Date: Tue, 18 Nov 1997 03:57:58 -0500 (EST) From: Darrell128@aol.com Subject: NR 97109: A New Members Responds: "What's the ICRC Good For?" NR #1997-109: A New Member Responds: "What's the International Conference of Reformed Churches Good For?" Most of the seven new members of the International Conference of Reformed Churches have attended prior meetings of the ICRC, and some have been involved as observers for years. One new member denomination, however, couldn't have attended previous ICRC meetings for the simple reason that the denomination didn't exist when the ICRC last met in 1993 at the Dutch city of Zwolle. Rev. Joghinda Gangar of the United Reformed Churches did attend that 1993 meeting as an official observer from his local church, now federated into the United Reformed Churches in North America. NR 1997-109: For Immediate Release A New Member Responds: "What's the International Conference of Reformed Churches Good For?" by Darrell Todd Maurina, Press Officer United Reformed News Service SEOUL, South Korea (October 17, 1997) URNS -- Most of the seven new members of the International Conference of Reformed Churches have attended prior meetings of the ICRC, and some have been involved as observers for years. One new member denomination, however, couldn't have attended previous ICRC meetings for the simple reason that the denomination didn't exist when the ICRC last met in 1993 at the Dutch city of Zwolle. Rev. Joghinda Gangar of the United Reformed Churches in North America did attend that 1993 meeting as an official observer from his local congregation, Wellandport Orthodox Reformed Church in the Canadian province of Ontario. When the URC held its first synod last year in the Chicago suburbs, Wellandport ORC became one of the charter members of the new denomination, and this year Gangar is attending the ICRC as an official delegate from the United Reformed Churches. Several other URC member churches which had seceded from the Christian Reformed Church by 1993 also attended the Zwolle session, but only Gangar attended this year's meeting because the United Reformed synod session in Canada overlapped the ICRC session in Seoul. "I think basically the purposes of the ICRC reflect our reasons for joining," said Gangar, citing inter-federational contacts and the establishment of formal ecumenical relations with other denominations as the key benefits of ICRC membership for the United Reformed. Gangar noted that the URC member churches had maintained contacts with some of the ICRC members even before the URC was formally established and its churches were grouped more loosely under the umbrella of the Alliance of Reformed Churches. A number of ICRC member denominations, including the Canadian Reformed, Free Reformed Churches of North America, Reformed Church in the United States, and Orthodox Presbyterian Church had sent formal or informal observers to the ARC meetings. Two of those denominations, the Free Reformed and Orthodox Presbyterians, served as the URC's official sponsors for ICRC membership. "We found two denominations that churches in the United Reformed Churches could relate to; we picked one from the US, the Orthodox Presbyterian Church, and one from Canada, the Free Reformed Churches," said Gangar. According to Gangar, the URC doesn't have any particular issues it would like to bring to the ICRC. "We'd like to participate in the growth and the purposes of the ICRC; we don't want to change it in any direction, we like the purposes," said Gangar. Instead, Gangar said the ICRC's production of study papers and potential role as a forum for assisting churches in resolving difficulties would be of assistance to the United Reformed Churches as a denomination. "When more specific things come up we need to be more open and humble with acknowledging to others that we don't know all the answers," said Gangar. "When you join this body there is already an understanding and acceptance of the fact that you are true churches, otherwise you wouldn't be able to join the body." The understanding that ICRC members are true churches could be particularly useful to United Reformed consistories and members in their local ministries, according to Gangar. "There can be more cooperation between the churches, pulpit exchange, those kind of things," said Gangar. "I think the size of our denomination, to us it may seem pretty big, but it really isn't," said Gangar, noting that the URC currently has about 11000 members and could benefit from the help of other denominations that had a longer history and larger membership. "With the great number of liberal trends that are hitting our churches,we need to stand firm." Cross-References to Related Articles: #1997-103: International Conference of Conservative Reformed Denominations to Convene Next Week in Seoul, South Korea #1997-106: Former Reformed Ecumenical Synod Moderator Opens Prayer Service for International Conference of Reformed Churches #1997-107: International Council of Reformed Churches Convenes in Seoul, Elects Korean Chairman Contact List: Rev. Joghinda Gangar, Delegate, United Reformed Churches in North America RR #1, Wellandport, Ontario L0R 2J0 CANADA O: (905) 386-6652 * E-Mail: jgangar@freenet.npiec.on.ca ---------------------------------------------------------- file: /pub/resources/text/reformed/archive97: nr97-109.txt .