Clarion · 2013. 9. 24. · time of year we have our Remembrance Day celebrations where we commemorate the wars of the past century. We enjoy peace and freedom because our governments

ClarionTHE CANADIAN REFORMED MAGAZINE

VOLUME 50, NO. 23 NOVEMBER 9, 2001

Lest we forget – London,1941

Bombs on AfghanistanTwo days after the bombs started to rain on Afghanistan,

I asked my three senior catechism classes what they thoughtof this military action by the United States and her allies.Was it right to go to war? Their response was unvarying. Noone was thrilled by the prospect of war, but the general re-sponse was: What else can we do? Given the circum-stances of the terrorist attacks on September 11 and the re-fusal of Afghanistan’s authorities to hand over Osama binLaden, war was inevitable.

I was pleased with the response of my young people, iffor no other reason than the fact that they had not been takenin by the pacifist rhetoric that is floating around our society.On the one hand, they understood how terrible a war is.But on the other hand, they understood that sometimes it isnecessary to go to war. They are entirely correct. How ap-propriate was their response in light of the fact that at thistime of year we have our Remembrance Day celebrationswhere we commemorate the wars of the past century. Weenjoy peace and freedom because our governments wentto war when they had to do so.

War and the BibleWar is not forbidden by the Bible. For instance, we read

in Romans 13 that “The authorities that exist have been es-tablished by God.” Then it is stated in verse 4: “For he isGod’s servant to do you good. But if you do wrong, beafraid, for he does not bear the sword for nothing. He isGod’s servant, an agent of wrath to bring punishment onthe wrongdoer.” The government does not bear the swordfor nothing. These are the words of the Holy Spirit. It is truethat “the sword” can be the disciplinary action and corpo-ral punishment of the government on its own civilians whoare involved in criminal action. But it also becomes the le-gitimate weapon whereby a government defends its citi-zens against a hostile force. There are many examples inthe Old Testament where Israel went to war under the com-mand of God himself.

Some have suggested that the sixth word of the covenantpromotes pacifism. In other words, a terrorist might strike but

a country has no right to strike back. Peaceful resolutionsmust be sought. However a careful reading of the sixthword in its original Hebrew makes clear that it does not for-bid every kind of killing, but unlawful killing. Acts of self-defence, and the right of a nation to defend itself are notforbidden by the sixth word. Of course, there are other ba-sic biblical principles which apply when a nation goes towar. There must be a legitimate cause and a legitimate pur-pose for war; the military response must be proportionateto the offence; there must be consideration for civilianswho are in the country under attack. Strikingly, these arebasic and conventional rules of war that still apply today.

Is the U.S. in the right to fight?There are voices in Canada and the U.S., and throughout

the world for that matter, which openly state that Americahas no right to fight back against terrorism because it is get-ting what it deserves. Mention is made of American assis-tance to the Afghanistan freedom fighters, including binLaden, in the fight against the Soviets in the 1980s. Mentionis made of American support of Iraq against Iran, also in the1980s, and thus support of Saddam Hussein. Mention ismade of American support for Israel and its involvement inthe Gulf War of 1991. It is true, in hindsight, that questionscan be asked whether the U.S. always acted in a wise man-ner in these conflicts around the globe. At the same time, theU.S. was attempting to protect certain countries againsthostile neighbours. The threat of the Soviets againstAfghanistan and of the Arabs against Israel were very real –a clear and present danger! The U.S. may be commended forher support in these areas. Clearly, to say that America hasreaped what it has sown when the terrorist attacks took placeon September 11, is ludicrous.

America at warThe U.S. with her allies, notably Britain, has estab-

lished that Osama bin Laden was the enemy behind the at-tacks of September 11 and is still masterminding more actsof terrorism. Bin Laden and his al-Qaeda fighters (terror-ists) have clearly targeted civilians without giving any kind

546 CLARION, NOVEMBER 9, 2001

EDITORIAL

By R. Aasman

Do We have the Right to Go to War?

We enjoy peace and freedom because ourgovernments went to war when they

had to do so.

We turn our thoughts to the return of ourLord Jesus Christ who will put an end to all

violence and hatred.

of forewarning. The U.S. gave every opportunity for apeaceful resolution: let the Taliban hand over bin Ladenand there will be no bombs on Afghanistan. The U.S. hasjust cause and a legitimate purpose in attacking Taliban andbin Laden key targets. The purpose is to bring bin Laden tojustice; to stop the source of further terrorism; to shutdown this haven for terrorists. Moreover, the U.S. is tryingto do minimal damage to civilians, and demonstrates anattempt to rebuild the life of Afghanistan.

If the U.S. and her allies had not gone to war, she wouldhave become the continued target of such monsters as Osamabin Laden. When a country is attacked in such a vicious andunprovoked a manner as the U.S., then the government hasto take up “the sword” to secure its freedom and peace.

May God help us allIt is our prayer that the war effort will not be prolonged

and that peace may be secured. We rely on the Lord ourGod also in these matters, because He controls all things, in-cluding the rise and fall of earthly kingdoms. Indeed, as wecontemplate the violence which typifies our world, we turnour thoughts to the return of our Lord Jesus Christ who willput an end to all violence and hatred. He will secure for usthe peace of Jerusalem.

CLARION, NOVEMBER 9, 2001 547

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IN THIS ISSUEEditorial – Do We have the Right to Go to War?

— R. Aasman..........................................................546Treasures New and Old — R. Bultje ........................548Drugs (3) — N.H. Gootjes ........................................549The Possibility of Evil — Mark William Slomp ..........551Fifth International Conference of Reformed Churches

— E. Kampen ........................................................553Twenty-Fifth Anniversary in the Ministry for

Dr. N.H. Gootjes — R. Aasman..............................556News from MERF-Canada ........................................558In Memoriam – Isac Joseph Sarumi

— Terry Veenendaal ..............................................560Press Releases: Classis Pacific East, Classis Central

Ontario, Classis Pacific West..................................561

RegularMail

$38.00*$40.00$62.00

AirMail

$62.00*$54.00$93.00

What’s inside?The United States of America and her allies are at

war. This has raised a lot of debate as to the legitimacyof this war. Some have even said that the U.S. got whatit justly deserved. What a monstrous statement. No onewill deny that the U.S. has made mistakes. But does it de-serve such acts of terrorism as we saw unfold on Sep-tember 11? And does America not have the right to attackthe enemy who propagated this terrorism? The editorialas well as an article by Mark Slomp examine some ofthese points.

Dr. N.H. Gootjes continues with his series of articleson drugs. This is the third of four installments. This articleexamines some of the ugly side effects of drugs, and someof the terrible things people will do to acquire drugs.Any idea that drugs are glorious is quickly dispelled.

Terry Veenendaal writes a memorial for Isac JosephSarumi who was an elder in Ekoro, Papua New Guinea.Isac will be sorely missed by his church community.Thankfully we know where believers go when they passon, and we know the Lord will continue to gather, defendand preserve his church.

Rev. E. Kampen provides us with a report on theFifth ICRC meeting in Philadelphia. We also have an up-date from MERF, and a report of celebrations at thetwenty-fifth anniversary of Dr. N.H. Gootjes in the min-istry. Dr. Gootjes is a contributing editor to our magazineand so we would like to take the opportunity to extendour congratulations to him, and wish him the continuedblessings of the Lord.

We have the column, Treasures New and Old, byRichard Bultje. Brother Bultje is involved in a streetministry in Hamilton, Ontario. We also have three pressreleases from various Classes. It is great to be updated ontheir activities.

RA

Money is always a topic that peo-ple find easy to discuss and thinkabout. Our society is always comingup with more ways to help us makemoney. Some say that money makesthe world go round; it keeps food onyour table and keeps the budget of thechurch, school and other Christian or-ganizations running. You could saythat without money it would be im-possible for our families and churchesand Christian organizations to con-tinue to exist.

Some forty or fifty years ago a fewDutch immigrants of the LiberatedChurches in Holland came to thiscountry with very little in the way ofearthly or worldly possessions. Many ofthem came over the ocean becausethey wanted a better life for their fami-lies and descendants. I think it wouldbe fair to say that God has blessed thisimmigrant community in many ways.In the area of finances, the situation ofthis immigrant community has changeddrastically, so that now many organiza-tions and activities are being fundedthat could not be supported when theimmigrants first came. Without God’sblessing on the businesses and savingsof the people in these communities,we would not be able to fund our pre-sent organizations, such as Reformedschools and foreign and home missionoutreach activities.

In the passage highlighted above,Jesus told his disciples a parable abouta manager who acquired some much-needed friends by cleverly cheatinghis boss. Through this parable, Jesustaught his disciples to use money in acalculating manner for the future. The

purpose was to be welcomed, not intoearthly homes, as with the manager inthe parable, but into eternal dwellings,that is, heaven. But, how can we useearthly money to do this?

The previous chapter records thatJesus taught the crowds (including thePharisees and teachers of the law, whomuttered that Jesus showed friendship totax collectors and sinners) what God’sattitude is to the lost. Jesus showed themthrough use of parables that God has ayearning heart for the lost and will ac-tively seek and find the lost.

In our chapter, we are told thatJesus now specifically addressed hisdisciples, challenging them directly.If they really believed that God soughtthe lost through the person of JesusChrist, would they be willing to sacri-fice their worldly possessions to sendout this message? Was the salvationof others more important than theirearthly riches? For the most part, Jesus’disciples were financially poor. Yet,Jesus told them to use what worldly

riches they had to make sure the mes-sage He was teaching them would gobeyond them to others ordained toeternal life. Jesus was not saying thatwe can get people into heaventhrough means of money. But He wassaying, and continues to tell us, touse our earthly riches to work for thefurtherance of his kingdom. Jesus usedthe actions of the shrewd manager inthe parable as an example to teach usthat our dealings with money shouldflow from our belief that God seeksthe lost through the means of thegospel of Jesus Christ.

When we look from this perspec-tive at how God has blessed the com-munity of the Canadian Reformedchurches, can we say that we individ-ually and corporately are doing whatJesus teaches us? Is our mind – andso, our money – set on the gospel go-ing out to declare God’s great love inseeking the lost, so that when themoney is gone we will be welcomedinto eternal dwellings?


TREASURES, NEW AND OLDMATTHEW 13:52

By R. Bultje

Worldly Wealth will One Day be Gone

“I tell you, use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.” Luke 16:9

Is it wrong for people to use drugs?That question cannot be answered ingeneral terms, as is sometimes done.We can only determine that by study-ing the effects of the different drugs. Inthe following sections we will presenta profile of several groups of drugs.This can only be done rather brieflyand concisely, but it should beenough to provide us with the infor-mation we need to answer the ques-tion whether there is place for thesedrugs in a Christian’s life.

StimulantsAs was said in the previous article,

the two important stimulants are co-caine and the amphetamines. Theseare different in origin. Cocaine is de-rived from the leaves of the cocoaplant. South American Indians discov-ered that these leaves, when theychewed them, provided them withmore energy. This helped them to dophysical work at high altitudes. Theamphetamines were discovered as astimulating chemical during the twenti-eth century, and became popular withthe hippie movement. As the effect ofcocaine and amphetamines is very sim-ilar, they are usually taken together.

These drugs cause feelings of eu-phoria, energy and confidence in thepeople who use them. They activatethe functions of the body, leading toimproved coordination and strength.Some athletes used amphetamines forimproved performance, but these sub-stances are banned and athletes who arecaught using them are disqualified.

But improving physical ability isnot the only reason for people to usethese stimulating drugs. They are oftenused at parties because they make peo-ple feel good in a group. These drugsmake them talkative and adventurous,freeing them of negative feelings, andheightening sexual alertness. It is a pre-ferred party drug, for it effectively re-moves inhibitions.

This group of drugs is very addic-tive. The effects are enjoyable, but theydo not last long. Some addicts stayawake for several days, injecting am-phetamines every few hours. Whenthey stop taking the drug, they crash,feeling very depressed and hungry.Chronic use leads to tolerance and de-pendance. They crave this drug evenwhen they know that it leads to healthand psychological problems. Bothphysiological as well as psychologicalreasons cause addiction. As a result ofbiochemical changes in the brain, theaddict needs more of the drug. And thepsychological craving for another highurges them to repeat the experience.

How do we evaluate the use ofthese drugs? Several elements shouldbe considered. They give the users apleasurable high, and often increasetheir sexual desire. At parties, they re-sult in breaking down inhibitions andcausing a craving for sex. Some evensell their bodies for the pleasure pro-vided by these drugs. It causes peopleto ignore their responsibility to obeyone of the commandments which Godgave for our own good and the benefitof the others.

In addition, the addictive quality ofthese drugs causes people to crave fora repetition of the experience. This ad-diction is an urge that needs to be sat-isfied before anything else. Young peo-ple who do not have enough money tosustain this habit go around selling it toothers. Others go into prostitution andcrime. Their addiction makes it impos-sible for them to take their place in thisworld and do regular work. They make

it impossible for themselves to fulfill thetask God has given to the people hecreated in the beginning (Gen 1:28,see also Col 3:17). These drugs deter-mine their lives and cause them to goagainst God’s laws.1

DepressantsThese drugs were originally devel-

oped for their calming qualities but theyhave been widely abused. As a result, thisgroup of drugs can be approached fromtwo sides. On the one hand, they are ableto give relief to people suffering from anx-iety, on the other hand, they have beenproven to have dangerous results.

The origin of these drugs was thediscovery that barbituric acid could beproduced synthetically. This led to thedevelopment of barbiturates whichcould be used as a medicine for calm-ing people down. They give relief topeople who feel oppressed by anxietyand they allow them to sleep. Althoughtheir addictive qualities were noted atan early stage, this was not generallybelieved until it was demonstrated bymeans of experiments in the 1950s.This led to the development of othersleeping pills to replace them. These,in turn, proved to have similar addictiveand dangerous effects.

How can medicines made to pro-duce sleepiness be used as drugs? Theanswer is that these drugs have a dif-ferent effect in different situations. Theyproduce sleepiness when someone tak-ing these drugs is resting and quiet.But when someone is active and alert,the same drug will cause him to be-come excited and emotionally unsta-ble. It is this feeling of well-beingwhich makes the sedative drugs attrac-tive to their users.

The result of addiction to sedativesis threefold. People who are under theinfluence of these drugs show the samecharacteristics as people who aredrunk. They act sluggishly and whenthey speak they slur their words. They


Drugs (Part 3)

By N.H. Gootjes

We need to answer thequestion whether there isplace for these drugs in a

Christian’s life.

are no longer able to judge a situationproperly, and they are emotionally un-stable. The biblical statements againstdrunkenness can directly be applied tothis situation:• Wine is a mocker and beer a

brawler, whoever is led astray bythem is not wise (Prov 20:1, see also23:20, 21 and 30-35).

• Do not get drunk on wine, whichleads to debauchery. Instead, befilled with the Spirit (Eph 5:18).

The Bible warns against the kinds of ef-fects produced by the depressants.

A second result of using sedativedrugs is that it often develops into psy-chological dependance. People whohave used it feel they cannot live with-out its mellow, soothing qualities. Thismakes it hard, if not impossible, forthem to do their regular work in thisworld for which we have been created.What is more, depressants make it im-possible for people to take their place infamily life and in the work place.

The third result of being involvedwith these drugs is the danger of takinga lethal dose. Regular users of the seda-tives become tolerant to their effects.They are no longer able to experiencethe euphoric feelings they enjoyed pre-viously. In an effort to regain this bliss-ful state, they may take an overdose anddie as a result.

One author states that the depres-sants “contain both useful prescribeddrugs and the most widely abusedsubstances.”2

OpiatesThe drugs derived from opium (mor-

phine, heroin, codeine, methadone)also work as painkillers. Many pre-scription pain killers belong to thisgroup of drugs.

There are several ways to makepeople insensitive to pain. One is tomake the area where the pain “begins”temporarily insensitive. The dentistdoes that when he freezes a part ofthe mouth. As a result, a part of thebody becomes insensitive. The opi-ates work differently, for they influ-ence the place where the pain “ends”in the brain. The receptors for pain sig-nals ignore these signals and instead

transmit pleasant sensations. One is asensation of extreme elation, followedby a calming effect and sleep. Duringthis sleep, the drug user has pleasantdreams. It seems that particularly theinitial exhilarating rush makes thesedrugs attractive to the users.3

Opiates do not only cause plea-sure, but they have several negativeside effects. One is the danger of sud-den death. About one percent of hero-ine users die each year as the result oftheir habit. Some of these deaths maybe the result of an overdose, but thereare also other causes. Some die be-cause their lungs have been filled withfluid. This is not the result of the hero-ine itself, but an allergic reaction tothe quinine mixed with the heroine. Athird cause of death is the nausea andvomiting resulting from it, which isdangerous for people who are mal-nourished. Further, an opium over-dose may cause suppression of thestimulus to breathe, so that the personsimply “forgets” to breathe.

Opium and similar drugs haveproven to be very addictive. People whobegin with using it once a week willeventually want to take it during theweek, until they end up using it everyday. People suffering from withdrawalsymptoms know that another dose willmake them feel better. This leads to thevicious circle of drug abuse.4

Those withdrawal symptoms arevery unpleasant. About four hours af-ter a heroine injection, the user suffersfrom a feeling of anxiety and he cravesthe drug. After eight hours, persistentyawning, sweating, teary eyes andrunny nose are experienced. After an-other four hours, the pupils are di-lated, the hairs stand on end (“coldturkey”). This is followed by musclespasms in the feet; later the wholebody begins to ache. Between eigh-teen and twenty-four hours, the bloodpressure goes up, body temperaturerises, vomiting and diarrhea occurs.The symptoms disappear after aboutthirty-six hours.5

The question of how to evaluate thisdrug should be considered in the lightof God’s Word. The first and obviousproblem is that people who use thisdrug willingly endanger themselves.The drug is potentially fatal: one per-cent of users die each year as the resultof it. Using this drug causes a conflictwith the sixth commandment.

Using an opiate has very negativeside effects, even when it is not fatal. Ittakes control over people’s lives. Thepleasure provided by the high becomes

the determining factor for their lives. Inother words, the craving for a high be-comes the main drive in their actions.Rather than serving God, they are com-pelled to serve themselves. Connectedto this is the fact that this drug preventspeople from serving God in their work.They make themselves so sick that theycan no longer do regular work.

It is far removed from the life style theapostle Paul urged on us when he told usto offer our bodies as living sacrifices,holy and pleasing to God, Romans 12:1.

1 See for more information about the stimu-lants, S.H. Snyder, Biological Aspects of Men-tal Disorder (New York / Oxford: Oxford Uni-versity Press, 1980) 106-113; A. Goldstein,Addiction From Biology to Drug Policy (NewYork: W.H. Freeman and Company, 1994)155-167; M.A. Schuckit, Educating YourselfAbout Alcohol and Drugs, 31-33; 62-64.2 M. A. Schuckit, Educating Yourself AboutAlcohol and Drugs, 37; see also 66-68; S.H.Snyder, Biological Aspects, 114-119; A.Goldstein, Addiction, 123f.3 See S.H. Snyder, Biological Aspects of Men-tal Disorder 89ff; A. Goldstein, Addiction, 140f.4 There are stories of people who have sud-denly stopped using this drug without with-drawal and without medication. That ap-pears to be the result of the fact that theconcentration of the drug was very low inthe heroin they bought, see S.H. Snyder,Biological Aspects, 93.5 For technical details, see A. Goldstein, Ad-diction, 140f; M.A. Schuckit, Educating, 37-39; S.H. Snyder, Biological Aspects, 91-94.


The Bible warns againstthe kinds of effects produced

by the depressants.

People suffering fromwithdrawal symptoms knowthat another dose will make

them feel better.

CHURCH NEWS

Called by the church at Smithville, Ontario:

Rev. W. den Hollander

of Toronto, Ontario.

* * *Called by the church at Albany,Western Australia:

Rev. D. Vandeburgt

of Denver, Colorado, USA.

Every evening the television newspresents us with pictures and imagesfrom around the globe. Every day wecan read about them in newspaper type.Most often they are images and storiesof despair, frustration, hatred, poverty,and disease. And yet, unbelievably, de-spite the daily evidence presented as tothe condition of human existence,many, or most, people are convincedthat we are progressing – moving closerand closer to a perfect world (certainlya better world than we are currentlyin). Well, the latest evidence has arrivedvia an American Airlines flight. Whenthe hijacked planes collided with theWorld’s Trade Center in New York City,the Pentagon and a rural field in Penn-sylvania, the belief held by many thatthe world is getting better took a near fa-tal blow. This fact was made evident ina recent article by Robert Fulford fea-tured in the National Post entitled“From Delusion to Destruction.” Hewrites: “The frontal attack on Westerncivilization by Islamic radicals pro-duced terrible death and destructionon Sept.11 and has since re-orderedglobal politics. But its effect on ourmentality may be even more enduring.It has called into question the attitudesby which our society has lived foryears” (October 4, 2001).

Man of the centuryI recently read an article in the De-

cember 31 edition of Time magazinethat demonstrates the optimism peoplehave been holding for the future of ourworld. The entire magazine was de-voted to “The Man of the Century.”The editors decided that the “Man of theCentury” in their estimation would haveto be someone who symbolized the vic-tory in the struggle of capitalism overcommand economies, democracy overfascism, equality over tyranny, andgood over evil. The editors of Time de-cided that although evil dictators suchas Stalin, Lenin, and Hitler dominatedmuch of the history of the past century

they would be relegated to the “ashheap of history” since, ultimately, theywere defeated – and good prevailed. Intheir eyes, the resurgence of the worldeconomies after the Great Depression,the dismantling of the wall separatingEast and West Germany, the victoriesof the Alliance powers in World War Iand World War II demonstrate the tri-umphs of humanity and the unquench-able flame of goodness present in hu-mankind. Franklin Delano Roosevelt,then, was chosen as one of the finalistsfor “Man of the Century” since he em-bodied the ability of mankind to over-come evil. They decided that the suc-cess of Roosevelt and Churchill over theAxis powers was symbolic of the twen-tieth century victories over evil.

Human optimismA book I recently read, (entitled

Non-Zero), reflects the same optimismregarding the progression of good inthe world. Judging by its popularity it issafe to say that many share the author’sviewpoints. In fact, President Clinton,while he was still the President of theUnited States, had every member of hisadministration read it. The controllingidea in the book is that our world isgradually moving to a more perfectstate. The author, Robert Wright, ar-gues this by pointing out that ultimatelysociety continually realizes the impor-tance of working together to achieve agoal. He elucidates this by making thepoint that we all realize the importanceof working together (even to achieveselfish fulfillment) – in the end we all re-alize that our fate is tied to the fate ofthe society in which we live. Therefore,

it is in our best interests to work to-gether. Based on this assumption hebelieves that good will always win outover evil.

Despite the tragedy of early Sep-tember, many people continue to sharein this optimism. They persist in theirbelief that we are moving towards amore egalitarian, humanitarian world.For example, they cite the fact thatmore than half of the world is gov-erned by governments of choice as ev-idence that the world is progressing.Granted, that confidence has likelybeen shaken a little. But the world con-tinues to hold doggedly to that belief.They insist that the evil of terrorism isnot a permanent fixture in the unfold-ing story of humankind.

What makes terrorists?Therefore, in the wake of the disas-

ter, people are scrambling to determinewhat it is, in the history or makeup ofan individual, that makes him/her a ter-rorist. They reason that if we can identifythe conditions that spawn terrorists, wewill be able to terminate this cancerfrom the human condition. Some havespeculated that poverty creates terrorists.I recently read someone argue that toprevent terrorism, we must make waragainst poverty. Others have made theopposite claim citing excessive wealthas one of the key ingredients in the for-mulation of a terrorist (Osama bin Ladaninherited $80,000,000 at the age of thir-teen and now boasts a personal wealththat exceeds $300,000,000). Yet otherpeople name bad foreign policy as thecatalyst in transmogrifying ordinary citi-zens into rabid terrorists.

Is America reaping bitter fruit?Many people in the Canadian me-

dia have claimed that the United Stateswas only reaping the fruits of its har-vest. Haroon Siddiqui commented inthe Toronto Star that Islamic terroriststerrorized America because of “Ameri-can complicity in injustice, lethal and


The Possibility of EvilBy Mark William Slomp

People are convincedthat we are progressing –

moving closer and closer toa perfect world.

measurable, on several fronts” includ-ing “the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, inwhich America stands by decades- longIsraeli defiance of United Nations reso-lutions. . . ” (September 19, 2001). Theimplication is that we have the respon-sibility to overcome evil through flaw-less foreign policy. The logic behind allthis is based on the belief that as longas we can come to an understanding ofwhat fosters evil, we can eradicate it.And they believe that through a deter-mined effort this objective can beachieved. Therefore, they still readilyassure themselves that this latestscourge of evil is only a minor speedbump on the highway to a progressivelybetter world. I suppose that you haveto commend them for their indefatiga-ble faith. However, these misconcep-tions tend to forget the wickedness thatresides in the hearts of every humanwho draws breath.

Those who cling to the hope that thegreat American war machine will defeatOsama bin Ladan and squelch terrorism– thereby putting an end to this horrificseries of events – fail to realize that aslong as evil resides in the human heartthe threat of destruction, death, andchaos always exist. Trying to come toan understanding of what causes evil –as if it is something that is “out there” –in an attempt to remove the necessaryingredients will also fail to eliminateevil in the world. Certainly, finger point-ing is inappropriate.

Instead, we need to have a healthyawareness of our own sin, the need fora Saviour, and the promise of deliver-ance from evil for those who believe inthe one true God. Our security willnever come from alliances betweenmultitudinous nations, military power,advanced intelligence capabilities ortough-talking politicians. Nor can oursecurity come from the erroneous be-lief in the inexorable progression of hu-man societies to a higher degree of per-fection. Security can only be attainedthrough an awareness that God is incontrol of the events in this world – Godwill not allow wickedness and evil tothreaten those who come to Him witha humble faith.

A new realizationThe latest episode of evil has jarred

some into a new realization. As RobertFulford further commented in his article:

The atrocity of Sept.11 was a foreignobject, hard as anthracite, a foreignobject that suddenly lodged in oursouls. Perhaps we can identify itwith an ancient word, evil. That

term frightens us: liberalism decidedlong ago that “evil” should not, ifone follows liberal thinking, exist. Itis therefore distinctly uncomfortableto realize that, whatever we mightwish, it nevertheless has always ex-isted and will always exist.

But he does not take it to its logicalconclusion. He ends his article withthe hope that “Perhaps Sept.11 will leadus toward both a more profound un-derstanding of evil and revived faith inourselves and our shared beliefs.”

A better hopeThat is certainly a belief that holds

out little hope. Thankfully, as Chris-tians this is not the hope that helps usto navigate through times of travestyand tragedy. While the world views themisery and suffering in the world withfear, uncertainty and false confidences,we may view world events with a guar-anteed assurance. Evil will not prevail.As the President of the United Statesquoted in his now famous address to theAmerican people: “For I am convincedthat neither death nor life, neither an-gels nor demons, neither the present northe future, nor any powers, neitherheight nor depth, nor anything else inall creation, will be able to separate usfrom the love of God that is in ChristJesus our Lord” (Rom 8:38). That is oursure and certain hope. Through that as-sertion we can view the events of thisworld, however appalling, with serenityand calm.


Security can only beattained through an

awareness that God is incontrol of the events

in this world.

The Committee on Relations withChurches Abroad has the responsibilityto represent the churches at the Inter-national Conference of ReformedChurches, held every four years. In thatcapacity, the undersigned and Rev. C.Van Spronsen traveled to Philadelphiathis past June to attend the conferencethat was to be held on the campus ofWestminster Seminary. On the firstmorning of the conference, Rev. C. VanSpronsen received news that the Lordhad called his mother unto glory. Hisstay was thus cut short, as he had to re-turn home. Dr. J. DeJong, who was pre-sent as one of the speakers and as an ad-visory delegate, took over his positionas voting delegate.

Rather than unnecessarily duplicatewhat has been written, what follows isthe official press release of the ICRC,which in turn will be followed by someconcluding remarks.

Press releaseThe International Conference of

Reformed Churches, which meetsevery four years, held its fifth meetingin Philadelphia, USA from 21 to 27thJune 2001. A prayer service precededthe official opening and had the ap-propriate theme of Passion for theGlory of God. The venue for the Con-ference was the Val Til Hall of theWestminster Theological Seminary.

The Seminary has had a long associa-tion with the host church, the Ortho-dox Presbyterian Church.

Members The Reformed Presbyterian Church

of North East India was, by unanimousvote, welcomed as the twenty-secondmember church. The member churchesrepresent about 560,000 people acrossthe world in churches adhering to theteaching of the Holy Scriptures as sum-marized in the Reformed Confessions.

Updates on current work were pre-sented by delegates from the CanadianReformed Churches, the EvangelicalPresbyterian Church of England andWales, the Reformed Pilgrim Churches,the Reformed Churches in Indonesiaand the Reformed Presbyterian Churchof North East India.

Introductions were given by repre-sentatives from the following non-member churches: Church of Christ inSudan among the Tiv; Compassion ofJesus Evangelical Presbyterian Church(Eritrea); Independent ReformedChurch (Korea); Presbyterian Church inAmerica; Presbyterian Church inUganda; Reformed Church in Japan;Reformed Churches in South Africa;Reformed Church in East Africa; LankaReformed Church; and Reformed Pres-byterian Church of Central and EasternEurope. Some of these reports showedthe great difficulties under which thefaith is being propagated and yet thewonderful faithfulness of the Lord inbuilding his Church.

The Conference noted the sad divi-sion which had occurred in the FreeChurch of Scotland in January 2000, butthe ICRC being a Conference, not a


Fifth International Conference ofReformed Churches, held in

Philadelphia, PA from June 21 – 27, 2001By E. Kampen

The ICRC alsoencouraged the two Scottish

churches to seekreconciliation with each

other.

Rev. E. Kampen

church court, did not have jurisdictionto evaluate the claims of the FreeChurch of Scotland (Continuing). With-out prejudice to the claims of thechurches involved, the Conference de-cided to invite the Free Church of Scot-land (Continuing) to be seated at themeeting as a non-voting participant,and encouraged her to apply for mem-bership. The ICRC also encouraged thetwo Scottish churches to seek reconcil-iation with each other.

The current list of member churches is: • The Associate Reformed Presbyter-

ian Church • The Canadian Reformed Churches • The Christian Reformed Churches in

the Netherlands - De ChristelijkeGereformeerde Kerken in Nederland

• Evangelical Presbyterian Church inEngland and Wales

• The Evangelical Presbyterian Churchof Ireland

• The Free Church in Southern Africa • The Free Church of Central India • The Free Church of Scotland • The Free Reformed Churches in

South Africa • The Free Reformed Churches of

North America • The Reformed Pilgrim Churches -

Gereja Gereja Reformasi MusyafirN.T.T.; (Formerly Gereja GerejaMasehi Musyafir NTT

• The Reformed Churches in Indonesia– Gereja Gereja Reformasi di In-donesia N.T.T

• The Orthodox Presbyterian Church • The Presbyterian Church in Korea

(Kosin)• The Presbyterian Church of Eastern

Australia

• The Reformed Church in the UnitedStates

• The Reformed Churches in the Nether-lands (liberated) - De GereformeerdeKerken in Nederland (vrijgemaakt)

• The Reformed Churches of NewZealand

• The Reformed Presbyterian Churchof Ireland

• The Reformed Presbyterian Churchof North America

• The Reformed Presbyterian Churchof North East India

• The United Reformed Churches inNorth America.

MissionsAn important aim of the Confer-

ence is to encourage co-operationamong the member churches in fulfill-ment of the missionary mandate. TheConference received the Report of itsMissions Committee, and noted the suc-cessful regional gatherings held since1997. The mandate of the Committeewas revised and its composition ex-panded so that it might more effectivelystimulate and encourage Mission inter-est and facilitate co-ordination of the ef-forts of member churches.

Papers The first paper was presented by Dr.

J. de Jong of Canada on “Biblical Prin-ciples of the Unity of Church – a Re-formed Perspective.” This paper wascomplemented by a second paper byDr. W.D.J. Mackay of Ireland entitled“The Unity of the Church in the West-minster Tradition.” These two papershad been commissioned to assist mem-ber churches to understand the bibli-cal principles of the church and itsunity as they had been expressed inthe European Reformed tradition and inthe Scottish Presbyterian tradition.While there were differences betweenand within both traditions, they didnot appear to be insuperable. Indeed,the Conference was delighted to hearof closer ties established by the Cana-dian Reformed Churches with the Or-thodox Presbyterian Church and theReformed Church in the United States,and the prospect of federative unitybetween the Canadian ReformedChurches and the United ReformedChurches of North America.

Dr. Jakob van Bruggen of theNetherlands presented a synopsis of hispaper on “Hermeneutics and the Bible”in which he stressed, among otherthings, the importance of attention tothe historical context in the history ofredemption when interpreting and ap-plying the Scripture. He turned the ses-sion to good advantage by involving anumber of delegates in discussion ondifferent problems of Biblical interpre-tation. He demonstrated clarity andsurefootedness in this presentationwhich all found stimulating.

Rev. John Ross of Christian Witnessto Israel delivered an informativeoverview of the reasons for ScottishPresbyterian sympathy for and interestin the evangelization of the Jews as itdeveloped in the nineteenth century.This was an adjunct to his paper entitled“Work Among the Jewish People: His-torical Perspectives and the Contempo-rary Challenge.” It was evident that notall churches had a developed interestin work among the Jews, but all be-lieved that Jewish people are includedin the Great Commission. There wasgeneral opposition to the replacementof gospel witness by Christian Zionism.Systems of belief such as dispensation-alism and some forms of Messianic Ju-daism, which threaten the visible unityof Jewish and Gentile believers in theone church of Christ, were also mattersof real concern.


An important aim of theConference is to encourage

co-operation among themember churches in

fulfillment of the missionarymandate.

Rev. E. Kampen and Rev. J. DeJong.

Rev. G.I. Williamson of the UnitedStates presented a paper on “The Regu-lative Principle of Worship.” The initialdefinition provided was drawn fromthe Heidelberg Catechism Question96: “we must not worship God in anyother way than He has commanded.”The treatment provided by the speakerfocused on the content of sung praise(inspired songs/psalms or hymns) andthe religious observance of days (suchas Christmas). His contention was thatchanges in the generally common ap-proach of the Presbyterian and Re-formed traditions in the sixteenth andseventeenth centuries have become ev-ident in later times and reflect a neglectof the biblical principle. There was in-sufficient time to discuss all the mattersarising from this paper. It is clear thatdiscussion in the Reformed tradition hasnot followed the same path as in thePresbyterian tradition, while some Pres-byterians also wish the case formulatedsomewhat differently. Clearly there isneed for on-going dialogue to avoidmisunderstanding and reach a greatermeasure of consensus.

The final paper was presented byRev. Cornelis Pronk of Canada and dis-cussed “The Work of the Holy Spirit inthe Believer,” particularly personalguidance and illumination enjoyed bythe believer. The issues raised by thispaper also received close attention.The importance of clear distinctionsand careful terminology was stressed bya number of respondents. In this waynot only the obvious errors of intellec-tualism and charismaticism are avoidedbut the powerful work of the Spirit in

causing us to abound in love and joy inChrist and his service should increase.

Next meeting A four year budget of 30,000 USD

p.a. (or about 5 cents per church mem-ber) was adopted. The next meeting isto be held in 2005 in South Africa withthe Free Reformed Churches in SouthAfrica as host. A revised arrangementfor the delivery of papers was approvedwhich should ensure greater participa-tion and relevance to the needs of allConference members.

Concluding remarksIn due time the Proceedings and Pa-

pers of this meeting will be available. Ifyou have access to the Web, you canfind the Minutes of the meeting at theICRC website @ http://ourworld.com-puserve.com/homepages/rcjanssen/icrc.htm. For the speeches, you will have towait for the book.

Besides the official business therewas much opportunity for informalmeetings with delegations from othercountries as well as many conversa-tions over meals and coffee. One’smealtime company was seldom thesame, which made for interesting in-

formal opportunities to learn abouteach other’s churches.

One day was set aside for a “fieldtrip.” This trip took us to Princetonwhere we visited a cemetery with theearthly remains of some of the famousmen in the history of the PresbyterianChurch, men who in their days foughtto defend and promote the Reformedheritage. This was followed by a visit toPrinceton seminary. The day was con-cluded with a visit to downtown NewYork. The recent terrorist attack on thevery buildings where a number of dele-gates visited on that occasion is a re-minder of the latent hatred in the heartof unregenerate man and stands in sucha sharp contrast to the brotherly har-mony in Christ which could be enjoyedamong the ICRC delegates who camefrom all over the world. The outingprovided much opportunity for informalconversations, which put a face on therelationship we have.

It is a remarkable experience towalk and talk with brothers in the faithfrom all the corners of the world. In ameeting like that one sees somethingof the fact that the church is made upof people from all tongues and tribesand nations. You experience that thegospel overcomes racial and culturalbarriers and you speak the same lan-guage of faith. We are members of thesame kingdom, with the same King,Jesus Christ. While such conferencesare attended only by the delegationsfrom the various churches, it does giveus as member churches a sense of theworldwide extent of the Lord’s churchgathering work.


It is a remarkableexperience to walk and talk

with brothers in the faithfrom all the corners of the

world.

Westminster Seminary

On a Saturday evening, on Septem-ber 29, 2001, the Theological Collegeof the Canadian Reformed Churcheshosted an evening to celebrate thetwenty-fifth anniversary of Dr. N.H.Gootjes in the ministry of the Word. Itwas not overlooked that Dr. Gootjesand his wife were also celebrating theirtwenty-fifth wedding anniversary. Atthis event were professors and minis-ters with their wives, friends and rela-tives of the Gootjes family. Most im-portantly, there was present Dr.Gootjes, his wife and five children. Dur-ing the course of the evening, it be-came clear that there is deep apprecia-tion among us for the ministry of Dr.Gootjes and particularly his teaching atour Theological College.

The evening provided plenty of op-portunity to mingle and talk together.The children of Dr. Gootjes gave a pre-

sentation which provided insight fromthe perspective that only children couldgive. Various ministers and professorsspoke as well. Dr. R. Kooistra, a retiredChristian Reformed minister who is theuncle of Dr. Gootjes enlightened us asto the home life which Dr. Gootjesenjoyed as a boy. The students at thecollege also provided us with a skit. Al-though the audience suspected thatthere was a certain amount of hyper-bolic portrayal of this professor, still welearned a few things. They made uslaugh, and they convinced us that ourfuture ministers will have a good senseof humour.

During the course of the evening,we learned a few things about Dr.Gootjes. We mention the following,Dr. Gootjes was born in 1948, shortlyafter a war which had torn bitterly at hisnative land, the Netherlands. It was a

time of not much money, but at thesame time of a healthy pride that thisnation had survived and was now re-building. The Gootjes family owned astore which sold fruit and vegetables.As a boy, Dr. Gootjes helped aroundthe store running a variety of errands.From a very early age, he aspired tothe office of minister of the Word. Hewas not even thinking of being a pro-fessor. He wanted to be a preacher. Atthe age of only nineteen the Lord tookto himself Dr. Gootjes’ father. This is ahard thing for any young man, to losea father at such a young age. Thank-fully, it did not diminish his desire toserve the Lord as a minister. And so hefollowed the regular course of study:Christian grade school in Leeuwarden,Reformed high school in Groningen,and Kampen in 1968. Dr. Gootjes notonly finished the regular degree for


Twenty-Fifth Anniversary in the Ministryfor Dr. N.H. Gootjes

September 26, 1976 – September 26, 2001

By R. Aasman

Gift from the Board of Governors to Dr. and Mrs. N.H. Gootjes.

becoming a minister, he also did hisMaster’s degree. During these years hewas also speaking an edifying word.When he finished his studies and waseligible for call, he was called by eightchurches. He accepted the call to thecongregation of Leiden and was ordainedon September 26, 1976. In Leiden heworked on his doctoral dissertation. Justbefore his ordination, our brother mar-ried his wife Dinie. In the course oftime, God would bless them with fivechildren: Henk, Albert, Kees, Jentineand Gerard.

In 1979, Dr. Gootjes was called togo to Korea to teach at Koryo Theologi-cal Seminary, the seminary of the Kosin

Presbyterian Church. This is our sisterchurch. On acceptance of this call, theGootjes family embarked on what wastruly a momentous immigration in Feb-ruary of 1980. Of course, one of thegreatest challenges was mastering theKorean language. Perhaps we can alsosay: of course, knowing the natural abil-ity and devotion of Dr. Gootjes, theKorean language was mastered and ourbrother could teach and write in Ko-rean. During the time in Korea, ourbrother obtained his doctor’s degree intheology in January of 1985. His doc-toral dissertation is entitled, DeGeestelijkheid van God.

By the end of the 1980s, the wheelswere set in motion for Dr. Gootjes tobecome the successor of Dr. Faber atour Theological College. Synod Win-nipeg of 1989 invited Dr. Gootjes tocome to Synod. He flew in from Korea,and he accepted the call. He was in-stalled in Ancaster on October 1, 1989and became the new professor of dog-matology, following in the steps of aman much loved and appreciated byour churches, Dr. J. Faber.

The move to Canada for the Gootjesfamily was not nearly as dramatic achange as going from The Netherlandsto Korea. The family settled downquickly and happily in their new envi-ronment. Unfortunately, the fall of 1989was quite wintry. Around Christmas,Dr. Gootjes came up to the minister ofAncaster in the church parking lot, witha bit of a longing look in his eyes, ask-ing whether the winter was almost over.One hardly had the heart to tell him thatit had only begun. But this too wassomething to which the Gootjes familyacclimatized themselves.

During these past twelve years,Dr. Gootjes has distinguished himselfwell at the Theological College. Weare thankful to our gracious, heav-enly Father for what He has given usin Dr. Gootjes, and in his wife andfamily who support him. May the Lordgive him the health, the strength andthe faithfulness to continue this won-derful work of training young menfor the ministry of the Word. The har-vest is plentiful and more reapersare needed!


Professor Julius asProfessor Gootjes.

Lo, fainter now lie spread the shades of night,And upward shoot the trembling gleams of morn;Suppliant we bend before the Lord of light,And pray at early dawn,

That his sweet charity may all our sinForgive, and make our miseries to cease;May grant us health, grant us the gift divineOf everlasting peace.

Father Supreme! this grace on us confer;And thou, O Son, by an eternal birth!With thee, coequal Spirit Comforter!Whose glory fills the earth.

Gregor the Great. Translated by Edward Caswall.

Morning Hymn

Equipping Christians in IranEarlier this year MERF expanded its

commitment to spreading the Gospelin Iran. For about twenty years, staunchenemies of Christ and his people havetried to totally annihilate the Christianfaith and life from that entire nation.They had gained effective control ofthe country’s political, military, civil,social and economic institutions. Theydeclared that only one religion and oneworld and life view is allowed – Islam.Yes! A fervent and militant Islam whichshuns everything else was declared asthe way for Iran. All other faiths, politi-cal or social ideologies were declaredbanned by law. All kinds of methodsand means became legitimate and ac-ceptable towards the end of consoli-dating the hold of the Islamic revolutionon the country and spreading the ideol-ogy of its leader, Ayatollah RouhullahKhomini, to neighbouring countries andthroughout the world.

In the meantime, Christian churchesof ethnic Armenian or Assyrian back-grounds were allowed a quiet and con-trolled existence, as long as they exer-cised their religious rituals within theconfines of their church buildings underthe watchful eyes of the revolutionaryreligious police. This applied also toabout sixty small Reformed or Evangel-ical churches. All who were first orsecond generation converts from Islamto Christianity were ordered to recant orface the consequences – imprisonment,torture and ultimately death. The ma-

jority of the frightened church went un-derground. Most of the Christian leadersof Muslim background who did notmanage to leave the country werehunted down. Some were betrayed bytheir own families and friends.

“The blood of the martyrs is theseed of the church”

So went an early church saying.Whether this became true or not in Iran,only the LORD knows. What is known isthat the number of Muslims who cameto a true and saving knowledge of Christin Iran is much larger today than it wastwenty years ago and the undergroundchurch is growing. While no one knowsthe exact number of Christian believersin Iran today, indications are that theycould be 40,000-90,000 strong.

The Islamic revolution broughtmuch suffering to most of the people.The thriving and prosperous industrialsector collapsed. Many lost loved onesin the war with Iraq or as a result of thepurging of political enemies. The rulingreligious class have amassed for them-selves and their families and friends agreat deal of wealth and have gainedthe resentment and distrust of mostpeople. People no longer believe inthe revolutionary dream that Islamwould improve their lives. People havebecome more daring in open disregardfor Islamic revolutionary dress andother religious practice codes. Manypeople are seeking alternatives. Manyare showing interest in the ways of theLord Jesus Christ.

No one can guess when religiousliberty allowing freedom of faith andworship will come to Iran. Maybenever! But we can all trust the sover-eign LORD and rely on his wise ways.We can give thanks for the lesseningof pressures against the Christian be-lievers there. We can give thanks forthe fact that the church is growingthere, perhaps faster than in many partsof the “free” world. We can give thanks

for the courage and joyful lives of suf-fering brothers and sisters in Iran. Wecan give thanks for the growing oppor-tunities to reach out through radiobroadcasts to Iran, and the other Farsi-speaking countries, Afghanistan andAzerbaijan. We can pray for our Iran-ian brethren and support their efforts.We can generously share of our re-sources to support these Gospel broad-casts, Bible and Christian literaturedistribution and the training and sup-port of evangelists.

Early this year a select group of Iran-ian men and women were hosted forspecialized training at John Calvin Cen-tre in Larnaca. Issues covered in thetraining included: using radio broad-casting to build up scattered believers inIran, Afghanistan and Azerbaijan, ef-fective one- to-one evangelism, one-to-one Bible teaching, discipling of con-verts and enduring righteous suffering.

Caring for the displaced Sudanesewithin South Sudan

They call them IDPs (Internally Dis-placed People). These are South Su-danese people whose original villagesand towns were either destroyed or be-came totally unsafe within the evershifting firing lines between the Su-danese Islamic government troops andthe SPLA (Sudan People’s LiberationArmy). The SPLA itself is not unified.Even though just about all South Su-danese people support and crave forindependence from the Arab/Muslimauthority of the northern Sudan, they of-ten disagree with each other.


NEWS from MERF-Canada

The number of Muslimswho came to a true and

saving knowledge of Christin Iran is much larger todaythan it was twenty years ago.

MERF’s ministry centerin Nyal was demolished and

two MERF supportedevangelists were injured.

The conflict is even more complex.South Sudanese people belong to manytribes which often clash with eachother. All this means that there is norest for the IDPs; they have no place tocall home. Not that long ago the SouthSudanese towns of Nyal and Pabuongwere attacked and thousands of IDPslost everything they had established forthemselves since they settled there.Quite a number of people were killed.An unknown number of young men andwomen were abducted. Their cattlewere looted. Their huts were destroyedor burned. MERF’s ministry center inNyal was demolished and two MERFsupported evangelists were injured. Fora while it seemed that everything es-tablished by the MERF teams in thearea was gone.

These teams, however, are them-selves South Sudanese. They will notabandon their own people. Even be-fore other major relief agencies hadany plans to respond, the MERF-SouthSudan Committee (MERF-SSC) was

there with teams of pastors and evan-gelists to encourage, to comfort and toprovide for spiritual and physicalneeds. Rev. Tut Wan and Rev. JamesNinrew were able to persuade a bravepilot to provide transport to the areasaffected. They airlifted food and firstaid supplies. The two injured evange-lists and several others injured wereflown to medical centers in safer areasfurther south in the country. Anothermakeshift ministry centre was quicklyset up in Nyal. A few days later mostaffected IDPs were back in bothPabuong and Nyal.

MERF now supports many pastorsand evangelists in Sudan. In addition,grain, powdered milk and other foods,clothing and medical supplies are pro-vided to thousands of needy brothersand sisters throughout the country. Theimmensity of the need seems over-whelming. But the Lord continues toprovide through the faithful giving of hispeople. Praise be to Him!

Upcoming activitiesJuly11-20: Elders Biblical Training

Study term at the John Calvin Centre(JCC), Larnaca, Cyprus.

July 23-August 1:Youth Leaders Bibli-cal Training Study term at JCC.

August 6-15: Women Biblical TrainingBiblical Training Study term at JCC.

August 17-27: Sunday School TeachersBiblical Training Study term at JCC.

August 29-September 7: Pastors Studyterm at JCC.

By way of reminderPlease make all cheques payable to

MERF-Canada and send them to: MERF-Canada, 1225 Dundas Street,

RR 1, Burlington, ON L7R 3X4Thanks for your continued support!

Yours in the Lord’s service,Rev. J. Mulder, chairman

Mrs. J. Van Dam, secretary


Sudan

Iran

Our Lord took into his eternal glory our brother IsacSarumi. Brother Sarumi was born in the western part ofwhat was then called Dutch New Guinea. He receivedhis teacher training during Dutch colonial times. It wasafter the Indonesian takeover that brother Sarumi got in-volved in underground activity against the new rulers. Hewas imprisoned on the Island of Java for three years. Af-ter this term of imprisonment and his return to West Irian,as his country was called at that time, he again took upactivity against the Indonesians by joining the Free PapuaMovement. When this became too dangerous, he es-caped in a motorized canoe along the north coast of theisland, landing in northern Papua New Guinea. Fromthere he made his way to the capital city of Port Moresbyworking as a labourer, speaking neither Pidgin Englishnor the official language which was English.

Being an excellent soccer player, he participated inthat sport in the Sogeri region which is on the mountainplateau on the way to the small village of Ekoro. Duringthis time, he met and married Judy Meana who is amember of the Koiari clan. Together they raised a fam-ily of six children: Max, Antonea, Selviana, Daiva,Amelia and Andrias Janter.

Isac came to the realization that playing soccer onSundays was not pleasing to God. He began holdingdevotions with his family on Sundays. This grew to in-clude many of Judy’s relatives, along with some others.

Since other West Irianese escaped Irian Jaya and settledin Port Moresby, a Reformed church was establishedthere. Isac was elected to become elder, and the smallgathering in Ekoro was under the oversight of the PortMoresby church.

Isac conducted most church services in Ekoro inspite of the fact that he had no formal theological train-ing. He was one of the few who knew Genevan tunes.Even though the Book of Praise was very foreign to them,they endeavoured to sing some Psalms and Hymnsfrom it. The local people in the Ekoro-Itikinumu area rec-ognized his capabilities and talents by electing him aschairman of the Itikinumu public school board. It wasbrother Sarumi, on meeting Rev. H. Versteeg, who re-quested from the Toronto Board of Foreign mission thata missionary be sent to the Ekoro region. Br. Sarumiwas most helpful to Rev. Stephen ’t Hart and familywhen they arrived in Papua New Guinea. I too experi-enced his care and wonderful assistance during myseven month stay in Ekoro. Isac and Judy along with allthe others were incredibly hospitable. It was wonderfulto meet there church members and to work with themduring the construction of Rev. Stephen ’t Hart’s house.

In September of this year, the Lord took our brotherSarumi to Himself. We do not know how this small con-gregation will function without brother Sarumi. Humanlyspeaking, it looks as hopeless as in the time shortly afterthe Liberation of 1944 when the Lord took to HimselfProfessors K. Schilder and B. Holwerda. These were lead-ers whom we thought the church could not do without.Let us pray to our Lord to make the people in Ekoro aswell as the people here in Canada realize that it is not ourchurch. It was not Isac’s church out there in that faraway place. May our Lord make us all more and more re-alize and believe that it is our glorious Lord and Saviourwho continues to gather, defend and preserve for Himselfa church from everlasting to everlasting.

Father in heaven, comfort that small congregation,and especially sister Judy and her children. Keep them inthe faith. Let not Satan triumph over them again. Givenew leaders to that gathering of believers. Also, blessbrother and sister Stephen ’t Hart and their children inorder for them to encourage your faithful ones in thatsmall insignificant place in Papua New Guinea.


In MemoriamIsac Joseph Sarumi

November 20, 1954 – September 2001

By Terry Veenendaal

Front row: Amelia, Yanter, Daivo, Selviana.Back row: Max, Isac, Judy, Antonea.

Press Release of Classis PacificEast, September 20, 2001.

On behalf of the convening churchof Lynden, B. Wielenga called the meet-ing to order, requested the singing ofPsalm 98:2,4, read Psalm 93, and ledin prayer. The delegates were wel-comed and the church at Abbotsfordwas thanked for the use of its facilitiesfor this classis.

The credentials were found to be inorder, with the churches duly repre-sented. Classis was constituted. Theofficers suggested by the previous clas-sis were appointed: chairman: C.J.VanderVelde; vice-chairman: B.Wielenga; clerk: M.H. VanLuik. Theagenda was adopted.

The Church at Vernon sought ad-vice regarding the calling of a minister.Classis urged the Church at Vernon topursue the preparations for the callingof a minister, which would include ap-proaching the committee for needychurches in order that a future classismay be well-apprised of the financialimplications for the churches.

Classis heard and received the re-port of the church for auditing the booksof the treasurer, the report of the com-mittee for needy students, and the re-port of the committee for needychurches. The recommendation of thecommittee for needy churches for amodest increase in the support of theChurch at Vernon in the coming yearwas adopted.

Under question period according toArticle 44 of the church order, all thechurches could affirm that the ministryof the office bearers was being contin-ued and that the decisions of the majorassemblies were being honored. Noneof the churches requested the judgmentor help of classis in any matters.

Appointments were made. TheChurch at Vernon was appointed con-vening church for the next classis whichwas scheduled for December 13, 2001,with March 7, 2002 being the alternatedate. Officers were suggested for the nextclassis as follows: chairman: B. Wielenga;

vice-chairman: M.H. VanLuik; clerk:P.H. Holtvluwer. The Church at Vernonrequested classis to appoint P.H.Holtvluwer as counselor; classis ap-pointed accordingly. Delegates wereappointed for next regional synod,scheduled to convene on December 4,2001 in Winnipeg: elders C. Leyenhorstand H. Ludwig, with elders B. Kuik andE. Kampen as alternates, in that order;ministers: C.J. VanderVelde and B.Wielenga, with P.H. Holtvluwer andM.H. VanLuik as alternates, in that order.

After a brief question period andthe observation by the chairman thatcensure according to Article 34 of thechurch order was not necessary, theActs were read and adopted. The pressrelease was found to have been forgot-ten; it would be compiled from the Acts,post-classis. The chairman requestedthe singing of Psalm 113:1,2, led inprayer and thanksgiving, after whichhe closed the meeting.

For classis, Bill Wielenga

Press Release of Classis CentralOntario, held September 21, 2001

OpeningOn behalf of the convening church

of Ottawa, Rev. M. Jagt called the meet-ing to order. He welcomed the dele-gates and extended a special word ofwelcome to the Rev. C. Heiberg of theURC at Sheffield, Ontario. He requestedthe singing of Psalm 46:1, 2, and led inprayer. He read Hebrews 1.

Examinations of the credentialsThe Church of Flamborough exam-

ined the credentials. All the churcheswere represented by their primi dele-gates.

Constitution of ClassisRev. Jagt thanked the Ebenezer

Church of Burlington for hosting themeeting of Classis. He declared Classisconstituted. The following officers tooktheir place

Chairman: Rev. G. Nederveen,

Vice-chairman: Rev. W. denHollander,Clerk: Rev. M. Jagt.The Rev. Nederveen thanked the

Church of Ottawa for the preparationof this Classis. He presented variousmatters of memorabilia.

Adoption of the AgendaAfter a few additions to the Provi-

sional Agenda were made, the Agendawas adopted.

Reportsa. Report of the Church of Burlington-

South re Inspection of the Archives:found to be in good order;

b. The Treasurer’s report was receivedand read. Br. J.J. Poort informedClassis of his retirement as treasurerof Classis. He recommended thatClassis set the assessment for 2002at $2.00 per communicant member.Classis decided accordingly.

c. The church for the Auditing of theBooks of the Treasurer, Burlington-Waterdown, reported that the booksare up to date and in excellent or-der. This report was received withthankfulness. The chairman ad-dressed the treasurer to express thegratitude of Classis.

d. The church for Financial Aid to Stu-dents for the Ministry, Flambor-ough, informed Classis that they re-ceived no requests for aid, neitherhad they received any contribu-tions to the fund as yet. The assess-ment for 2002 was set for $2.00 percommunicant member.

e. The church for the Auditing of theBooks of the Fund Financial Aid toStudents for the Ministry did notsubmit an audit.

f. The Report from the Committee forNeedy Churches, dated May 5,2001, was read and discussed. Clas-sis decided:– To express its disappointment that

since 1999 the Committee forNeedy Churches did not diligentlyexecute the decisions of variousClasses Central Ontario, but ratherwent by impressions as well as by


PRESS RELEASE

its own interpretation of the deci-sion of Classis Ontario North ofDec. 11, 1998 (art 10.a.4);

– To reject the Committee’s rec-ommendation, considering thatthe need for a joint responsibilitypersists.

g. The Report from the Committee forNeedy Churches, dated August 21,2001, was read and discussed. Clas-sis decided:– To accept the request for support

from the Church at Ottawa in theamount of $26,000;

– To instruct the Committee to seekassistance from Classis NorthernOntario for the support of theChurch at Ottawa to the amountof $13,000 for the year 2002;

– To assess the churches of ClassisCentral Ontario provisionally forthe support of the Church at Ot-tawa to the amount of $22.50 percommunicant member, awaitingthe response of Classis NorthernOntario.

h. There was no report from thechurch for the Auditing of the Booksof the Fund for Needy Churches.

i. Church visitation reports were re-ceived and read of visits made to thechurches of Burlington Ebenezer,Toronto, Burlington Fellowship,Ottawa, Flamborough, and Burling-ton-Waterdown. These reports werereceived with gratitude.

Address Rev. C. HeibergThe Rev. C. Heiberg received the

opportunity to address Classis on be-half of the Classis Southern Ontario ofthe federation of the United ReformedChurches in North America. The chair-man responds with some appropriatewords.

Question Period according to Art 44of the Church Order

The churches declared that theministry of the office bearers is beingcontinued and that the decisions of themajor assemblies are being honoured.Only the Church of Ottawa requestedthe judgment of Classis in a matter ofdiscipline. Advice was given in closedsession.

Proposals or Instructions of thechurches

The Church of Toronto requestedClassis for assistance in the work of thehouse congregation in Trenton, in theform of pulpit supply once every twomonths. This request was granted.

Correspondence receiveda. From the Senate of the Theological

College, informing Classis that br.W. Geurts had successfully com-pleted his third year in the programtowards a M. Div. Degree.

b. From Classis Ontario South of Sep-tember 12, informing Classis of thedecision to divide Classis South intotwo Classes as per January 1, 2002.

c. An invitation from the conveningchurch of Classis Southern Ontarioof the URCNA, the Church of Clin-ton, requesting that Classis send anobserver to this Classis on Septem-ber 26, 2001. The Rev. G. Ned-erveen is delegated as observer.

Appointmentsa. Convening church for the next Clas-

sis: the Church of Toronto, for De-cember 14, 2001; to be held in theBurlington Ebenezer church, at 9:00a.m. Officers were suggested forthat Classis.

b. Classis made the following appoint-ments for Classical examinations:

– Coordinators: Rev. C. Bosch andRev. W. den Hollander;

– Exegesis Old Testament: Rev. G.Nederveen;

– Exegesis New Testament: Rev. M.Jagt;

– Knowledge of Scripture: Rev. M.Jagt;

– Doctrine and Creeds: Rev. J. deGelder;

– Church History: Rev. W. denHollander;

– Ethics: Rev. J. de Gelder;– Church Polity: Rev. G. Nederveen;– Diaconiology: Rev. C. Bosch;

c. Other appointments:– Church Visitors: Rev. J. de Gelder,

Rev. W. den Hollander, Rev. G.Nederveen;

– Church for taking care of theArchives: Burlington Ebenezer;

– Church to inspect the Archives:Burlington Fellowship;

– Treasurer: br. J. Dykstra; alternate,br. H. Sloots;

– Church to audit the books of theClassical Treasurer: Burlington-Waterdown;

– Church for Financial Aid to Stu-dents for the Ministry: Flambor-ough;

– Church to audit the books of theFund for the Financial Aid to Stu-dents for the Ministry: Burling-ton-Waterdown;

– Committee for Needy Churches:br. F. Lodder (treasurer), br. B.Hordyk, br. H. Sloots;

– Church to audit the books for theFund for Needy Churches:Burlington-Waterdown;

– Observer Free Church of Scot-land: Rev. G. Nederveen;

– Delegates to Regional Synod East,November 14, 2001: the minis-ters Rev. J. de Gelder, Rev. M.Jagt, Rev. G. Nederveen, primi,and as alternates the Rev. C.Bosch, Rev. W. den Hollander(in that order); the elders br. J.H.Harsevoort, br. F. Stoffels, br. I.VandeRee, primi, and as alter-nates br. L. Jagt, br. H. Alkema,br. R. Jager (in that order).

Question PeriodQuestion Period was held.

Censure according to article 34 C.O.The chairman asked whether cen-

sure was necessary. It was not required.

Adoption of Acts and approval ofPress Release

The Acts were read and adopted.The Press Release was read and ap-proved for publication.

ClosingThe chairman thanked the brothers

for their good cooperation. After themeeting sang Psalm 100: 1-4, the chair-man closed the meeting with prayer.

For Classis,W. den Hollander, Vice-chairman e.t.

Press Release of the Classis PacificWest Meeting in the CanadianReformed Church at WilloughbyHeights, Langley, BC., on October2, 2001

On behalf of the convening church,the Church at Houston, the Rev. D.Poppe read from Holy Scripture, led inprayer and welcomed the brothers. Thedelegates of the Church at Cloverdalereported on the credentials and all werefound to be in good order. As a result,Classis was declared constituted.

Appointed to the executive were theRev. J. Huijgen as chairman, the Rev. J.Visscher as vice-chairman (in place ofthe absent Rev. C. VanSpronsen), andthe Rev. D. Poppe as clerk. After a fewitems were added, the agenda wasadopted.

An appeal was received from theChurch at Calgary. It was declared to beadmissible and dealt with. A request


for clarification was received from theclassical treasurer. It was discussed anddirection was given. The amount of re-muneration for car travel was raised to30 cents per km. The Church atSmithers requested pulpit supply fromclassis for one Sunday every twomonths. This was granted, as was the re-quest to exempt the Rev. D. Poppe.

The Committee for Financial Aid toStudents to the Ministry reported on itssupport of student Julius VanSpronsenso that he could participate in the sum-mer internship portion of the PastoralProficiency Program. A letter of thankswas received from the student. A reportwas received from the Committee forNeedy Churches, as well as a letter fromClassis Pacific East. The assessment for

2002 in support of the Church at Ver-non has been set at $10.02 per com-municant member. Classis Pacific Westwill remind Classis Pacific East that thissupport is to be reviewed in October2002, as per the original agreement ofseparation.

Question period according to Arti-cle 44 of the Church Order was notused.

The Church at Langley was ap-pointed to convene the next classis inLangley on either Dec. 11, 2001 orApril 9, 2002. The suggested officersare: the Rev. C. VanSpronsen as chair-man, the Rev. D. Poppe as vice-chair-man, and the Rev. J. Visscher as clerk.

Delegated to the Regional Synod tomeet in Winnipeg on Dec. 4, 2001,

were: the Revs. J. Huijgen and D. Poppe(alternates: the Revs. C. VanSpronsenand E. Kampen, in that order); the eldersD. Bandstra and H.H. Moes (alternates:the elders P. VandeBurgt and H. Leyen-horst, in that order). Br. R. VanOenewas appointed to the Committee forNeedy Churches.

Personal question period was heldbut not used. Censure according to Ar-ticle 34 of the Church Order wasdeemed unnecessary by the chairman.The Acts were adopted and the PressRelease was approved.

The Rev. J. Huijgen proposed thatPsalm 72: 1, 2, be sung and led inprayer. Classis was closed.

J. Visscher, vice-chairman


You are the God who performs miracles . . . . Psalm 77:14With thankfulness to our Heavenly Father who heard our prayers, wecelebrate the miracle of our daughter’s birthEMMALEIGH MARIABorn August 9, 2001Thankful parents are Richard and Jody Tomlin2nd grandchild for Ted and Dale Tomlin5th grandchild for Bill and Ineke Vanderwerf106 Elizabeth Crescent, Dunnville, ON N1A 2P1

With thankfulness to our Heavenly Father for entrusting to us a healthydaughter, we announce the birth ofCHANTAL ELIZABETHBorn September 10, 2001John and Shirley Lof4th grandchild for Jake and Liz Lof10th grandchild for Henk and Henny BouwersRR 3, Wellandport, ON L0R 2J0

It is He who made us, and we are His; For the LORD is good and Hislove endures forever; His faithfulness continues through all genera-tions. Psalm 100: 3, 5.With thankfulness to the Lord, we announce the birth of our firstbornchild, a daughterSARAH ELISEBETHBorn October 13, 2001Derek and Tina Lanting (nee Riemer)1st grandchild for John and Tina Riemer2nd grandchild for Bert and Theressa Lanting22-2300 Walker’s Line, Burlington, ON L7M 3Z8

Praise be to the LORD God, the God of Israel, who alone does mar-velous deeds. Psalm 72:18The Lord has blessed our family richly with the birth of a sonKYNAN GERARDHe was born October 3, 2001A little brother for Ian, Janelle and NadineAdrian and Ellis VeenendaalBox 1044, Picture Butte, AB T0K 1V0 Canada

We thank the LORD for entrusting to usCHRISTY-LYNN MADISON SLAABorn April 29, 2001Charles and Bonnie SlaaDayna, Jared, Karlee, Mackenzie and Taylor4334 Hillview Drive, Beamsville, ON L0R 1B8

For you make me glad by your deeds, O LORD; I sing for joy at theworks of your hands. Psalm 92:4With thankfulness to the Lord for this gift of life, we announce the birthof our sonJARED ADRIANBorn on October 5, 2001Brother for Ryan, Jeanette and CorinaTheo and Lidy WierengaRR 1, Carman, MB R0G 0J0

With thankfulness to our Heavenly Father for bringing us together, weALICE VANWOUDENBERG and STUART SCHENKELwould like to announce our engagement.October 19, 2001678 Marley Road, Burlington, ON L7T 3R9

Births

CLARION ADVERTISEMENTS

Engagements


Know therefore that the LORD your God is God; He is the faithfulGod, keeping His covenant of love to a thousand generations ofthose who love Him and keep His commands. Deuteronomy 7:9Praising our Sovereign God and praying for His continued guidance we,JENNIFER GRACE FOLKERTS and JIM GUNNINKjoyfully announce our engagement.October 8, 2001323 Rutledge Crescent, Winnipeg, MB R3W 1J6

Show me your ways O LORD, teach me your paths; guide me in yourtruth and teach me, for you are God my Saviour, and my hope is in youall day long. Psalm 25:4-5With great joyfulness and thankfulness to our Heavenly Father, weSCOTT BOUWERS and TANYA LUDWIGannounce our engagement on September 9, 2001.The Lord willing, we will become husband and wife September 14, 2002.11 Appleton Drive, Orangeville, ON L9W 5C3

We give thanks to You, O God, we give thanks! For Your wondrousworks declare that Your name is near. Psalm 75:1With thankfulness to our heavenly Father who brought us together, weJANET VANDERLAAN and JASON VANHUIZENjoyfully announce our engagement.September 26, 2001.173 Alderlea Avenue, Mount Hope, ON L0R 1W0

1956 ∼ November 16 ∼ 2001I will praise you, O LORD, among the nations; I will sing of you amongthe peoples. For great is your love, reaching to the heavens; your faith-fulness reaches to the skies.With great joy and thankfulness to our Heavenly Father, we an-nounce the 45th Wedding Anniversary of our dear parents andgrandparents POPPE and JANNIE VANDERMEULEN (nee Van Raalte)Their thankful children and grandchildren.598 Walker Street, Fergus, ON N1M 3J3

And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the LordJesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him. Colossians 3:17We give thanks to our Heavenly Father for blessing our parents with25 years of marriage.KOR and HILDA REININK (nee Fluit)1976 ∼ November 19 ∼ 2001With love and congratulations from your children:

FrankFran and John PenningaCobie Reinink and Dan HuttenHenriettaElizabethKlaarissa

Open House at Elora Canadian Reformed Church Saturday, November 24th, 2:00-4:30 p.m.RR 1, Alma, ON N0B 1A0

1966 ∼ November 10 ∼ 2001Trust in Him at all times, O people; pour out your hearts to Him, forGod is our refuge.” Psalm 62:8With thankfulness and praise to our heavenly Father for His bless-ings, we announce the 35th Wedding Anniversary of our parents andgrandparentsLEN and HENNIE STAM (nee Dam)Broomfield, CO: Karen and Doug Vandeburgt

Leah, Joel, SethLangley, BC: Mike and Shauna Stam

Devon, Jaylene, AlishaSurrey, BC: Marnie Stam

Jordyn8143 148 A Street, Surrey, BC V3S 7J5

1961 ∼ November 18 ∼ 2001Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate. Mark 10:9We thank our LORD God in the celebration of our parents and grand-parents 40th Wedding Anniversary., DV.JOHN and GRACE VANMay God continue to bless and guide you in all of His mercies.With love,

Eric and Claudia VanMichael Van, StephanieMonica Van

208 - 74 Miner Street, New Westminster, BC V3L 5N6

Anniversaries

Obituaries

For none of us lives to himself alone and none of us dies to him-self alone. If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die tothe Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord. Forthis reason, Christ died and returned to life so that He might bethe Lord of both the dead and the living. Romans 14:7-9In His wisdom, on October 15, 2001 the Lord took unto Him-self his child, mother, grandmother and great-grandmotherANNE VELDMAN (nee Steendam)at the age of 96 years.Carman, MB: Henry and Willemiene Veldman

Bill and Marina VeldmanRietje and John Vandersluis

Calgary, AB: Wim and Shirley VeldmanCarman, MB: John and Myrna VeldmanAmherst, NS: Tineke and Bill Whitmangrandchildren and great-grandchildren.She was predeceased by her husband, October 3, 1998, oneson and four grandchildren.Mailing address:H. VeldmanBox 1613, Carman, MB R0G 0J0

X X X X X


Credo Christian School, Woodbridge, Ontario (Brampton andToronto) invites applications for FULL-TIME TEACHER for Grades 1/2 starting as soon as possible.For information, contact the Principal, Miss L. MaatSchool: (905) 851-1620; Home (905) 453-7480e-mail: [email protected] of application stating qualifications, experience and referencesshould be sent to:Jack Vanderee, Secretary, Education Committee42 Springhead Gardens, Richmond Hill, ON L4C 5B9e-mail: [email protected]

The Niagara Reformed Christian Education Association, which op-erates Heritage Christian School invites applications from qualified TEACHERSfor the following openings:

Grades 7 and 8 beginning November 1, 2001Grades 7-11 French, beginning February 1, 2002

Heritage Christian School, in the heart of the Niagara Peninsula, servesa student body of close to 500 students. We are blessed with a dedi-cated and supportive Christian community, a cohesive, professionalfaculty and staff of +35 persons, and beautiful, modern facilities.Qualified applicants who seek to serve Jesus Christ in the area of Chris-tian education and who submit to Holy Scripture as interpreted by theReformed confessions are encouraged to apply. Please submit a résumé, with a statement of your philosophy ofeducation, a statement of faith, and references.Please forward inquiries and/or applications to:Mr. A. Ben Harsevoort, PrincipalHeritage Christian SchoolBox 400, Jordan Station, Ontario, Canada L0R 1S0Phone (905) 562-7303 • Fax (905) 562-0020• E-mail: [email protected], children are a heritage from the LORD. Psalm 127:3

The Maranatha/Emmanuel Canadian Reformed School SocietyInc., of Fergus, Guelph and district invites applications for aGRADE 2 TEACHERto begin in January of 2002.For information contact the principalH.J. NobelSchool: (519) 843-3029; Home: (519) 848-3922Applications to be addressed to:Maranatha/Emmanuel Christian Schoolc/o Education CommitteeRR 3, Garafraxa Street, Fergus, ON N1M 2W4

Teaching Positions With much thankfulness, the Board of Governors of

notes the enrolment of fifteen students over its two year pro-grams, the one-year Diploma of Education program and thethree-year Diploma of Teaching program. With good trust andconfidence, we anticipate that this trend will continue in theyears to come.Currently, the College operates with two full-time faculty mem-bers and several part-time instructors.Further, Covenant Canadian Reformed Teachers College iscommitted to pursue avenues for providing in-service teachersupport and professional development.In keeping with decisions made at the 2001 Annual Board ofGovernors meeting, we invite applications for the position of a

FULL-TIME LECTURERDuties commencing with the 2002-2003 academic year. Teach-ing assignments are negotiable, depending on the area of spe-cialization, expertise, and interest.In order to assist us in our planning, the Board of Governorsinvites anyone who is interested in teaching at Covenant Teach-ers College on a full-time basis, to get in touch with us.The suitable candidate(s) will• have a deep commitment to Reformed education as of-

fered at our elementary and secondary schools;• be a communicant member in good standing of a Cana-

dian Reformed Church or a sister church;• hold an advanced degree in Education or be in the

process of completing one;• have an interest in in-service teacher development as

well as pre-service training;• have excellent teaching skills;• possess good communication skills, both oral and written;• demonstrate strong leadership qualities.

For further information, please contact:

C. van Halen-Faber, Principal(905) 385-0634 (CCRTC)

Fax: (905) 385-8409; E-mail: [email protected]/or

M. de GelderProgram and Personnel Committee, Convener

(905) 659-3354

Covenant Canadian Reformed Teachers College

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Sales ExecutiveSafetyCare Inc. is an international company which producesand distributes its own range of Safety Training Videotapes andManuals. Working out of our Burlington, Ontario office, we pro-vide companies throughout Canada with quality aids to helptrain their staff in health and safety.We are looking to add one more sales person to our existingteam. The position involves selling our products to existingcustomers as well as developing new business. All the sales ac-tivity is done over the phone. The person we are looking for does not need specific qualifi-cations, but rather should be able to demonstrate a stablehistory with a personal or business background that indicatespersistence and determination.We offer a basic salary, plus commissions and health benefits,with potential first year earnings of $30,000 - $40,000.If this position interests you, please call Ed Aasman at

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Due to expansion . . .

The Canadian Reformed Association for the Handicappedcurrently operating Anchor Home seeks applicants for

LIVE-IN MANAGERThe Board is interested in a couple to manage our new homeas planned for the Burlington, Ontario area.Responsibilities would include the care of 3 (max. 4) indi-viduals with an intellectual disability in a home providedby the Association.Please submit written applications before December 31, 2001 to:

Anchor HomeRR 2, 361 Thirty Road, Beamsville, ON L0R 1B2

For Information:Director of Operations - Mr. Bert VanGoolen

Res (905) 957-2408; Bus (905) 563-8641

Board Chairman, Mr. Gerry NordemanRes (905) 634-9513

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for more detailsAvailable for $20.00 from any choir member and from the following:

Fraser Valley, BC: Marcelle Togeretz, Yarrow (604) 823-4366

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Hamilton/Ancaster, ON: Freda Smouter (905) 648-4308

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Burlington, ON: Marj Stieva (905) 632-1347

Cassettes of our first recording O Sing Joyfully are still available atthe special price of $5.00.Mail Orders for CDs, Cassettes:

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EMMANUEL CANADIAN REFORMED CHURCH

Guelph, Ontario

Since the Lord has richly blessed us with growth over thepast 25 years, the congregation of Guelph hopes to build anew church facility. We have already purchased a parcel ofland, and D.V., in the near future we will build.

Please remember our endeavours in your prayers. Your con-sideration for financial assistance would be appreciated.

For further inquiries contact:

Gerrit [email protected]

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This award-winning Senior Citizen Home is locatedclose to Ebenezer Canadian Reformed Church. It hasaudio hookup for the church services in every apart-ment and a weekly evening video church service pre-sentation provided for by Ebenezer. Monthly rent isgeared to income. Information from:

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HERITAGE CHRISTIAN SCHOOL

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In keeping with our promise to educate our children inthe Reformed faith, we are asking for your support in thecontinuing operation of our school. Heritage ChristianSchool faces a deficit of $25,000 for the coming year.Please prayerfully consider assisting our school.

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League Day of the Canadian andAmerican Reformed Men’s Societies

“Reading Scripture In Its Context”The League of Men’s Societies invites all interestedmen to come to its annual League Day.

Date:

Saturday, November 24, 2001, D.V.Time:

Doors open at 9:30 a.m., speech at 10:00 a.m.Place:

The Canadian Reformed Church of AttercliffeTopic:

Reading Scripture In Its ContextSpeaker

Professor GeertsemaReading:

Matthew Chapters 5-7, 11-13Luke Chapters 4, 8, 16James Chapter 1:1-18

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Documents

Clarion · 2013. 9. 24. · time of year we have our Remembrance Day celebrations where we commemorate the wars of the past century. We enjoy peace and freedom because our governments