From: Darrell128@aol.com Date: Fri, 7 Feb 1997 21:26:57 -0500 (EST) Subject: NR 97017: Classis Chatham blasts Canadian Council on gay rights brief NR #1997-017: Classis Chatham Blasts Council of Christian Reformed Churches in Canada on Gay Rights Brief to Government "If it walks like a duck, if it quacks like a duck, if it looks like a duck, it's a duck." That was the response of Rev. John Hellinga of Aylmer Christian Reformed Church to a brief sent to Canadian Minister of Justice Alan Rock proposing that Canada ought to endorse "domestic partnership" legislation for homosexuals but not gay marriages. "Whatever we say to the government, we do not want in any way, especially at the present time, to speak of registered domestic partnerships," continued Hellinga in his speech to the January 28 session of Classis Chatham. "We may say registered domestic partnerships are not marriage, but it looks like marriage, and we don't want to say that." According to Canadian Council executive secretary Rev. Arie Van Eek, however, three of the four Classis Chatham overtures represented a failure of proper communication. "He goes public to the classis and he knows very well where he could get the answer," said Van Eek, who said the overture authors should have communicated privately with the Committee for Contact with the Government rather than sending an overture to classis. NR #1997-017: For Immediate Release Classis Chatham Blasts Council of Christian Reformed Churches in Canada on Gay Rights Brief to Government by Darrell Todd Maurina, Press Officer United Reformed News Service AYLMER, Ontario (February 5, 1997) URNS -- "If it walks like a duck, if it quacks like a duck, if it looks like a duck, it's a duck." That was the response of Rev. John Hellinga of Aylmer Christian Reformed Church to a brief sent to Canadian Minister of Justice Alan Rock proposing that Canada ought to endorse "domestic partnership" legislation for homosexuals but not gay marriages. "Whatever we say to the government, we do not want in any way, especially at the present time, to speak of registered domestic partnerships," continued Hellinga in his speech to the January 28 session of Classis Chatham. "We may say registered domestic partnerships are not marriage, but it looks like marriage, and we don't want to say that." The official position of the Christian Reformed Church since 1973 has clearly stated that homosexual practice is contrary to Scripture. The official position, which has come under increasing challenge in recent years, has led to a discipline case against a Canadian CRC minister who has written articles supporting gay marriages, the termination of "distinguished visiting professor" Dr. Jan Veenhof from the denomination's official ministerial training institution, Calvin Theological Seminary in Grand Rapids, for previously published articles endorsing committed monogamous homosexual relationships, the termination of Kalamazoo Christian High School teacher Don Bergman from a denominational study committee on homosexuality for endorsing gay marriages, and several attempts to discipline Rev. Jim Lucas, a homosexual minister in Grand Rapids who serves as chaplain of the unofficial gay support group "As We ARE." The government brief, submitted on April 26, 1996 by the Committee for Contact with the Government on behalf of the Council of Christian Reformed Churches in Canada, stated that Canada should enact "appropriate legislation... ensuring that there is protection from discrimination based on sexual orientation with regard to housing, employment, and services." The brief also suggested that "mutually supportive relationships of a private and perhaps intimate nature other than those understood by the familiar and historic terms... should be given a wholly new designation." Referring to an earlier July 10, 1995 recommendation, the Committee for Contact with the Government stated that it did not support using the term "family" to describe gay couples, but that "such units might be referred to as domestic partnerships, that they should be formally registered much like 'traditional' marriages are, and that they might include common partnership rights and privileges similar to the spousal benefits married couples now enjoy." The brief, authored by Committee for Contact with the Government research and communications associate Reinder Klein, touched off a volley of protests within the Christian Reformed Church. In September, Ancaster CRC successfully persuaded the September meeting of Classis Hamilton to declare that the brief presented to the government and to Minister Rock as "the public sentiments of the CRC" is "in conflict with the expressed mind of the Synod of the Christian Reformed Church" as laid out by Synod 1973 in its report regarding homosexuality. The Canadian Council did not deal with the Classis Hamilton overture at a special meeting in November called to deal with other business, but Classis Chatham has now submitted not one but four overtures challenging the Canadian Council's stance on homosexual rights, domestic partnership legislation, and euthanasia. Two of the overtures originate with Grace CRC in Chatham. Grace CRC asked Classis Chatham to overture the Canadian Council "to reverse the decision made at the November 1995 Assembly which extended the Committee for Contact with the Government's mandate to include when no 'official position' has been taken by the CRC, and to restore the original mandate to 'present directly to the government biblically founded testimonies reflecting the official position of the CRC on important issues the government faces." Citing the 1996 brief to the government on homosexual domestic partnerships and a 1995 report advising the Canadian government "to change the criminal code to allow physicians to end the lives of terminally ill patients who are thought to have only a month to live," Grace CRC argued that "the opinions expressed in these two communications to the government go far beyond any official positions worked out by the CRC." "Additionally," wrote Grace CRC, "we submit that it is likely that the positions stated do not reflect the beliefs of the majority of CRC members. Moreover, a significant number of CRC individuals are actively fighting (letters written to M.P.'s, etc.) against the very sort of positions the [Committee on Contact with the Government] represents their church as holding." In a second related overture, Grace CRC asked the denomination's synod, representing churches throughout the United States and Canada, to appoint a study committee "to determine an appropriate denominational position with respect to the practice of euthanasia." Grace CRC cited the euthanasia discussion paper of the Committee for Contact with the Government as grounds for the need to establish an official position. Two similar overtures were submitted by Aylmer CRC and Dresden CRC. The Aylmer overture asked Classis Chatham to overture the Canadian Council to "retract and renounce the statement made by its Committee for Contact with the Government" regarding domestic partnerships. Dresden CRC asked the classis to overture the Canadian Council to direct the Committee for Contact with the Government to "uphold and promote the traditional definition of marriage, family, and spouse" and to "reject and oppose any attempt to give legal recognition to homosexual relations (and along with that any special rights or benefits) whether it be done in terms of redefining what marriage is or by creating special categories such as that of 'registered domestic partnership.'" Classis Chatham passed each of the four overtures with minor wording changes or supplemental grounds, some without audible dissent and others by wide margins. The major change was to the Grace CRC overture calling for the Canadian Council to require the Committee for Contact with the Government to reflect the official positions of the CRC -- in the absence of documented evidence, Classis Chatham deleted the ground that the positions taken do not reflect the positions of the majority of CRC members. The Dresden overture, which originally asked the classis to itself issue a directive to the Committee for Contact with the Government, was adopted "with the understanding that the overture be directed to the Council of Christian Reformed Churches in Canada to be directed to the Committee for Contact with the Government." The Aylmer overture also was amended to not only "retract and renounce" the brief to the government on domestic partnerships but also to "communicate the retraction to the churches and to the Minister of Justice." Dresden pastor Rev. John Noordhof said we was pleased by the widespread support for and classical adoption of the overtures. "It could have gone the other way," said Noordhof. "We wanted to provide a positive direction to the Committee for Contact with the Government and this does it." According to Noordhof, the recent statements by the Canadian Council are part of a pattern. "In the past the problems were on economic issues, for instance they spoke against free trade, but they doesn't get anywhere near the attention of these moral and social issues," said Noordhof. Rev. Kornelis de Koning, a member of the Canadian Council's executive committee and pastor of Redeemer CRC in Sarnia, defended Reinder Klein at the classis and unsuccessfully urged defeat of the Aylmer overture on the grounds that Klein -- who has personally apologized for his brief and has since declined comment on the record -- was still under review by the Committee for Contact with the Government. Nevertheless, de Koning cautioned Christian Reformed members not to apply simple solutions to complex political problems. "It is often said the politics is the art of the possible," said de Koning. "We need to learn the art of that." "As a Christian in politics it can be very difficult. Standing up for principle is a very good first step, but then you need to move the process along at some point," said de Koning, who noted the part of the problem was the question of how Christians should participate in the political process. De Koning criticized United States evangelical leaders such as Dr. James Dobson of Focus on the Family for seeking to apply fundamentalist principles to politics without recognizing a need for compromise to pass compromise legislation preferred by neither side but tolerable to a majority. Canadian Council executive secretary Rev. Arie Van Eek indicated that the authors of the overtures might have applied overly simple solutions to more issues than just secular politics. According to Van Eek, all the overtures except the Grace CRC overture calling for a synodical position paper on euthanasia were unnecessary. "The things that overture is asking for have in my judgment already been complied with," said Van Eek. "It's all been done. I'm so disappointed that these people don't seem to have read their mail." According to Van Eek, the root of the problem is that Klein had exceeded his authority in writing his brief to the government. "There was a message sent which has an unfortunate line in it to the Minister of Justice suggesting that he could look into some sort of new category such as domestic partnerships," said Van Eek. "The person who wrote that language had to admit that he had said something that went beyond what the committee had decided. The committee had talked about it, but had made no decisions." In addition to Klein's personal apology, printed in the Canadian newspaper Ch ristian Courier, Van Eek said that the chairman of the Committee for Contact with the Government had sent a formal letter to the Justice Minister disclaiming the previous communication and had communicated that disclaimer to all CRC churches in Canada. According to Van Eek, three of the four Classis Chatham overtures represented a failure of proper communication. "He goes public to the classis and he knows very well where he could get the answer," said Van Eek, who said the overture authors should have communicated privately with the Committee for Contact with the Government rather than sending an overture to classis. According to one of the overture authors, however, the church chose the route of a public overture after prior letters to the committee to ensure that action would be taken to clearly state that domestic partnership legislation is unacceptable. "For them it's still an open question in the sense that its still under discussion," said Noordhof. "They wanted input and it seemed this was the most direct and most efficient way of providing input." "They have do deal with this," noted Noordhof. "This is an official communication from a classis they represent." When or even if the Canadian Council will deal with the Classis Hamilton and Classis Chatham overtures is unclear. If adopted, a recommendation before Synod 1997 would replace the Canadian Council with a board of Canadian ministries to supervise the denominational agencies and committees in Canada. The new structure would replace the current biennial assemblies of the Canadian Council with a different money for ministry. "It would institute a triennial conference with advisory functions, not legislative or decision making functions," said Van Eek. "A decision will be made by a standing board, not by an Assembly." Cross-References to Related Articles: #1993-031: More Churches Split Following Christian Reformed Synodical Vote Allowing Women Elders and Pastors; Alberta Seceders Protest Homosexuality Report by Classis Alberta North #1994-016: Midwest Classis Asks CRC Synod to Address Homosexuality, Calling God "She," Theistic Evolution, Ordination Process #1994-031: Christian Reformed Synod: Members May Not "Practice or Advocate Homosexualism"; Dr. David Engelhard Approved as CRC's Next General Secretary; Synod Rejects Proposal to End Funding Endorsement for Westminster Seminary #1994-048: Jim Lucas Hired as Chaplain of "As We Are" Gay Ministry; Ministerial Credentials Extended to Permit Call to Position; Classis Grand Rapids East of the Christian Reformed Denomination Expects Homosexuality Study Committee to Report to January Classis Meeting #1995-043: Committee Divides on Whether Gay Ministries Must Declare Homosexual Activity is Sin; Classis Grand Rapids East Refers Both Reports to Churches for Study #1995-084: Classis Wisconsin Overtures Christian Reformed Synod to Declare that Members who "Deny the Biblical Condemnation of All Homosexual Behavior" are Subject to Discipline #1995-085: Text of Classis Wisconsin Overture Regarding. Homosexuality #1995-100: Grand Rapids East Attempts Compromise on Question of How to Minister to Christian Reformed Gays #1995-101: Text of Classis Grand Rapids East Study Committee Report on Ministry with Persons who are Homosexual #1995-113: Calvin Seminary Professors Urge Classis Grand Rapids East to Affirm CRC Synod's Ruling that Homosexual Practice is Sin #1995-114: Text of Calvin Seminary Faculty Letter on Homosexuality #1996-011: CRC's Largest Congregation Joins Protest Against Fraternal Relations with Gereformeerde Kerken in Nederland #1996-044: Engelhard to Gereformeerde Kerken in Nederland: Christian Reformed Synod Upset by Biblical Justification of Homosexuality in Dutch Mother Church #1996-081: Tempers Flare as Christian Reformed Synod Appoints Committee to Restudy Homosexuality #1996-111: November 11-12 Special Meeting of Canadian CRC Council Asked to Retract Brief to Canadian Government Supporting Homosexual Domestic Partnership Legislation #1996-112: Hamilton Classis Asks Council of Christian Reformed Churches in Canada to Retract Homosexual Rights Statement #1996-122: Calvin Theological Seminary Terminates Pro-Gay Professor #1996-124: Christian Reformed Board of Trustees Removes Homosexuality Study Committee Member for Pro-Gay Views Contact List: Don Bergman, Teacher, Kalamazoo Christian High School 234 Stuart, Kalamazoo, MI 49007 H: (616) 381-6975 Rev. Bernie De Jonge, Pastor, Ancaster Christian Reformed Church 177 Manitou Way, Ancaster, ON L9G 1X9 O: (905) 648-2323 * H: (905) 648-0969 Rev. John Hellinga, Pastor, Aylmer Christian Reformed Church 8 Sinclair Cres., Aylmer, ON N5H 3B7 O: (519) 773-3025 * H: (519) 773-8250 * FAX: (519) 773-3043 * E-Mail: hellinga@kanservu.ca Rev. Kornelis de Koning, Pastor, Redeemer Christian Reformed Church 2433 Hamilton Rd., Bright's Grove, ON N0N 1C0 H/O: (519) 869-6885 * FAX: (519) 869-2328 * E-Mail: ndekonin@ebtech.net Rev. Jim Lucas, Chaplain, As We ARE PO Box 7824, Grand Rapids, MI 49510 O: (616) 456-6174 * E-Mail: JamesLucas@aol.com Rev. John Noordhof, Pastor, Dresden Christian Reformed Church PO Box 494, Dresden, ON N0P 1M0 CANADA O: (519) 683-2014 * E-Mail: noordhof@kent.net Elder Dave Noordhoff, Clerk of Council, Grace Christian Reformed Church PO Box 337, 255 Tweedsmuir Ave. West, Chatham, ON N7M 5K4 H: (519) 354-3760 * FAX: (519) 354-3184 * E-Mail: dnoordho@MNSi.net Rev. Arie Van Eek, Executive Secretary, Council of Christian Reformed Churches in Canada 23 Niska Dr., Waterdown, ON L0R 2H3 O: (905) 336-2920 * H: (905) 689-5226 * F: (905) 336-8344 * E-Mail: vaneeka@crcna.org ---------------------------------------------------------- file: /pub/resources/text/reformed/archive97: nr97-017.txt .