Boiling down the Belhar Brouhaha

Last Tuesday night, my wife and I sat down with a bowl of popcorn to watch the live webcast of the Christian Reformed Church's Synod 2012. Admittedly, we're "special" like that. I can think of only two groups of people that voluntarily to watch a a series of (seemingly) futile exchanges back and forth by a bunch of Dutch people-- fans of the CRC Synod and Dutch soccer fans. 

In fact though, the 2012 CRC Synod was not an exercise in futility between Dutch people because (a) though the Vander-whatchamacallits and the Van-whatever-smas were numerous, they were by no means the only ethnicity represented (an encouraging thing to see!) and (b) Synod was not futile. 

The discussion on the Belhar Confession-- and its place in the Christian Reformed Church-- lasted close to three hours. Discussion was back and forth, and though tense, the debate remained civil. In the end, responding to the recommendations of a synodical advisory committee, the delegates of Synod voted to create the category of "Ecumenical Faith Declaration" and voted to make the Belhar Confession the first document of that kind. 

The creation of the "Ecumenical Faith Declaration" category-- and the subsequent deposit of the Belhar into said category-- represents a compromise. On the one hand, the Belhar is given an official status within the Christian Reformed Church; however, it is not given the same official and binding status as the Heidelberg Catechism, Belgic Confession, and Canons of Dort. It means that the Christian Reformed Church has, in a qualified manner, received the Belhar, but it does not demand its office bearers (elders, deacons, pastors, professors) to "sincerely believe that all the articles and points of doctrine [in the Belhar Confession]... agree with the Word of God", as the Form of Subscription says. Something many could not say.  

For some proponents of the Belhar, this may comes as a disappointment because the Christian Reformed Church could not fully endorse the teachings of the Belhar. Many who had sought its adoption had argued for the importance of standing, in unity, alongside brothers and sisters in the Uniting Reformed Church in South Africa. This was the reason the motion was to adopt the Belhar, instead of creating a new document that spoke to racial reconciliation.

As the situation currently stands, it appears not much has changed. Those who sought the Belhar will make use of it in their congregations, their liturgy, and their teaching; those who opposed it, will either ignore it or (hopefully) find other ways to speak against racism and pointless divisions that will satisfy their conscience. Some will function as though the Belhar was a confession, others will not. 

The positive outcomes of Synod's decision is, for now, the visible unity of the Christian Reformed Church is preserved and many in good conscience can still sign the Form of Subscription. 

A couple summary news articles on the Belhar happenings are available from the Aquila Report and The Banner.