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Westerhof's Position as Classis Coach Extended

November 18, 2014
Karl Westerhof

Karl Westerhof

Karl Westerhof is grateful that his part-time position as classis coach for the Christian Reformed Church has been extended, allowing him to continue working in the area of classical renewal for the CRC.

“I will be able to continue encouraging and assisting classes in the engagement of the renewal process. I will be coaching, giving advice, and providing resources,” he says.

The denomination recently decided to extend his work, which had come to an end this summer, through Synod 2015.

One of the things he hopes to do now, with the renewed support and in conjunction with two other ministry offices of the CRC, is to hold regional gatherings of classes. “We can bring classes together to pray and to share stories and discuss best practices,” he says.

This change, allowing for more emphasis on classis renewal, comes about, he says, through the CRC’s Task Force Reviewing Structure and Culture.

“They have decided to keep the momentum going during the coming months of re-shaping structures, and to reaffirm the work we do,” said Westerhof, who has helped to oversee the classis renewal program in recent years.

Synod 2011 created the Task Force on Structure and Culture to examine the CRC’s organizational culture and administrative structures.

Since then, the task force has looked at many aspects of the denominational structure, made suggestions for changes, and added emphasis on such ministry areas as faith formation, servant leadership, global missions, loving mercy, doing justice, and gospel proclamation and worship.

As the task force continues looking at how to best restructure the agencies and ministries of the church, it also “has this increasing sense of the grassroots importance of engaging in classis renewal,” says Westerhof, adding that he is a member of a classis renewal team, led by Rev. Thea Leunk, pastor of Eastern Avenue CRC.

“Classis is the vehicle, the intermediary organization  between the denomination and individual congregations. It one of the places where people can come together to think about ministry and mission,” says Westerhof.

Classis renewal involves working closely with a classis to help it navigate challenges it faces and to move  beyond a focus on mainly administrative matters to finding ways to become more vibrant.

About one-third of CRC classes have gone through the process of renewal, Westerhof said.

Westerhof says he believes renewing the classes is strategic to denominational renewal.

 “The classis is where the two — the denominational agencies and the churches — achieve synergy that is local enough to foster and nourish inter-church relations and regional enough to house common values and strategies.”

Westerhof encourages classes to contact him via email [email protected] so that he can help them in the process of renewal.