���ҵ���

After serving as a pastor for 40 years in Christian Reformed churches in four states and enjoying retirement in Spokane Valley, Wash., Herman Leestma passed away on January 17. He was 93.

From practicing a technology sabbath to instituting an intentional rest on an alternate day of the week, Jewish and Christian sabbath-keepers talk about the benefits.

When schools shut down because of winter storms, so do programs that provide food for students. Seymour Christian Reformed Church in Grand Rapids, Mich., stood in for a local food pantry.

Schools in Canada and the U.S. have made different choices on codes of conduct and position statements related to human sexuality.

Throughout his life in both Cuba and the United States, in times of danger, fear, hunger, and uncertainty, Domingo Romero fully trusted in God. At age 88, he died on January 5. 

Multicultural new year celebrations are just one of the ways New Westminster Christian Reformed Church, in Burnaby, B.C. practices hospitality.

Having adopted a new mission statement and chosen the tagline “Christ, Community, Compassion” to accompany its logo, the Canadian Council of Churches begins its 75th year asking members “What’s the place of Christianity in Canada today?”

A bag of take-home object lessons or a passport to mark their spiritual journey helps families at Community Christian Reformed Church connect faith formation to the church calendar.

Hope Community Church in Flagstaff, Ariz., home to four different ministering communities, has been making space for the Flagstaff Community Shelter each winter, taking a turn with other churches to host shelter staff and 20 people who need a warm place to sleep.

Kenosis Community groups formed in Canada through the help of the Race Relations office of the Christian Reformed Church help members study how culture shapes their life in fellowship.

Classis Georgetown, a regional group of Christian Reformed congregations near Grand Rapids, Mich., debuted REV Talks last fall. Patterned after the worldwide phenomenon TED talks, the speaker series aimed to tap in to pastors’ treasure trove of experience.

In Whitby, Ont., Hebron Christian Reformed Church’s ministry to the city’s large Mandarin-speaking population has grown into a one-congregation, two-language model.

In a letter to the Prime Minister of Canada, member churches of the Canadian Council of Churches requested that Canada sign on to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.

As a Christian university with strong ties to the Christian Reformed Church, The King’s University in Edmonton, Alta., had conversations this fall and winter with churches questioning its choice to operate without explicit positional statements on marriage and sexuality.

In Philadelphia, a design competition called Sacred Places/Civic Spaces wanted to show how three houses of worship could be redesigned to realize their potential for both congregational and community programming.

A “Big Night of Worship,” gathering up to 200 teens from six Chicago-area congregations, is one of the ways a youth ministry champion is energizing youth ministry in his classis. 

In October, as part of an ongoing partnership, a team from New Hope Fellowship Christian Reformed Church in Monroe, Wash., visited an orphanage under construction in southern India. The partnership began because of the persistent plea of one teenage girl requesting help.

Shorter speeches. More delegate and leadership training. More time for intentional dialogue. Those are some of the recommendations coming from the Synod Review Task Force appointed by Synod 2016.

The Evangelical Fellowship of Canada and others are welcoming changes to the federal government’s summer jobs program that remove language interpreted by many to require support for abortion.

Since September, River Terrace Christian Reformed Church in East Lansing, Mich., has offered free yoga classes. Pastor Ken Bieber reads psalms or meditations while a certified yoga instructor leads the twice-weekly sessions.

These news stories, features and columns from 2018 made the top 10 in reader engagement, as counted by The Banner’s web analytics software. Thanks for reading!

From Dec. 10-26, riders on horseback traced a 330-mile journey through South Dakota and Minnesota to remember history and pray for reconciliation. Elmer Yazzie, a Navajo artist from New Mexico, is riding and sketching with the group this year.

As the Ontario municipality of Emo held its first meeting with its newly elected municipal council in December, three members of Emo Christian Reformed Church were sworn in to new or continuing roles.