(This article appeared in Clarion, vol. 6, no. 5, March 10, 2017.)
On January 12th-14th
our seminary (CRTS) hosted its seventh annual conference. Fittingly,
the topic for this quincentenary (500th) anniversary was
the Great Reformation. On October 31st of this year we
will commemorate how the Lord, 500 years ago, began to bring his
church out of a long Babylonian captivity. The conference did not
disappoint.
In this little article I will not give
a summary of the speeches since the interested person can watch video
recordings of them on the seminary web page at
www.canadianreformedseminary.ca.
Rather, I will give some broad and general information about the
conference, my impressions as a participant, and some further
reflections.
The two-day conference had a modest
international flavour. Not only did some of the 150 participants come
from five Canadian provinces—BC, Alberta, Manitoba, Quebec, and
Ontario—but there was also representation from a smattering of
other countries—Australia, Brazil, and New York state. Catching up
with old friends and making new ones is always a great side benefit
of such a conference. It was well run: the online registration and
payment were easy to navigate and the time allowances for the
speeches and workshops were well managed—perhaps to the chagrin of
some presenters. Almost everything was right on time. The catering
was top notch and the singing, led by gifted organists and pianist,
was transcendent.
The speeches themselves were
interesting and informative. The conference did not focus only on
Martin Luther and John Calvin but, in addition to these better known
men, we also got to hear about Ulrich Zwingli and Guillaume Farel.
Two of the speeches were open to the
public and at both times the large Ebenezer Church auditorium was
comfortably filled. Ebenezer Church seems to have become the “home”of
the annual CRTS conference, and we appreciate its comfort and
roominess. In addition to the more important things we learned in the
first speech was a new “why did the chicken cross the road?”
joke, but to hear it you will need to listen to Dr. Van Raalte's
speech.
All the speeches and workshops in one
way or another addressed the theme of how the Great Reformation is
still relevant for us and of how we are the richer because of it.
We have been made the richer by it
because it turned us back to the five solas (“alones”) of
our salvation: By scripture alone, by grace alone, by faith alone, by
Christ alone, and all glory to God alone. These are five foundational
biblical principles central to the doctrine of salvation. Each sola
represents a fundamental teaching of the Bible undermined by the
Roman Catholic Church (RCC). The RCC, and especially its head, the
Pope, had usurped the throne of Christ in both the church and the
world. The Pope plagued the church and society with corruption and
abuse. The Pope and the ecclesiastical hierarchy had led the church
away from the essential and original teaching of Christ, the
prophets, and the apostles, especially with regards to how people can
be forgiven of their sins by the death, resurrection, and ascension
of the Lord Jesus Christ, and of how they can receive eternal life
with God. The Reformation re-oriented Christianity back on the
original message of the Old and New Testaments.
We are rich because of the Reformation,
and the conference stopped and explored each of the five solas.
The Reformation is relevant to us, for
several reasons.
First, we always need to be reminded
that salvation is by Christ alone, by faith alone, by grace alone,
through scripture alone, and that we, as forgiven people, need to
live to the glory of God alone. Thanks be to God and all praise to
him alone that there are yet countless churches and pulpits where the
true gospel is still proclaimed. At the same time we know that there
are many places in the world, and even in our own countries, where
the preaching is being overshadowed by false doctrines and the
candlestick is, in my judgment, being removed. We need to remember
the five solas.
Second, the cults are as active as they
have always been. The cults teach a false view of our Lord Jesus
Christ, usually denying his deity. They teach that salvation is by
faith plus human effort, and so deny the biblical preaching of faith
alone and grace alone. The cults add their own human documents to
scripture. The cults deny God the glory that only he merits. The
cults deny each of the five solas, and so the Reformation and the
true preaching it revived is as relevant as ever.
Third, the Reformation is relevant
because there are those who leave the Reformed faith and embrace the
Roman Catholic. There are websites where one can read the writings of
former Reformed pastors, seminarians, elders, and church members, who
turned away from the Reformed faith and embraced Catholicism. For
this reason, too, the Reformation and knowledge of its message are
relevant.
Also during the first evening
“Celebrate 1517 in 2017” was unveiled. This is a joint initiative
of CRTS and the Teachers College (CCRTC), a project meant to help us
celebrate throughout the year the faithfulness of God in granting
reformation. This initiative has made its own splash in this
magazine, so nothing more needs to be said about it here.
We thank everyone who contributed to
the CRTS conference. We look forward to celebrating throughout the
year of our Lord 2017 the great thing that God did 500 years ago. We
are the beneficiaries of the labours and faithfulness of countless
who went before us. Let us with them, and together with the church of
all ages, say, Soli Deo Gloria!
******************
The evening public lectures:
- Dr. Ted Van Raalte, professor of Ecclesiology at CRTS, “By Grace Alone: How and Why the Reformation Occurred.”
- Dr. Chad Van Dixhoorn, OPC minister and professor of Historical Theology at Reformed Theological Seminary (RTS) in Washington, DC, “Luther on Solo Christo: The absolute sufficiency of the Saviour for sinners.”
Day time speeches:
- Rev. Bill Boekestein, pastor of Immanuel Fellowship Church (URCNA), Kalamazoo, Mich, “Zwingli on Sola Scriptura: The clarity and certainty of Scripture.”
- Dr. Jason Van Vliet, professor of Dogmatics at CRTS, “Calvin on Sola Fide: Justified only by an assured faith?”
- Dr. Jason Zuidema, elder in the ERQ in Repentigny, PQ, and executive director of the North American Maritime Ministry Association, “Stealing God's Glory: Farel, Calvin, and the Importance of Scriptural Perspective.”
Panel discussion:
- Brs. Boekestein, Van Dixhoorn, Zuidema, and Van Vliet addressed the question: “Navigating Change in the Church in a Bold but Balanced Way: What Can the Reformers Teach us?”
Breakout sessions:
Speakers:
- Mr. Martin Jongsma, music teacher and member of the Royal Canadian College of Organists.
- Rev. Bram de Graaf, missionary working in Maceio, Brazil sent out by Cornerstone Church in Hamilton.
- Dr. Ted Van Raalte.
- Dr. Chad Van Dixhoorn.
Topics:
- How the Reformation Helps us in Worship and Psalm Singing.
- How the Reformation Helps us in Prayer and Spiritual Life.
- How the Reformation Helps us in Church Planting and Mission.
- How the Reformation Helps us in Politics, Church, and State
