wfn.org | [CRC NEWS] Synod cautiously expands role of women

["Henry Hess" <hessh@crcna.ca>]

June 16, 2005  Palos Heights, Ill. - Synod 2005 took several small steps
last night to facilitate the ordination of women in the Christian
Reformed Church. But it stopped short of allowing women to serve as
delegates to synod.

Instead, synod said it would revisit the issue of female delegates at a
time when a majority of classes allow the ordination of women as
officebearers. Currently just under half of the 47 classes have taken
that step.

Debate around this issue was long, passionate and courteous. Both sides
referred to the declarations of Synod 1995 and Synod 2000, which
affirmed that both positions on the ordination of women honor Scripture.

Synod did make it easier to ordain women in classes where this is
permitted. First, it asked CRC Publications to make the language in
ordination and installation forms gender inclusive.

Second, in classes where some delegates object to participating in the
examination for ordination of a female candidate, the examination may
take place in a smaller gathering. In the event that not enough
delegates can be found in that classis, churches in a neighboring
classis may be invited to participate in the examination.

In a third small step, synod said that a classis may appoint a female
minister to serve as a synodical deputy, as long as a male minister is
the alternate.

Synod was discussing the report of a study committee that had been asked
to review the CRC's current policy on female officebearers. That policy,
established in 1995, gave classes and congregations the option of
opening some or all ecclesiastical offices to women by declaring the
word "male" in the Church Order Article 3-a to be inoperative.

Coming up:
Today synod will discuss reports on restorative justice and Christian
Day School education.  It also will return to an interdenominational
matter regarding the relationship between the CRC and the Protestant
Church of the Netherlands.

Contact Henry Hess, Synod News Officer, at 708-293-2108.