everyone? I don't know. Maybe it's just me but the God I know loves the tribal people as much as he loved those who were christened of something. All my life I looked for a way how someone who lived in the mountain all his life can share what his ancestors taught to him.

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    Archives

    February 2023
    November 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    June 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    December 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    November 2018
    October 2018
    August 2018
    June 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017

    RSS Feed

    Check out more articles here.

We Would Love to Have You Visit Soon!


N3697 County Road EE
Waupun, WI 53963
(920) 346-5505
office@altoreformedchurch.org
Worship Services:  Sundays at 9:30am or Live on ​YouTube
  • Home
  • Who We Are
    • Our Mission >
      • Missionaries
    • Our History
    • Our Beliefs
    • Our Staff & Leaders
    • Our Policies
  • Get involved
    • Grow and Connect >
      • Men's Ministry
      • Women's Ministries
      • Youth Group
    • Discover Your Strengths
    • Prayer Ministries
    • Church Directory
  • Messages
    • Jesus
    • Christmas 2022
    • It Starts at Home
    • Hope Lives Here
    • Re-forming Me
    • Gabriel
    • Tough Questions
    • AMEN Archives
  • Resources
  • Contact
  • Online Giving