NR #1995-086: CRC Board of Trustees Appoints Committee to Review Local Church Property Issues In the wake of secessions by 55 congregations and the departure of over seven percent of the denominational membership, the CRC Board of Trustees has appointed a special committee "to review the Articles of Association for congregations with special attention to the article about distribution of property at a time of schism." The committee, which was in process prior to Synod 1995 but whose mandate was expanded to include an overture on the matter from Classis Zeeland, expects to hold its first meeting sometime in December. NR #1995-086: For Immediate Release CRC Board of Trustees Appoints Committee to Review Local Church Property Issues by Darrell Todd Maurina, Press Officer United Reformed News Service GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (October 18, 1995) URNS - According to a report by the Christian Reformed board of trustees, formerly known as the synodical interim committee, the September meeting of the board appointed a special committee "to review the Articles of Association for congregations with special attention to the article about distribution of property at a time of schism." This article, which has become the focus of lawsuits and conflicts in a number of congregations which have seceded from the denomination in the last few years, specifies that "in the event of schism in this church, as defined by Article 153, Acts of Synod 1970, if a division of its property becomes necessary, this shall be done according to the scriptural injunction of I Corinthians 6. Every effort shall be made to achieve a just and fair division of property. To this end, counsel, assistance, and advice shall be sought first from the classis and synod, provided that if these ecclesiastical methods do not resolve the controversy, the church may seek the counsel, assistance, and advice of nonecclesiastical advisors and sources." The reference to Synod 1970 pertains to a decision in that year to set aside the CRC's former position that the property of each local church was held in trust for the denomination and to decide instead that whenever fifteen percent of the congregation's confessing membership or 25 members, whichever is fewer, organize a church which remains in existence for a period of at least one year, a proportional division of congregational property is to occur. Synod 1980 subsequently proposed recommended articles of incorporation for local congregations including language specifically stating with regard to the local church that "this corporation shall have exclusive control over all of its temporalities, nor shall the exercise of its property rights through the lawful decisions of its council and/or congregation be subject to revision by the classis of which this church is a member or by the Synod of the Christian Reformed Church in North America." As is typical with Christian Reformed denominational committees, the seven-member committee contains members who hold a variety of positions on the issue. Rev. Lambert Sikkema, pastor of Western Springs CRC in the Chicago suburbs, is the son of Rev. Ray Sikkema whose congregation in Hamilton, Ontario, is fighting a $600,000 lawsuit over the decision of the majority to secede from the denomination. Dr. Henry De Moor, Calvin Seminary professor of church polity, has written in the April 1993 issue of the Calvin Theological Journal that "it is my conviction that the CRC ought to reexamine the 1970/1980 synodical model in light of our history and system of church government and return to the 'implied trust' theory in fashioning new guidelines." Elsewhere in the article, De Moor argued that "in other words , and quite bluntly stated, a minority of a denomination can remain what in its mind is clearly faithful to the creeds and church government of that denomination only at the expense of leaving it without estate, unless the broader assemblies decide that such a minority can also be regarded, despite its leaving, as a 'lawful congregation' and therefore ought to be awarded its reasonable share. The alternative is outright chaos or the kind of congregationalism that the CRC, in its convicted interpretation of scriptural givens and church history, has always rejected." Rev. James De Vries, pastor of Second CRC in the Grand Rapids suburb of Allendale, was a leading figure in the deposition of Rev. Paul Murphy of Dutton Independent Reformed Church and attempted deposition of Rev. Derrick Vander Meulen of Eastmanville Reformed Bible Church after the vast majority of their congregations voted to secede from the denomination. The other committee members, CRC General Secretary Dr. David Engelhard, CRC Board of Trustees member Rev. John Van Schepen, and laymen John Roels and Loren Veldhuizen, are not known to have publicly stated positions on the issues. Engelhard, designated by the board of trustees as convener for the committee, cautioned that the result of the committee discussion was by no means certain, noting that the committee has not yet held its first meeting and that the board of trustees has received conflicting advice from its own legal counsel. "The Board of Trustees in its moderate approach to the subject is raising and thinking about it," said Engelhard. "We did have the mind of legal counsel in Canada, which is essentially what Wietse Posthumus has said in public, that he is in favor of the present position of the Christian Reformed Church, and the USA legal counsel, which says the board should reconsider it because some of the legal precedents which seem to have been referred to in 1970 are no longer holding that much sway in US jurisprudence and therefore we should look at the principles." Whatever the committee decides, Engelhard said he expected it to act on the basis of principle and not merely seek to reduce the number of secessions by making it more difficult for churches to leave the denomination. "We ought to do it on the basis of biblical principles and principles of polity," said Engelhard. Engelhard said he did not expect synod would attempt to revise the clauses of the local church articles of incorporation which state that the property rights are not "subject to revision by the classis of which this church is a member or by the Synod of the Christian Reformed Church in North America" without the consent of the local churches. "I can't imagine that there is any way to circumvent that or recommend circumventing that," said Engelhard. "Whatever recommendation this committee would give to the Board of Trustees and then recommend to the synod, the synod might urge the churches or suggest to them that they should make a change." Cross-References to Related Articles: #1993-050: Battle over Christian Reformed Church Property in Hamilton Continues Despite Seceder Victory in Canadian Court #1995-037: Mt. Hamilton CRC Files $600,000 Lawsuit for Control of Church Building Following Second Defeat in Ontario Courts Contact List: Dr. Henry De Moor, Professor of Church Polity, Calvin Theological Seminary 3233 Burton St. SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49546 H: (616) 940-0513 * O: (616) 957-7194 * FAX: (616) 957-8621 * E-Mail: DEMH@Calvin.edu Rev. James De Vries, Pastor, Second Christian Reformed Church 11342 Brown St., Allendale, MI 49401 * O: (616) 895-4533 * H: (616) 895-7694 Rev. David Engelsma, Editor, The Standard Bearer 4949 Ivanrest SW * Grandville, MI 49418 * O: (616) 531-1490 Mr. Kenneth Hofman, Attorney, Miller, Johnson, Snell, & Cummiskey 800 Calder Plaza Bldg, Grand Rapids, MI 49503 * O: (616) 459-8311 Rev. Paul Murphy, Pastor, Dutton Independent Reformed Church 6940 Hanna Lake Rd., Caledonia, MI 49316 * H/O: (616) 698-7467 Elder Wietse Posthumus, First Christian Reformed Church 63-67 Taunton Rd., Toronto, ON CANADA M4S 2P2 * O: (416) 481-4912 Rev. Ray Sikkema, Pastor, Hamilton Independent Christian Reformed Church 1411 Upper Wellington St., Hamilton, ON L9A 3S8 * O: (905) 383-8315 * H: (905) 389-7821 Rev. Derrick Vander Meulen, Pastor, Eastmanville Reformed Bible Church 16353 - 68th Ave., Coopersville, MI 49404 * H/O: (616) 837-8645 Rev. John Van Schepen, Pastor, First Christian Reformed Church 17621 S. Ardmore Ave., Bellflower, CA 90706 * O: (310) 866-5577 * H: (310) 867-4400 ------------------------------------------------ file: /pub/resources/text/reformed: nr95-086.txt .