Churches Can Join Circle of Grace

The Christian Reformed Church’s Safe Church Ministries is making available a new resource, Circle of Grace, which is geared to educate and empower children and young people to actively help create and participate in a safe environment for themselves and others.

Developed by a ministry in Omaha, Neb., Circle of Grace is available in a CD format, which includes all the materials and training that churches need to implement the program.The program serves the dual purpose of educating and informing youth about the value of positive relationships with God and others.

Circle of Grace, which will be available for free to 50 CRC congregations, helps to extend and deepen Safe Church’s educational programing. An training event on the new program will be held in November at a CRC congregation in Jenison, Mich.

“We are so pleased to be able to offer these excellent materials to you free of charge and are glad that you, by taking advantage of this opportunity, are making a commitment to help prevent abuse, protect children and youth, and make your church a safer place,” writes Bonnie Nicholas, director of Safe Church Ministries, in a letter to CRC congregations that have expressed interest in the program.

Also in the letter, she lets churches know that “Safe Church Ministry is committed to making Circle of Grace available to churches in the least expensive way possible for as long as it proves beneficial to our churches.”

Participating churches will receive two disks, one containing the files for the Circle of Grace curriculum itself, and the other contains training materials.

Through the program, children and youth are encouraged to recognize “that each of us lives within a Circle of Grace that holds our very essence in body, mind, heart, soul, and sexuality,” says promotional materials for the program.

Children and youth are also “taught to identify and maintain appropriate physical, emotional, spiritual and sexual boundaries; recognize when boundary violations are about to occur; and demonstrate how to take action when boundaries are threatened or violated.”

In her letter, Nicholas writes that Circle of Grace can be used by churches in ways that they see will fit into their own church school programs. She also asks that churches adhere to a copyright agreement that Safe Church has with the organization providing the materials.

As a part of this agreement, says Nicholas, she asks participating churches not share access to these materials with any other individual, church, or organization.

“Safe Church Ministry has purchased the rights to these materials (which includes the right to make an unlimited number of copies) for up to 50 congregations only. For this reason, you may not give access to these materials to any person outside of your church,” she writes.

After 50 churches receive the materials, Safe Church will likely need to to send an invoice to churches that want to take part in the program.

“We are also committed to providing the support that you need to use these materials well. Please don’t hesitate to contact Safe Church Ministry with any questions, concerns, or feedback. We are here to serve churches and would love to hear from you,” writes Nicholas.

As a way to help churches understand how to best use the new program, Safe Church Ministries will hold the Circle of Grace training event on from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, Nov 10.

“This will be an educational training event especially for teachers and parents and also for anyone who wants to find out more about the program,” says Nicholas.

To register for the event, call 616-224-0735 or email [email protected].

The CRC’s Safe Church Ministry exists to be a resource for local churches so that all CRC churches will be safe places; safe from any threat of abuse, where each person is treated with the dignity and respect they deserve as people created in the image of our Lord; therefore abuse is not tolerated.