CRC Staff Member Appointed Acting General Secretary of Canadian Council of Churches

Peter Noteboom, a member of First Christian Reformed Church in Toronto, Ont. and an employee with the Christian Reformed Church in North America, will soon take on the role of acting general secretary of the Canadian Council of Churches (CCC), an ecumenical council representing 25 denominations in Canada.

Noteboom currently serves as the Canadian director of advancement for the CRC Foundation and has long been connected with the CCC.

He began working with the council in 1999 in what he described as a “dream job” with the organization: associate secretary, justice and peace. He has also held other roles over the years, and currently he serves as the council’s deputy general secretary.

In October, however, Noteboom will take on a new role as the acting general secretary, a position comparable to that of an executive director.

The new appointment will mean a change from a more programmatic focus, with work in justice and peace as well as finance and administration, to a broader responsibility and focus in leadership for the whole council, with more public engagement.

With this opportunity to lead the CCC, Noteboom hopes to strengthen a sense of identity and cohesion among the council’s member denominations through dialogue and working on shared priorities. He also hopes to continue the council’s effective, faithful witness of Canadian churches in areas such as intercultural leadership and learning, faith and witness, justice and peace, life sciences, disarmament, and ecumenical and interfaith relations.

“I’ve always been passionate about justice, faith, and the church,” said Noteboom. In working for justice and peace in various places around the world, he said, he has seen the importance of the church community contributing to society, and he has found that councils of churches are often effective in that work.

After 15 years of leadership by Rev. Dr. Karen Hamilton, the executive committee of the CCC decided to hire Noteboom to a nine-month position as acting general secretary, with the possibility of extending it to a permanent position.

While he says it’s too soon to say if he might stay on longer, Noteboom is committed for the long term to the shared work of organizations like the CCC. “I’m interested in accompanying us all as we rethink what it means to be a council of churches working together for Christian unity in Canada,” he said.

As he steps into this full-time position with the council, Noteboom will discontinue working in his current role with the CRCNA. However,  he sees his work within the CCC as part of ministry with and for the Christian Reformed Church. 

“The CRC is a member and leader in ecumenical work in Canada contributing very talented people and time to the work of the CCC, providing sound theological reflection, and a practical, can-do attitude,” he noted.