BishopAccountability.org
	Synod Prays for Forgiveness on Abuse Christian Reformed Church June 18, 2010 http://www.crcna.org/news.cfm?newsid=2019§ion=1 June 16, 2010 -- Delegates to Synod 2010 on Wednesday morning asked God to forgive the failure of the Christian Reformed Church to respond justly and compassionately over the years to victims of sexual abuse. Meeting at Trinity Christian College in Palos Heights, Ill., delegates to synod also joined in prayer to repent that perpetrators of abuse have not always been disciplined adequately by church councils. “We in the Christian Reformed Church confess that we have not always justly and compassionately helped those who have been sexually abused,” they prayed, standing at their seats in the auditorium of the Martin and Janet Ozinga Chapel. “Furthermore, we confess that we have not always justly or adequately disciplined church leaders who have been abusers. We humbly ask forgiveness from those we have failed. We thank God for the progress we have made and we commit with God’s help to do better.” The prayer followed a lengthy discussion on a report from the Abuse Victims Task Force, a group that had been mandated by synod several years ago to establish guidelines on how churches handle allegations of abuse lodged against church leaders. Many delegates acknowledged that abuse has been a problem in their churches and that their church councils have not always responded in the best manner, often from a lack knowledge or proper training. John Oosterhof, a delegate from Classis Huron, said he strongly favors recommendations in the report, adding that his church has taken this issue seriously and has been “doing due diligence and is doing this more and more all of the time (in learning how to handle complaints of sexual abuse and of how to best resolve the cases) … We have to bring the message home to church councils that they must do this.” The recommendations approved by synod include: * Urging church councils to provide for the pastoral care needs of the abuse claimant, the person accused, families and congregation when an allegation of sexual abuse by a church leader is brought forward. * Reaffirm the decision of Synod 2005 in its support of restorative justice principles and their application in the way that churches respond to abuse issues, recognizing that it will not be appropriate in all cases. Restorative justice is a process in which all or at least many of the parties to an incident come together to seek resolution. “I don’t see this as a primary tool, though,” said Rev. David Sieplinga, a delegate from Classis Muskegon. Sieplinga said he favors the use of restorative justice, but pointed out that there are often parties in a case who are unwilling to sit down at a table across from one another and seek resolution. “Generally, there is support among insurance agents and companies for this approach,” said Beth Swagman, director of the CRC’s Safe Church Ministries office. “Litigation and settlements are very costly,” she said. “There is growing support for this process that will be more strongly developed in the future. If we can arrive at restitution that is helpful and just” that is often a more lasting and less expensive approach. Part of the task force report said: “There is limited awareness of restorative justice within the CRC community, and dominant messages in our culture reinforce an adversarial approach to justice that is contrary to restorative justice principles.” Other recommendations that synod passed included: * Beginning implementation of pilot projects that use restorative justice and other alternative approaches to see if they can work in resolving sexual abuse cases. * Asking the CRCNA to develop training, prevention and awareness-raising materials that can help church councils and others better address the complex factors that come into play when a complaint of sexual abuse is made against a church leader. * Asking the Board of Trustees to instruct the executive director of the CRC “to develop a handbook, as soon as possible, that clearly describes the roles and responsibilities of church council members when an allegation of sexual abuse by a church leader arises.” Rev. Robert Boersma, a delegate from Classis Grand Rapids South, was asked to help lead the final prayer in which synod asked for forgiveness in how the church has often dealt with sexual abuse. “We need to believe Jesus Christ will be with us in making this right,” said Boersma.
Any original material on these pages is copyright © BishopAccountability.org 2004. Reproduce freely with attribution.