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Christian Courier 


A REFORMED WEEKLY, formerly known as Calvinist Contact 


May 20, I994/49th year of puhlication/No. 2401 


Teens 

say faith 

act should 
not be 
class act 

Irene Bom 

BRANTFORD. Ont. — Feel¬ 
ing ready. 

When il comes lo profession 
of faith, a half-dozen teens say 
that the “r" word is what mat¬ 
ters most to them. 

But they added that a “ready 
or not” attitude — in which the 
public event, usually on Pen¬ 
tecost Sunday, merely caps 
lour years of catechi.sm classes 
—Trimn cofhUff oh 
from many parents and peers in 
a spectrum of Reformed chur¬ 
ches. 

The ceremony is the counter¬ 
part to adult baptism in evan¬ 
gelical churches. The persons, 
usually in their late teens or 
early twenties, announce their 
faith and pledge to become full 
members of a congregation. 

“It’s sad. but a lot of kids are 
forced into it by their parents. 
That goes on pretty often," 

.says Scott Nijp, 2T 

A self-declared “very moral 
kid” that has never drunk al¬ 
cohol or smoked, he professed 


Pentecost 

1994 


I I 


In this Issue 


Three teens face 

choices.p.lO 

Did God answer 

Job?.p.ll 

Merchants allow Jesus 
parade.p.20 



his faith three years ago in First 
Reformed Church in Brantford, 
Ont. Next year he is heading 
off to seminary with hopes of 
“giving my church new life and 
enthusiasm." 

Signed up early 

Barb Ypma, 17, says she felt 
that pressure from the other 
end when she signed up a year 
early for the prerequisite 
pastor’s class at Bethlehem 
Christian Reformed Church in 
Thunder Bay, Ont. “My friends 
were kind of telling me. ‘We 
were all going to do this thing 
together, remember .^’ And I had 
to tell them, ‘That’s not how it 
goes. I feel ready now.’" she 
says. 

Ypma says her life has been 
“diffcrent" after a camp ex¬ 
perience when she was 10: 
“Ever since I’ve had a happi¬ 
ness that won’t stop.” 

For Ed Hovius, a Christian 
Refonned 17-year-old in New¬ 
market. Ont., that pressure to 
“go forward and graduate" 
made him decide to put off the 
ceremony. “I believe in Christ 
and all, but I don’t want just to 


plea.se my parents and others. I 
don’t agree with that tradition. 

I want to learn more," he ex¬ 
plains. 

He .says he is waiting to meet 
up with people of different 
church backgrounds in fellow¬ 
ship groups at the University of 
Guelph next year before set¬ 
tling down in one denomina¬ 
tion. 

Clinched decision 

Time away from home did 
clinch the decision for two 
other teens. 

It would have been easier for 
Eric Luth to say “I do, God 
helping me" in his Free 
Reformed congregation in 
Chatham. Ont., before he left 
for college. 

Now. he’s glad he waited. In 
his first year at Dordt College 
in Sioux Center, Iowa, he met 
three other students who began 
praying together and urging 
each other to read and 
memorize the Bible and “to get 
on fire for Jesus." 

“Before I went I don’t think 
I was a Christian." he says. 

See 1 p.2... 


Sunday association 
folds after 106 years 

Robert VanderVennen 

MISSISSAUGA. Ont. — Another milestone in the 
secularization of Canada has been passed as the People for Sun¬ 
day As.sociation of Canada (formerly the Lord’s Day Alliance 
of Canada) decided to call it quits after 106 years. 

Canadian governments as well as churches have brought 
about the defeat of efforts to keep Sunday as a day of rest and 
worship, said Les Kingdon, executive director for the past 1.^ 
years. Federal and provincial governments have repealed laws 
that have kept stores clo.sed on Sundays, and most provincial 
governments now have legislation that allows nearly wide- 
open Sunday shopping. 

Revenue Canada has withdrawn the charitable tax status of 
the group. Churches have failed to support efforts to keep 
stores closed, a fact not lost on politicians. 

Disappointment in church support was exprcs.sed by chair¬ 
man Arie Van Eek who told the group, “Churches have not 

See CHURCHES p 2 . 


r 


REDEEMER COLLEGE LIBRARY 
ROUTE 

CHRISTIAN COURIER i 

PER/BX/9401/ .C36 ^'24 



I 




















PAGE 2 


CHRISTIAN COURIER 


News _ _ __ _ _ _ _ 

‘I realized my denomination is the most biblical’ 


...continued from p.I 

“I was not a bad person, bul 
my devotions before bed didn’t 
really speak to me.” 

Jeremy Penninga, 19, will be 
standing up in front of his 
Canadian Reformed congrega¬ 
tion in Smithers, B.C., after a 
semester away at Trinity 
Western University in Langley. 
B.C. 

He didn’t go thmugh with 
the event before he left because 
“1 wanted to make sure that I 
wasn't just saying this because 
I was a certain age." 

To make sure of his reasons. 
Penninga says he began check¬ 
ing motives, mostly regarding 
church events. “Before I went 


to seminars on the New Age 
and on angels. I asked myself if 
I was just going because my 
parents wanted me to. But I 
think I’m going because 1 want 
to." 

His faith also influenced 
both his choice of current job 
— “1 chose the feed store job 
because I’d be working with 
Christians" — and future 
career: he opted for the inde¬ 
pendence of a real estate agent 
so that he “would not have to 
join a labor union or work 
where a lot of people disagree." 

In lha» job, “being honest 
and truthful as a Christian only 
helps,” he asserts. 

At university Penninga 
rubbed shoulders with people 


from many different denomina¬ 
tions. After asking a lot of ques¬ 
tions, “I realized that my 
denomination is the one that 
follows the Word of God most • 
directly," he asserts. 

Switched cburcbes 

Laura Lee Jeans came to the 
same conclusion, but from a 
very different background. The 
18-ycar-old former Baptist 
from Houston, B.C., started at¬ 
tending services with a friend 
at the local Canadian Reformed 
Church last August. That fall, 
she signed up for a pre-confes¬ 
sion class. She opted for a so¬ 
cial work program at a nearby 
college next year so that she 
could continue her class. 


“1 really enjoy how they get 
into Bible study and the history 
of the church." says Jeans. Her 
mother, who attends a United 
Church, and her father, who 
stays home, support her switch. 

She says she was happy in 
her former congregation but 
decided to become Canadian 
Reformed after looking up all 
the verses in the Bible on bap¬ 
tism. 

The hardest part of the 
switch was leaving the ministry 
team of her former church. 

“My other church focused on 
saving people by going into 
malls and so on. Canadian 
Reformed people really en¬ 
courage knowledge. I was con¬ 
vinced that they were the most 


biblical." she notes. 

Meanwhile Luth in Chatham. 
Ont., believes that his Free 
Reformed denomination is the 
right one. He adds that at first 
he didn’t want “to give my life 
to one denomination." 

But sessions with his pastor 
helped change his mind. “They 
made me believe that my 
denomination is probably the 
most biblical one.” says Luth. 

But then again, Luth adds, 
"maybe I’m biased because I 
haven’t taken pre-confession 
classes of other denomina¬ 
tions." 


Churches failed to fight for Sunday closings 



...continued from p. I 

made common cause with us. 
That hurts beyond description. 

Van Eek, a minister of the 
Christian Reformed Church, 
says that CRC churches have 
been among the staunchest 


church supporters of The 
Lord’s Day Alliance, both in 
Canada and the United States. 

Retail sector support 

Business and labor groups 
have joined Chri.stians in recent 
years to uy to keep Sunday 


work-free for retail store 
employees. So in 1982 the 
name was changed from the ex¬ 
plicitly Christian “Lord’s Day 
Alliance." The efforts of the as¬ 
sociation have been focused on 
keeping retail stores closed on 
Sunday. 

With the loss of tax .status it 
became illegal for churches to 
continue their financial sup¬ 
port. and individual donations 
also dried up. Efforts were 
made to change the organiza¬ 
tion into a charitable founda¬ 
tion to engage in re.search to 
show the benefits of observing 
the Lord’s day. but Revenue 
Canada said that would not be 
a charitable activity (see accom¬ 
panying details). 

I'he upshot of it all was Uiat 
members voted to disband the 
assiKiation at its recent 106th 
annual meeting. Its remaining 
funds of about $15,000 will be 
divided equally among Citizens 
for l»ublic Justice, Evangelical 


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Revenue Canada says 
protecting Lord*s Day is 
political, not charitable 

Robert VanderVennen 

MISSISSAUGA, Ont. — The People For Sunday Associa¬ 
tion of Canada has been working with Revenue Canada to 
give up Its charter to form an educational organization to 
promote Sunday observance. 

The as.Hociation would engage in research on the benefits 
of observing the Lord’s Day (or any day in seven) and the 
importance of quality time and rest in human life, and 
would share its results with churches and the general 
society. » 

It has, however, received a letter from Marie Barrotta- 
Britt of the Charities Division of Revenue Canada saying 
that such activity Is neither religious nor educational, and 
therefore would not qualify as a charity under the Income 
TiiX AcC* 

To qualify as an educational charity, its "research ac¬ 
tivities mu.st aim to inform and educate the public rather 
than to influence opinions or inculcate a particular attitude 
of mind,” writes Ms. Barrotta-Britt. 

She adds, "Moreover, activities designed to influence 
public opinion in support of a particular viewpoint on a^- 
cial Issue In order to effect social change are political and 
not charitable In nature." 

Members of the People for Sunday Association expressed 
astonishment at this viewpoint at their recent annual meet¬ 
ing, commenting that it caRs into question some activities 
of churches and other charitable organizations. 


Fellowship of Canada and the 
Canadian Council of Churches, 
reported 1'om Ross of the 
Canadian Retail Hardware As¬ 
sociation, current treasurer, 
who has been on the board for 
25 years. 

At the annual meeting, at¬ 
tended by 13 people, there was 


a feeling that the battle had 
been lost, but also the positive 
view that the group had been 
able to stave off open Sunday 
shopping for 15 years. The 
meeting was attended by Dr. 
Jack Lowndes, executive direc¬ 
tor of the Lord’s Day Alliance 
of the U.S.A. 































PAGE 3 


Seniors 


The joys of growing older 


To help me ease imo ihis 
new column, the editor has gra¬ 
ciously allowed me to use parts 
of a talk 1 recently gave to a 
gnmp of greying women. It had 
to do with the joys of growing 
older. 

Growing older is often 
thought of as something nega¬ 
tive. something vaguely or 
even outright unpleasant — 
c.specially today, when youth 
and its beauty, its strength and 
possibilities arc adored out of 
all proportion. 

Now. there’s no denying it, 
growing or being old can be dif¬ 
ficult. Old age. as it has been 
said, is not for sissies. Still, 
there’s more to it than weari¬ 
ness or walking with a cane, at 
least for Christians. Others may 
look for a positive aspect of 
retirement in the fact that so 
many senior citizens seem to 
have the time of their life 
travelling and shopping. 

In general, people are living 
much longer now than in ear¬ 
lier times and that, naturally, is 
a rellection of God’s goodness. 
His common grace has allowed 
medical science to take some 


bkxid pressure in check, 
pacemakers to keep our hearts 
beating properly and artificial 
hips to keep us on our feet 
longer. Even so, we know full 
well that we are not getting any 
younger. Grey hairs and 
wrinkles tell us so. But never 
mind those. Never mind that 
we start to forget things, too. 
(Names in particular!) Embar¬ 
rassing as it may be at times 
it’s nothing compared to the 
real burdens of old age, bur¬ 
dens the younger generation 
knows nothing of. 


Characterized by fear 

There often is apprehension 
about the future — will we stay 
healthy and fit enough to take 
care of ourselves and our 
home? Will our money last? 
There’s the fear of death, per¬ 
haps and the pain of losing 
those who are called home 
before us. They may be loss of 
hearing or the dread of 
Alzheimer’s disease. 

So, really, where’s the joy in 
all this? That depends entirely 
on how we define it. We must 
be careful not to mistake joy 
'flfWen 

piness. These may all be good 


in themselves but they are 
also so very fickle. 

They have no per¬ 
manence. We can’t always 
have fun. nor would we want 
to. We can’t continually 
chase after pleasure, nor 
would we be wise to do so. 

And happiness can be shat¬ 
tered so easily. 

But true joy is not affected 
by what happens to us and 
that’s because true joy is 
anchored in God. True joy will 
run like an undercurrent 
through the days and years of 
our life. Of cour.se, it’s not for 
old people only. Yet. and that s 
the beauty of it. it tends to be¬ 
come richer as time goes on. 
Joy needs nurturing and the 
more and the longer we have 
nurtured it, the stronger it will 
be! Joy is a fruit of the Spirit 
and fruit is something that 
grows. All that grows needs 
care and this particular fruit, 
joy, thrives on a close and 
obedient relationship with the 
Lord Jesus Christ. 

I would like to u.se my next 
column to talk about this some 
more. 



Alice Los lives in Lislowel, Ont. 


Amnesty launches human rights handbook 

tools to change the human stitute systematic programs to 

rights situation in their stem the fioixl of “disappearan- 

countries." says Amnesty Inter- ces” and killings, which have 
national. 

The handbook calls on the 
world’s governments to in-_ 


VANIER, Ont. (AI) — Am¬ 
nesty International has 
launched its first-ever hand¬ 
book to help human rights ac¬ 
tivists worldwide tackle one of 
the gravest threats to human 
rights in the 1990s — political 
killings and “disappearances.” 

The handbook documents 
the pattern of political killings 
and “di.sappearanccs” in some 
40 countries, and provides 
human rights organizations 
with information on internation¬ 
al standards and the attempts 
made to put those standards 
into practice. It pre.sents a 
detailed program for the 
eradication of “disappearan¬ 
ces” and political killings to as¬ 
sist human rights activists in 
confronting these violations in 
their countries. 

The handbook is publi.shed 
as part of Amnesty 
International’s worldwide cam¬ 
paign on political killings and 
“disappearances” launched last 
October, and is the most 
thorough study of its kind ever 
published by the organization. 

“With the publication of this 
handbook, we are supporting 
the work of human rights 
defenders and providing the 


claimed over a million victims 
in the pa.st 25 years. 


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PAGE 4 


CHRISTIAN COURIER 


Editorial _ _ _ 

Who knows but that you have been chosen to make a difference? 


The main theme of the 1994 Canadian 
Church Press Convention was: “For such a 
lime as this.” The theme was taken from 
Esther 4; 14. It reminded Christian journalists 
that they had been called to serve God at a 
critical lime in the history of Western 
civilization. The same theme could serve 
equally well for a convention of pastors, 
teachers, politicians and parents. 

We’re not essential 

The Esther 4:14 passage is a condensed 
package of survival instructions. It is sent to 
Queen Esther by her uncle Mordecai, who was 
worried about the pos.sible destruction of all 
Jews at the hands of Ham an. He urged Esther 
to approach King Xerxes, even if it meant 
ri.sking her own life. “For if you remain silent 
at this time,” said Mordecai, “relief and 
deliverance for the Jews will arise from 
another place, but you and your father’s family 
will perish. And who knows but that you have 
come to royal position for such a lime as this?” 

The first thing that strikes us about this 


Christian Courier 


Formerly known as Calvinist Contact 
Founded in 1945 

An independent weekly that seeks the truth, care 
and rule of Jesus Christ as it 

— reports on significant happenings in the 
Christian community and the world, 

— expresses opinions that are infused by 
Scripture and Spirit and rooted in a Reformed 
perspective, 

—provides opportunities for contact and 
discussion for the Christian community. 

Kditur: Bcil WilVOCl; Ofnenil Manaitrr: Stan tie Jong", 
Akuociaic Kditor: Marian Van Til; 

SlalT Reporter: Irene Bom; KeKiomil Reporten: 

John Paler, Edmonion, Alta.; Robert 
VanderVennen. Toronto, Oni. 
cirniiaUon Manaiter: Grace Bowman; 

ArrounUng: CoiTie de Jong', 

Adverti«in|> & Type*eUing: Ingrid Tom', 
l.ayout & Uenign: Cecilia van Wylick 
Proofreading: Irene Bom 

KDITORIAl. ADVI.SORY BOARD: 

Roben Dernhardi, Nandy Hculc, Anne Huiten. 

Shecna Jainieaon, Nicholas B. Knopper*. 

Jacob Kuntz, lammcn Slofttra, 

Wdliam Van lluizen. Nellie Weilerlioff. 

Hie publicaUon of commcnia, opinions or advertising does nol 
imply agreement or endorsement by either Chnstian Courier 
Of the publisher: 

Calvinist Contact Publishing Limited 
4-261 Martindale Rd., St. Catharines, Ont. 

L2W 1 At, Canada 

Td: (905) 6H2-8311 Fax: (905) 682-HJlJ 


incident is that God did nol need Esther. If 
Esther does nol speak up, deliverance will 
come from another direction. Nor does God 
need any of us who are in the business of 
shaping society. It’s as Jesus said, “Do not 
think you can say to yourselves, ‘We have 
Abraham as our father.’ I tell you that out of 
these stones God can raise up children for 
Abraham.” Humility is in order when it 
concerns the role we play. 

The second point is that if Esther does not 
rise to the occasion of doing God’s will she 
and her family will die. You can’t toy with a 
calling coming from God. The same can be 
.said for Christian culture workers. We, too, 
can’t miss important opportunities for serving 
God without suffering serious consequences. 

The third point is that God placed Esther in 
a strategic place and is willing to make use of 
her. Thai’s the most miraculous thing of all. 
God provides parents, teachers, nurses and 
mechanics with opportunities for furthering his 
will on earth. Although he does nol need them, 
he is willing to make use of them. He even 
calls on them. 

We may or may not succeed 

Fourthly, Mordecai is nol entirely sure how 
effective Esther's intervention will be. He 
raises success as a possibility: “Who knows 
but that you have come to royal position for 
such a lime as this?” The phrase “who knows” 
reinforces his deep belief that God will 
accomplish his purposes regardless of what 
Esther will do. But it also contains the hope 
that her intervention may be the means God 
has made available to the Jews of his days. 

Mordecai’s statement almost anticipates the 
lines in Shakespeare’s 7m//w5 Ceasar: “There’s 
a tide in the affairs of meny Which, taken at 
the fiood, leads on to fortune;/ Omitted, all the 
voyage of their life/ Is bound in shallows and 
in mi.series./ On such a full sea are we now 
afioai,/ And we must lake the current when it 

Life can be so difficult 

One of our proofreaders asked whoever was 
nearby, “What is it now, he emigrated or he 
immigrated from the Netherlands to Canada?’’ 

“It depends on where you stand,” someone 
offered. “If you stand in Rotterdam, he 
emigrated from the Netherlands to Canada; if 
you stand in Halifax, he immigrated from the 
Netherlands to Canada.” 

“But this is an ad sent from Holland to 
appear in a Canadian weekly. Now what is it?” 

“It’s emigrated hcc’dufic it’s their ad. It’s 
written from a Dutch point of view.” 


serves,/ Or lose our ventures.” 

But there is an important difference between 
Mordecai’s statement to Esther and the quote 
from Julius Caesar. Shakespeare sees life as 
an impersonal sea which at times presents us 
with opportunities for success. But Mordecai 
sees life as a calling from God, who may or 
may nol use us to accomplish a certain thing. 
The emphasis is nol so much on making the 
most of our opportunities as on nol missing the 
calling. 

It may be that we Christian workers and 
leaders cannot stem the tide of secularism that 
threatens to sweep over the Christian 
community. Yet who knows but that we have 
come to our positions of responsibility for 
such a time as this? It’s a privilege to be 
chosen. We tremble as we consider it with 
God-fearing hearts. 

A critical time 

Finally, there is the phrase “ for such a time 
as this.” For Mordecai it was a very critical 
time. Haman was trying to get rid of all the 
Jews. That was no time to hesitate or be afraid. 

Our times are critical too. Our culture is_ 
Joing through a radical shift as Society tTfe<1b 
break free from what it considers the shackles 
of a Christian past. Concerns for legal 
protection and individual freedoms far 
outweigh concerns for the moral fabric of 
society as a whole. 

Satan is trying his best to gel rid of all 
vestiges of Christianity. But in reality he’s 
trying to get rid of all Christians. Once our 
society has become completely tolerant of all 
kinds of deviant behaviors, anyone who holds 
a disapproving attitude towards what society 
tolerates will be subject to destruction. 

This is no time to be afraid or to waver. 

Who knows but that God has called us all to 
be an important witness for such a lime as this. 

BW 


“Oh.” 

Another person cracked, “I wonder what the 
ocean would say?” 

“The ocean would say, ‘He migrated,’ ’’ said 
the expert, without cracking a smile. 

Good grief. I’m thinking. No wonder I’ve 
been walking around with an identity crisis 
ever since I left Holland behind as a young 
lad. Who am 1? An emigrant, a migrant or an 
immigrant? 

It’s enough to give anyone a migraine. Or is 
that an emigraine? BW 














PAGE?* 


MAY 20, 1994 

Letters/News 



A ‘long memory’ of racial, religious strife 


Though Professor Jozsef Bercnyi of 
Sarospaiak seminary explains the 
predicament of the Reformed Church in 
Hungary quite well (CC April 29), the 
woes of the church go deeper than just 
communism. People with a knowledge 
of history undoubtedly remember how 
the 17th century leader of the Hungarian 
Calvinists. Imre Thokoly. appealed to 
the grand vizier of the Turkish Ottoman 
empire. Kara Mustapha. to attack the 
Roman Catholic Habsburg empire and 
its capital. Vienna — which the grand 
vizier promptly did. 

With the tacit support of the Hun¬ 


garian army. 300.000 Turks with camels 
and equipment laid siege to Vienna from 
July 17 to Sept. 12. 1683. The emperor 
of the Holy Roman Empire. Leopold I. 
had to flee the city because he was not 
able to obtain the expected help from 
Louis XIV of France. Help, however, 
came from a combined German anny 
and Poland’s king John III Sobicski. As 
a result, the Turkish siege was lifted on 
Sept. 12, 1683. 

The above is important to know, be¬ 
cause in general the public insufficient¬ 
ly realizes that Western Europe was 
invaded three times by Islamic forces in 


Camp Ke-mon-oya mourns sudden 
death 


niOTOiCATHV LEKrTE»» 


Rudy Lenters. left, points out the unique natural "cross-on-the-rock" to Ke-mon-oya 
visitors. 


Irene Bom 

APSLEY. Ont. — A season in the his¬ 
tory of Christian Reformed kids and 
summer fun changed recently with a 
sudden death at Camp Ke-mon-oya. 

Longtime CRC camp director Rudy 
Lenters collapsed and died this spring, 
just days after handing the reins of the 
camp over to new owners. 

The camp, now owned by Young Life 
of Canada, will be open to youth groups 
and families this summer but will 
resume its children’s programs next sum¬ 
mer. 

“It was a pretty decent place." says 
Wes Poslhumus of Toronto. One of a 
generation of CRC kids who attended 
the camp, he remembers arriving there 
as a young teen in 1975. That was the 
year that two brothers. Bill and Rudy 
Lenters, reopened the camp after they 
bought it. In 1985 Rudy took over from 
Bill as camp director. 


Special place 

“There was a real feeling that this 
was a special place." adds Posthumus. 

Part of that feeling came from a uni¬ 
que natural landmark on the 
campgrounds. A granite boulder over 
three metres high on the site has a rose 
quartz cross embedded in it. This “cross- 
on-the-rock," featured by Robert Ripley 
in his syndicated newspaper sketch 
"Believe it or not," was deeded to the 
Anglican Church in 1940. In 1977 the 
rock was returned to the camp. 

Camp Ke-mon-oya will be the first 
camp in Ontario for the Vancouver- 
based Young Life of Canada. National 
director Hal Merwald says this summer 
will be spent improving the camp’s 
sewage system and building a Rudy 
Lenter’s Memorial Dormitory for boys. 


the past: in Spain by the Mewrs (from 
700-1492). in Au.stria — the Turkish 
siege of Vienna in 1529 — and the 
above siege 154 years later. 

It all .shows that history has a very 
long memory when it comes to racial 



and religious strife, c.spccially when we 
look at the present situation in the 
Balkan region. 

Bruce Bokhout 
Don Mills, Ont. 


Columnist Los both enjoyable and 
photogenic 


I’ll be looking forward to Alice Los 
in her new position as co-ordinator of 
the new “Intergenerations/Seniors’’ 
column. I’ve always enjoyed her 
column “Small Talk" so much and 
would like to thank her for sharing a 
part of her interesting life with me. It 
was always one of the first things I’d 
read when I received the paper. 

As to her not thinking she is 
photogenic, I always felt the picture 
was wonderful because she looks a lot 
like her sister Grace, whom I know, and 
seeing Alice always brought Grace to 
mind. It’s nice to be reminded of friends 
when you live many miles apart as we 
do, and .so I thank her for her picture 
also. 

Being Canadian, but now living in 
the U.S.. I welcome CC because it 
keeps me i nformed , not only of the ^ 
Tanadian scene, CwfitchTTstillTiftpor- 
tant to me), but as you say. also of what 
is happening in other parts of the 



U.se an old tea bag and a used 
S.O.S pud for watering my plants. 
Kust provides plants with iron and 
soap residue keeps bugs away. 

For more ideas write to: 

The Clorox Companv of Canada 
P.O. Box to 

Moose Jaw Saskatchewan S6H 4N7 


kingdom. Your article on the seeker .ser¬ 
vices is a good example. 

I al.so feel that on the whole there is a 
much greater openness to churches, as 
well as to Christian schools, in the U.S. 
and found the article very interesting, as 
many of your articles are. 

I wish you God’s blessings on all 
your efforts as you work towards your 
goals for Christian Courier. 

Renee VanderBoum 
Norcross, Georgia 


Correction 

Last week’s front-page story on the 
Alberta Badlands Passion play showed a 
picture of set and costume designer 
Daniel Van Heyst. We incorrectly iden¬ 
tified him as LaVeme Ericson. who is 
the president of the Canadian Badlands 
Passion Play Society. 

Editor 



CHRISTIAN 

STUDIES 


...bearing fruit 
in every good 
work, growing 
in the 

knowledge of 
God. 

Colosslans 1:10 

|uly 11-22, 
1994, at 
Wycliffe 
College 
Toronto 

Teaching 
the Bible 

to children & adolescents 

the 



Revelation 


the 

Environment 


Christian 

Counselling 

For a brochure and 

o 

registration details 
please write. 
Grant LeMarquand 


5 Hoskin Avenue 
Toronto 

Ontario M5S IH7 


Ph.: 1416) 979-2870 
Fax: (416) 979-0471 












































PACK 6 


niRISTlAN COURII-R 


Environment 


Two trees in an urban forest 


We planicd two “friendship 
trees" this week on The King’s 
campus. It was Arbor Day and 
our guest from St. Petersburg. 
Russia, was keen to plant a 
tree. P^lsewhere around the city 
various school groups had ar¬ 
ranged to have mass planting 
days on public property. The 
grounds around the campus 
don’t yet qualify as a forest, 
but they are on the way to be¬ 
coming one. 

’ If you take a bird’s eye view 
of most cities you may note 
that 30 per cent of the surface 
is covered with trees. Two 
thirds or more of this cover has 
the density and ecological char¬ 
acteristics of a forest, an 
“urban forest." Arbor Day is a 
U.S. tradition that was started 
by J.S. Morton in Nebraska on 
April 10. 1872. The dates vary 
from place to place, but it 
usually occurs in March. April 
or May. 


But you don’t need to wait 
for a special day. My horticul¬ 
tural friends tell me you can 
plant a tree at almost any time; 
spring just seems most ap¬ 
propriate. 

Natural air conditioning 

Planting a tree is an act of 
faith. Most people who plant 
trees can assume that the crea¬ 
ture will be alive well past 
their personal demise. It gives 
you a sense of humility if you 
pause to think about it. What I 
have noticed in the five or six 
cities in which 1 have lived is 
that my neighbors seem to cut 
down more trees than they 
plant. In Chicago, block after 
block of American elm trees 
were claimed by Dutch elm 
disease (which isn’t Dutch, 
since it originated in China, but 
that’s another story!). 

In another city my neighbor 
cut down a row of 60-foot 


Monterey Pines because they 
were twisting the fence in their 
middle age! Besides, he needed 
the spot to pour a cement slab 
on which to park his camper to 
prepare it for trips to the moun¬ 
tains. 1 talked to him about the 
natural cooling effect the.se 
trees created during the sum¬ 
mer. like a natural air con¬ 
ditioner. The mes.sage didn’t 
sink in until after we moved 
away and the new owner cut 
down most of the trees and 
shrubs surrounding our former 
hou.se. Now this section of the 
street looks positively barren. 

It will take decades to restore 
its beauty and function. 

A giant falls 

Dick Staub, my former pas¬ 
tor, recalls an afternoon at the 
church camp in the Redwood 
country of northern California. 
Someone came into the lodge 


and called out, 

“Come out¬ 
side, they’re 
about to cut 
down one of 
the redwotxls." 

There was a 
rush for the 
door to see 
this unusual 

sight. Dick held back, .saying 
that he would rather see a tree 
planted than one cut down. 
Several people misunderstood 
his sentiment. Felling a 500- 
year-old tree is no small thing, 
in either labor or significance. 
Yet ending a tree’s life is rela¬ 
tively easy compared to plant¬ 
ing and seeing it through to 
maturity. In fact, it is beyond 
us to do so. And so it is with 
the kingdom of God. We can 
choose to partake in it, to help 
build it. Yet we will never see 
its fruition in our lifetime. It is 



John Wood 


an act of faith. 

Caring for the creation is 
like that as well. We plant 
today, with hope, as a symbol 
and a token of what will come. 
Hopefully, when the tree is ma¬ 
ture. our cultures will be as 
well. Our children will be 
living in a richer world, be¬ 
cause we acted, in a small way. 
in faith. 

John R. Wood leaches environmental 
science at The King s University 
College in Edmonton. 


Spicier plants best at removing air pollutants 

th»t some daisies, chrvsan- nOMMMiMMMMNMMili 


Marian Van Til 

BERKELEY, Calif. — The 
information is not new, but it’s 
g(K>d to be reminded that 
houscpiants may play a role in 
removing pollutants from the 
air in your home (or office). 
Ongoing research in this area 
indicates that the hardy, com¬ 
mon spider plant seems to do 
the best job of "air cleaning" — 
including the reduction of for¬ 
maldehyde from building 
materials, and tobacco and 


cooking smoke 

B.C. Wolverton, a scientist 
with the U.S.’s National 
Aeronautics and Space Ad¬ 
ministration (NASA), has been 
studying this phenomenon 
since 1986. His first study 
results, released in 1989, con¬ 
cluded that among common in¬ 
door plants, spider plants take 
first place in removing air pol¬ 
lutants. reports the University 
of California at Berkeley Well¬ 
ness Letter. Wolverton found 


Maranatha Christian Reformed Church 
St. Catharines, Ontario 

JOIN US FOR WORSHIP 

If you are vacationing in the beautiful Niagara Falls area jo*" iJS on 
Sunday at Maranatha CRC, 301 Scott St.. St. Ca hannes. Ont., f 
and 5 p.m. If you are a CRC minister willing to fill our vacant pulpit dunng 
your vacation, please call Sid Miedema at (905) 937-0314. 


^!e!c. 

• We 

• Coi 

• Bei 
for 

CHURCH ENVELOPE COMPANY INC. 

ON L4Y 3W5 

ekiy Budget Envelopes 

ntributions Recording Systems 

autiful bulletin covers for all occasions — ask 

samples 

1 John and Henny Tjoelker; Phone (905) 277-0576 Fax: (905) 277-5779 


that some daisies, chrysan¬ 
themums, bamboo palm, 

English ivy, philodendron and 
golden polhos also do a good 
job (and even potting soil it.self 
absorbs pollutants). 

A study by Thad Godish of 
Ball Slate University in Mun- 
cie, Indiana, shows that even 
defoliated spider plants remove 
air polluianis. In fact, Godish’s 
de-leaved .spider plants were 
better at reducing formal¬ 
dehyde levels than spider 
plants with leaves (formal¬ 
dehyde is widely used in a 
variety of building materials). 

Support your plant's 
efforts! 

NASA’s Wolverton is now 
marketing a filtration device 
designed to improve air How 
through plants, increasing the 
plants’ efficiency (the device 
sells for $279 US). UCB’s Well¬ 
ness Letter notes that 
Wolverton’s tests on the device 
were done in a laboratory and 
that the filler has “not been 
tested on a real-world basis or 
measured against other anti-pol¬ 
lution devices." 

Wolverton admits that his re¬ 
search is preliminary — it is 
not yet known how many 
plants it takes to “clean" a 
room of a specific size. Some 
re.searchers think a veritable 
forest is needed; others say 



only a few plants will do the 
job. 

In any case, most environ¬ 
mental and pollution-control 
groups, including government 
agencies in .several countries, 
are encouraging further re¬ 
search in iliis area. As the UCB 
Wellness Letter puls it: “If 
houseplanls cut down on pollu¬ 
tion even a little, we say, ‘More 


power to them.’" 

At the .same time, the UCB 
folks urge the use of common 
sense: “Don’t expect the 
vegetation to take the place ol 
gtKid ventilation and g(H)d 
maintenance of heating equip¬ 
ment. And support the efforts 
of your spider plants by not 
smoking!" 





























PAGET 





Set the prisoners free 


The Fall of the Prison: 
Biblical Perspectives on 
Prison Abolition, by Lee Grif¬ 
fith. Grand Rapids, Mich. : 
Eerdmans, 1993. ISBN 0-8028- 
0670-8. Softcover. 228 pp.. 
$27.99. Reviewed by Peter 
Nicolai, Christian Reformed 
pastor in Calgary. 


“Lock ihem up and throw 
away the keys!” This is a very 
common attitude in North 
America. Of the building and 
maintaining of jails there is no 
end. It is a growth industry: 


prisons arc over-crowded as 
quickly as they are built. 

A recent article in the Ed¬ 
monton Journal observed that 
jail inmates live in more 
crowded conditions than al¬ 
lowed by law for the keeping 
of animals. Bigger and “better” 
jails are on the drawing boards 
across Canada and the United 
States. Our prisons are a very 
costly response to crime. The 
National Institute of Justice 
(U.S.A.) has observed: “For 
every person who goes to 
prison, two people don’t get 


Dordt Repertory Theatre 


Tracy Allen 

SIOUX CENTER. Iowa — 
As a wave of students finished 
the academic year and headed 
for home, the Dordt College 
Repertory Theatre group 
headed north for a two-we« 
performance trek to Montana, 
Minnesota. Alberta and 
Manitoba. 

The Repertory Theatre, 
directed by Simon du Toit left 
on May 6 for Manhattan. Mon¬ 
tana. From there it was on to 
Alberta, with stops in 
Lethbridge. Calgary, LaCombe. 
Edmonton and Neerlandia. 
After a short break in Jasper 
Provincial Park, the group 
reached Winnipeg on May 16, 
and then went on to Prinsburg 


and Edgerton, Minnesota. 

The group performed for 
Christian high schools, staging 
“The Parable of the Light¬ 
house" and “Traveling Light”; 
they also conducted theatre 
workshops 

Projecting the gospel’s 
power 

“The Parable of the Light¬ 
house” was written by Tom 
Long of Ohio, an artistic direc¬ 
tor for a Christian theaue 
group called “The Friends of 
the Groom.” “Traveling Light,” 
written by Lawrence G. 

Enscoe. shows the relevance of 
the Gospel of Mark to healing 
miracles and his power to 
change lives. 


college. For every day a person 
stays in jail. 20 children eat 
starch instead of protein.” 

In this climate Lee Griffith 
proposes: Abolish the prisons! 
Set the pri.soners free! 

Before you di.smi.ss Griffith 
as naive, uninformed or lacking 
some of his faculties, please 
note that he is none of these. 

He is no shanger to prisons; he 
has been both inmate and 
visitor. This former college 
teacher and campus chaplain 
not only lives in a high crime 
area of New York, he is also a 


heads north 

Repertory theatre is a per¬ 
formance class offered at 
Dordt. with members being 
selected by audition. During 
the semester students learn 

skills related to staging a _ 

variety of short works in many 
settings. A performance tour 
closes out the semester and was 
well-represented by this year’s 
members; along with five 
Americans there were director 
Simon du Toit, formerly of 
Toronto; John Van Dijk of 
Hamilton, Ont.; John-Michael 
Dykstra of St. Catharines, Ont.; 
Scott Hazeu of Winnipeg; 
Rebekah Sanford of Edmonton; 
and John Contant of Langley, 
B.C. 


Mennonite Central Committee children ’s 
video recognized 


AKRON. Pa. (MCC) — 
Friendship Press has selected 
the Mennonite Central Commit¬ 
tee (MCC)-produced video 
African Tales as its 1994 
children’s video. Friendship 
Press is an ecumenical publish¬ 
er of educational materials for 
.schools and parishes. 

Each year Friendship Press 
promotes three videos — an 
adult, youth and children’s 
video about their selected 
themes. Friendship Press’ 1994 
themes are “Making the World 
.Safe for Children" and 
“African Churches Speak.” 

Friendship Press will 
promote the video in the 


Friendship Press Complete 
Catalog 1994-1995, which has 
a distribution of 60,000. to the 
various denominations it ser¬ 
ves: The American Baptist 
Church, Church of God, 

Church of the Brethren. Epis¬ 
copal Church, Lutheran 
Church, Mennonite Church, 
Methodist Church, Pres¬ 
byterian U.S. and Canada, 
United Church of Christ and 
United Church of Canada. 

African Tales, a 23-minute 
MCC video for primary grades, 
uses paintings and sound ef¬ 
fects to tell three African 

fables: “Banana thieves,.Fhe 

spider and the antelope” and 


“The boastful crocodile.” 
Another .segment looks at Zaire 
through a child’s eyes, showing 
food preparation, a market, 
homes, the village blacksmith 
and a church service. 

For free loan of video con¬ 
tact MCC. P.O. Box 500, 21 S. 
12th Street. Akron, PA 17501- 
0500. Phone (717)859-1151; 
MCC Canada. 134 Plaza Drive. 
Winnipeg, MB R3T 5K9. 
phone (204) 261-6381; or the 
MCC office nearest you. For a 
personal copy of this video, 
send $20 US to MCC Akron 
or $25 Cdn. to MCC Canada. 



victim of violen 
book is a carefi 
call for a biblical rcs|>^ 
crime. He holds our penal sy.s- 
tem up to the scrutiny of the 
Gospel and finds it wanting. 
Griffith dares to ask if our 
prison systems are morally and 
.socially tolerable. His answer 
is: NO! 

Prisons don’t work 

There is a strong pragmatic 
argument for his position. 
Prisons don’t work! They 
neither deter crime nor 
rehabilitate the criminal. 

Despite longer jail terms and in¬ 
creasing incarceration, the inci¬ 
dents of both violent and 
non-violent crimes continue to 
increase. 

However, the author is not 
satisfied with mere pragmatics. 
He rigorously examines the 
common justification for 
pifsoh!? The assumptlom of 
deterrence, rehabilitation and 
retribution are .scrutinized and 
found to be without biblical 
basis. Prisons don’t work be¬ 
cause they are wrong! 

Griffith’s book is an indictment 
of the traditional justifications 
for our penal system. 

The author argues that the 
biblical teachings of restitution 
and reconciliation are the 
legitimate responses to crime. 
“The aim is not to ask ques¬ 
tions like ‘What should be 
done to the offender?’ but 
rather ‘What can be done to 
make things right?’ ” Griffith 
guides us through a biblical 
study and poignantly reminds 
us that the teaching of Jesus in 
Matthew 5 and elsewhere does 
not let us get away with think¬ 
ing that pri.son walls .separate 
the “bad guys” from the “good 
guys.” 

Crime a corporate 
responsibility 

Crime is a corporate respon¬ 
sibility; we can’t simply lock 
people up and pretend that the 
problem will go away. Neither 
may we pretend that prison is 
the appropriate response to 
crime. Ironically, our present 
system very frequently ignores 
the needs and concerns of vic¬ 
tims. If restitution and recon¬ 
ciliation are pursued, however. 


the perpetrator of a crime and 
her or his victim(s) receive the 
care and attention deserved. 

True healing can take place. 

The author includes examples 
from the province of Ontario 
and England where such 
responses have been introduced 
on a limited basis. 

The required shortness of 
this review will not let me 
repeat many of Griffith’s argu¬ 
ments and illustrations. How¬ 
ever, one example may help 
make the point. Tho.se con¬ 
victed of drug-related crimes 
make up more than half the 
pri.son population in the United 
States today. It is predicted that 
by 1995 this figure will rise to 
more than 70 per cent. Con¬ 
sider this observation from one 
such inmate: while 1 was at 
liberty on the streets and 
sought a residential treatment 
program for my cocaine addic¬ 
tion I was told there was a wait¬ 
ing list for such programs.... 

Now as a prisoner of the state. 

I am not only given such a 
residential program — long 
after the exigencies of my 
former condition have subsided 
due to over four years incar¬ 
ceration — but 1 am compelled 
to partake of such a program. 

Griffith argues that the Chri.s- 
tian response would not be jail 
but the provision of care and 
healing, “in the streets.” in the 
communities where the offen- 
.ses take place. Prisoners do not 
help .society. They victimize 
the inmates and further alienate 
them from “society.” 

This bix)k is not a wild, fan¬ 
ciful dream that ignores the 
reality of evil in and around us. 

It is a very reasoned and 
balanced Christian plea to be 
involved with more than mere 
maintenance. Griffith is aware 
of the radical nature and far- 
reaching consequences of his 
propo.sal. He understands that 
much work and preparation 
needs to be done. 1 hope his 
call is heard and considered 
seriously by Christians and non- 
Christians alike. 

This b(X)k ought to be man¬ 
datory reading for anyone in¬ 
volved in pri.sons in any 
capacity. It deserves a wide 
readership among all Christians. 






























CHRISTIAN COURIER 


PAGE 8 

Church, Marian Van Til. page editor 



Church agencies commit $1.25 
million to Rwanda 


WINNIPEG (CFB) — 
Canadian Foodgrains Bank an¬ 
nounced today that its member 
agencies have committed to a 
SI.2? million food response to 
the Rwandan tragedy. 

The response will provide 
f(X)d to support refugees flee¬ 
ing the Rwandan conflict. Mas¬ 
sive numbers have arrived in 
I'an/.ania; other refugee flows 
into neighboring Uganda. 

Zaire. Burundi and Kenya are 
reported as well. 

Rwanda’s foixl situation was 


precarious even before the con¬ 
flict flared. Most neighboring 
countries arc struggling to 
maintain a subsistence standard 
and arc not in a good position 
to host and feed the flood of 
people. The refugee flow into 
bordering countries will require 
both immediate and longer 
tenn food support, fhe 
Foodgrains Bank will likely 
commit to food shipments 
covering a 12-month period. 

The collaborative respon.se 
will involve nine of the 12 


church groups in the 
Fexidgrains Bank partnership. 
Of these, some are already in¬ 
volved in refugee and oUter 
concerns in the region, such as 
Lutheran. Christian Reformed 
and Adventist relief and 
development agencies. Other 
supporting partners represent 
Baptist, Christian & Mission¬ 
ary Alliance. Mennonite. Pres¬ 
byterian. United Church and 
World Relief Canada con¬ 
stituents. 


What about a fixed date 
for Easter? 

LONDON, England (EP) — Do you know when 
will be next year? You would if a suggestion in the April 2 
issue of The Economist took root. The respected London- 
based magazine noted that the method for calculating the 
date of Easter dates to the fourth century, and can be as 
early as March 22 or as late as April 25. 

Early Easters, The Economist notes, are too cold to 
while late Easters crowd the May Day public holiday. The 
magazine urged the world’s religious leaders to follow the 
tradition of Christmas and fix a date for Easter — such as 
the first Sunday after the second Saturday in April an 
be done with It. 


Christians protest Pakistani blasphemy law 


Churches help suffering 
Rwandan refugees 


LAHORE. Pakistan (EP) — 
Thousands of Pakistani Chris¬ 
tians marched through Lahore 
last month to protest a law that 
requires the death penalty for 
blasphemy against Islam. The 
demonstration took place in 
respt)nse to the April 5 shoot¬ 
ing death of a Christian man 
charged with.the crime. 

Man/oorMasih died instant¬ 
ly after being .shot 12 times as 
he left a Lahore High Court 
hearing on his bla.sphemy ca.se. 
Rahamat Masih and Salamat 
Masih were also shot. The two 
men and Salamat, as a 12-year- 
old boy. were accused of writ¬ 
ing anti-Moslem graffiti on the 
walls of a mosque and circulat¬ 
ing offensive material in the 
district of Gujaranwala. 

On April 7, leaders of the Na 


tional Council of Churches in 
Pakistan, and the Church of 
Pakistan, Salvation Army, Pres¬ 
byterian and Roman Catholic 
churches in Pakistan protested 
to authorities, urging the imme¬ 
diate arrest of those responsible 
for the April 5 attack. Church 
leaders also called upt)n Prime 
Minister Benazir Bhutto to im- 
Tbediateiy f(?beal the blnsphrmv 
laws. 

The law states that anyone 
convicted of blasphemy will 
receive the death sentence. It 
forbids deregatory remarks, in¬ 
nuendoes and insinuations, 
direct and indirect, against the 
Prophet Mohammed. 

According to a World Coun¬ 
cil of Churches source in Pakis¬ 
tan, the bla.sphemy law "is a 
licence to kill the non-Muslims. 


There is no other country 
where such a law is being im¬ 
plemented to such an extent. 
Such laws in our country have 
promoted religious intolerance, 
anarchy, harassment and sec¬ 
tarianism among the people 
and have given religious sanc¬ 
tion to exterminate religious 
minorities.",,^;„^,_|lgBI 
Tlie goveriiment has 
proposed changes to the law, in¬ 
cluding a clause that would 
penalize anyone making false 
accusations under the law wiUi 
a 10-year prison sentence, but 
the provincial assembly unani¬ 
mously passed a resolution call¬ 
ing on the government not to 
introduce legislation that 
would ease the capital punish¬ 
ment. 


Rachel Boehm Van Harmelen 

The 978 congregations 
which make up the Christian 
Reformed Church in North 
America are providing emer¬ 
gency aid, including food, 
medical supplies and volunteer 
health workers to Rwanda 
through the church’s relief and 
development agency, CRWRC. 

CRWRC personnel are al¬ 
ready on site in East Africa, 
working in a makeshift jefugee 
camp in nearby Tanzanfa pack¬ 
ed with hungry Rwandan 
refugees. 

"The murder of Rwanda’s 
president has set off massive 
inter-ethnic conflict in that 
country,” says Dirk Booy, 
CRWRC-Tanzanian director. 
"Estimates are that 200,000 in¬ 
nocent people have been killed 
in the fight for control. The 
largest flow of refugees in a 24- 


Consultation aims to combat ignorance of the Bible 

^ ^ \X/#xctprii C 


DALFSEN. Netherlands 
(i:p) _ Over 200 delegates 
from nearly 60 countries and 
every continent resolved to ac¬ 
tively explore for advancing 


Bible use in the church at a con¬ 
sultation sponsored by the 
Forum of Bible Agencies. 

Leaders of Bible societies in 
Europe and the United States 



CHRISTIAN 

Sui te 1901, 20 Egltnton Ave. W. 

Toronto, ON M4R 1K8 __ 

(416) 489-3350 


• Marnage & family counselling 

• Individual 4 group therapy 

• Vocational assessments 

• Seminars & workshops 

• Conflict mediation to business 

• Accredited AAMFT supenrision for 
marriage and family therapists 

• CAPE supervision 


have claimed there is frighten¬ 
ing and growing ignorance of 
the Bible in all sections of 
Western society, including 
among Chri.stians and the well- 
educated. 

While publishing figures sug¬ 
gest wider circulation of the 
Bible in the developing world, 
there are strong signs that 
familiarity with the Bible in 
Western countries is falling. It 
was recently estimated that 85 


per cent of Western Christians 
have not read the whole Bible. 

Fergus Macdonald, general 
secretary of the National Bible 
Society of Scotland and chair¬ 
person of the European Produc¬ 
tion Fund of the United Bible 
Societies, said in April, “ The 
role of Scriptures in Europe 
today is marked by am¬ 
bivalence, by crisis as well as 
new opportunities." 


hour period in the entire his¬ 
tory of the UNHCR — 250.000 
fleeing people — crossed the 
Kagera River border into the 
Ngara area of northwestern Tan¬ 
zania.” 

Booy continues. “The num¬ 
ber of Rwandan refugees in 
Tanzania currently could be as 
high as 500,000. Tanzania now 
has the largest refugee camp in 
the world. The camp is basical¬ 
ly a five-mile stretch of road. 

1 <0 ytlZdsWbbm me\ The 
refugees have only what they 
could carry — a little clothing 
and food sufficient for a few 
days. They are being divided 
into 11 different groups accord¬ 
ing to the Rwanda region they 
are from. Their greatest needs 
are food, shelter, bedding, 
clean water, medicine, and 
health care. Prayer is needed 
for the refugees, the people 
trying to assist them, and for 
peace in Rwanda.” 

CRWRC has committed 
$75,000 to provide immediate 
food and medical aid. and is 
working with other internation¬ 
al relief and development agen¬ 
cies under the leadership of the 
United Nations High Commis¬ 
sion for Refugees (UNHCR). 
CRWRC is also partially fund¬ 
ing a SI.25 million food ship¬ 
ment in partnership with 11 
other Canadian agencies 
through the Canadian 
Foodgrains Bank. 


IINGENP GEiOVEN 

Saturday??! B a m. CHIN FM 101 
P.O.Box 274 West Hill, Ont. M1E 4R5 


Prayer book saves nun^s life 

NEW ORI,EAN.S, I... (EP) - The life of a nun who was 
shot at by a fleeing robber may have been saved by her 
Xer book, poll* .«y. Two nun., were talking to a polke of- 
rtcer April 14 near the Sisters Servants of Mary Convent 
when a man wanted In connection with at least 
robberies of convenience stores ran past them o^ fiM^ 
several times. A bullet passed through a nw « 
then hit her In the hip. She was treated and released. 




































PAGE 9 



Isn’t praise for a person blasphemy? 


Song of the Valiant Woman V11 


’’Give her the reward she 
has earned, and let her works 
bring her praise at the city 
gate" (Prov. 31:31). 

One of the remarkable things 
about the Song of the Valiant 
Woman which concludes the 
book of Proverbs is its literary 
genre. (“Genre" is the technical 
term for “type of literature ") 
Just as English poetry fails into 
different literary forms or gen¬ 
res, such as ballad, sonnet and 
limerick, so the Hebrew poetry 
of the Old Testament falls into 
different genres like royal 
psalm, dirge and hymn, each 
with their own distinctive 
literary features. 

One of the characteristic fea¬ 
tures of the “hymn" or song of 
praise is that it consists of three 
parts: an introduction of the 
one to be praised, a catalogue of 
praiseworthy deeds and a con¬ 
cluding call to praise. 

Another feature which fre¬ 
quently characterizes a hymn is 


‘Deciphering 


the phrase hallelu-jah, which 
means literally “praise the 
Lord." Needless to say, such 
hymns in the Bible are almost 
always written in honor of 
God, who is praised for his 
mighty acts of kindness and 
deliverance. 

The one exception to this 
rule is the Song of the Valiant 
Woman in Proverbs, which is 
written in praise of the great 
deeds of a woman. It follows 
the threefold pattern of a 
regular hymn, ending with a 
concluding call to praise, in 
which the poet turns to the 
audience (in Hebrew the verb 
is plural) and exhorts them to 
join him in his praise of the 
Valiant Woman. The hymnic 
form comes out especially in 
the last line, where the verb in 
Hebrew is (wi)haUelu-ha, “and 
let them praise her." This 
sounds very much like hallelu¬ 
jah, the characteristic phrase of 
so many of the psalter’s hymns 
in praise of God. 


’s handwriting’ 


Human heroes 

How are we to account for 
this striking use of the hymnic 
form, normally reserved for the 
prai.se of (jod, to honor a 
human being? Is it not blas¬ 
phemous to praise a human 
being in a literary form which 
in the rest of the Bible is used 
only for God? Without going 
into the details, I believe the 
answer is no. 

Both the hymns of the psal¬ 
ter and the concluding song of 
the book of Proverbs are inde¬ 
pendent developments of an 
earlier tradition of heroic 
poetry — poetry written in 
praise of mighty warriors 
returning from the battlefield. 
This tradition was on the one 
hand developed to fashion the 
psalms in praise of God (as the 
Divine Warrior), and on the 
other hand to create the Song 
of the Valiant Woman 
(described throughout in dis¬ 
tinctively “heroic” terms). The 
same literary tradition provided 
the formal resources for prais¬ 
ing both God and humanity. 

It Is probable Wat tbeliegm- 


AlWoltors 


ning of the quoted verse | 
should be translated slight¬ 
ly differently. The con¬ 
sonants of the initial verb in 
the Hebrew are TNW, and 
the vowels that have tradi¬ 
tionally been added to these 
letters yield the verb form 
tenu, meaning “give (ye)." 

But it is likely that the word 
should read tannu instead, sup¬ 
plying different vowels to the 
consonants. In that case the 
translation would be “extol 
[ye]," and the first line would 
read “Extol her for the fruit of 
her hands." If we read the line 
in this way, we discover that it 
stands in synonymous paral¬ 
lelism with the next line: “And 
let her works bring her praise 
at the city gate.” 

Both lines speak of an exhor¬ 
tation to praise — first on the 
part of the audience, and then 
on the part of the woman’s 
handiwork. The fancy textile 
products which the Valiant 
Woman had woven and dis¬ 
played in the marketplace, are 
to praise her — that is. they are 
to redound to her credit, to “do 
her proud.” Again, we see the 


<’ II A r T K K 



similarity with the hymns in 
praise of God, where all the 
things that God has made are 
exhorted to praise him. So. nw, 
the products of human labor 
must bring praise to their God¬ 
fearing maker. 

It is right to praise human 
beings who do their work in 
the fear of the Lord. 


At Wallers leaches Bible and Greek al 
Redeemer Chlle^e. Ancasler Ont 


BATAVIA, Ill. (EP) —The 
quest to understand the nature 
of the universe took another 
step forward April 26. as a 
team of 439 scientists working 
at the Fermi National Ac¬ 
celerator Laboratory near 
Chicago announced the dis¬ 
covery of evidence supporting 


the existence of the “top 
quark,” the last of the 12 sub¬ 
atomic building blocks thought 
to constitute all matter. “We 
aren’t looking at the face of 
God. but we are deciphering 
his handwriting," said Thomas 
Muller, a UCLA physicist and 
member of the team. 


Expensive Bible 


LONDON, England (EP) — The British Library will pay 
$1.5 million for a copy of the first English edition of the 
Bible that is stiB Intact. The book, from the 16th century, is 
one of two known copies of William Tyndale’s New Testa¬ 
ment translation. The other copy, at St. Paul’s Cathedral, is 
missing 71 pages. 

Almost all of the 3,000 copies of the book printed in Ger¬ 
many In 1526 were burned by the Bishop of London, 
Tyndale’s translation from the Greek was done in a time 
when only clergy and scholars were permitted to read the 
Bible, and his work was considered an act of heresy. He was 
burned at the stake in 1536. 


vanderWoerd 

David A. van der Woerd B.A., LL.B. 

20 Jackson Street West, Suite S12, Hamilton, OnUrio L8P IL2 
Tel. (905) 577-6205 Fa* (905) 577-9498 


Church of England nearly bankrupt? 


LONDON. England (EP) — 
Archbishop of Canterbury 
George Carey blamed poor in¬ 
vestments for a church finan¬ 
cial crisis which has stripped 
the state church of $1.19 bil¬ 
lion in assets. Carey insisted 


that he did not believe the loss 
posed a risk of bankruptcy for 
the church. 

In testimony before a par¬ 
liamentary committee, Carey 
admitted that church officials 
made errors in their property in¬ 


vestments that were later 
devalued because of recession. 
The church is cutting co.sts and 
asking parishioners to increase 
their giving to offset the losses. 


JhUatui&0444ut 

The Ambassador* Christian Male Chorua (est. 1969) has been invited 
to the Netherlands to participate in the celebrations surrounding the 
fiftieth anniversary of Holland’s Liberation on May 5. 1995. 

Arrangements for concert opportunities, transportation and lodging are 
well under way. The tour is scheduled from about the end of April to 
early May, 1995. 

Male singers of all ranges, but especially first tenors, are invited to 
join us for this venture. After the Holland trip your commitment ends, if 
you choose. You need to be able to commit yourself to join us for regular 
weekly rehearsals in Hamilton, Ont., commencing June 1994. The 
Ambassadors memorize all their music. Our present membership is 
drawn from the “greater' (Brantford-Grimsby) Hamilton, Ont., area. 

Your cost will be about $1 ,(X)0 for flight, lodging, meals and personal 
expenses. The cost could bo reduced with grants and corporate 
sponsorships. 

For addilional informalion, contaci: 

Hank HulUnk, President Harold de Haan, Director 

(905) 679-6017 (home) (905)389-2104 

(905) 648-1200 (bua.) 


SLP 


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PAGE 10 


CHRISTIAN COURIER 


For 

Benjamin, 
on his 
sixteenth 
birthday 

Curt Gesch 

It is hard to decide what to 
give you. Mom and I gave you 
a gift certificate because we 
wanted to give you a copy of 
The Lord of The Rings (paper¬ 
back). But the store didn’t have 
all the volumes in, so you can 
get it when they have it. 

I can’t give you a motorbike. 
(Nor do I think it a good idea, 
but....) There is something that 
I can give, however. Dad is a 
writer, so be content with this: 
you are my beloved son in 
whom I am well pleased. 

This statement has, you 
probably guessed, a long, long 
explanation. It has to do with 
rites of passage: yours as well 
as mine. “Rites of passage” 
refers to those significant sym¬ 
bolic actions, times, that mark 
a person’s movement from 
childhood into manhood. Get¬ 
ting a driver’s licence is one of 
those in our culture and you are 
eligible today. This is not the 
most significant for me, though. 

More important is the time 
you mentioned Emil’s chapel 
speech at the high school As¬ 
cension Day service when you 
were in Oade 9. True to his 
Pentecostal faith, Emil didn’t 
really talk about Jesus’ ascen¬ 
sion, but about the Holy 
Spirit’s coming. I was ready to 
really blast him, but grace led 
me to a.sk what you thought 
about it. (We were near 
Vandenberg’s farm, on the way 
home, when I asked.) 

You said that you felt some¬ 
thing deeply about verse four 
of “Amazing Oacc." This later 
led you to ask if you could talk 
to Pastor Tom about making 
profession of faith. I non¬ 
chalantly replied, “Sure,” while 
moving about so that you could 
not .see the tears of joy. 

I didn’t do as well as you. 1 
made profession of faith in 
Grade 12 without real faith, 
mainly so I wouldn’t hurt my 
father’s feelings. A phony, I 
was. But in another sense, I 
was maybe being led to another 
Father, of which the first was 
an imperfect example. Never¬ 
theless, my father was and is a 
picture of The Father. Maybe I 
have hope that I shall someday 


The Pentecost flame 
leaps up in families 


On the occasion of Pentecost, we publish three literary items having to do with 
the faith as it is passed on in families. The Holy Spirit is very much at work in the 
covenant relationships of church and family. 


be the same. 

But back to why I am "well 
pleased.” You have joy (which 
I often do, and often don’t). 

What other 15-year-old 
would do cartwheels all sum¬ 
mer evening for the sheer joie 
de vivre which is really joy in 
the Lord of the dance? 

Who thinks so seriously that 
he can’t take a horror movie at 
a classmate’s party, but lives, 
drinks and shudders at the hor¬ 
ror (while revelling in the 
hope) of Christian Tolkien’s 
world? (a counter-culture son). 

And who plays the trumpet 
with his guts and makes it sing 
like you do? ^: 

T thank GoJTii^bu, forall 
your failings (too often men¬ 
tioned by me) are still my son, 
in a great way like your 
brother, God’s Son. 

Note: Benjamin did make profes¬ 
sion of faith in the Telkwa CRC. 


Curt Gesch is a writer and educator 
living in Telkwa, B.C. 


The miracle baby 
responds 

When Sharon Rupke’s mom, 

Margaret, was pregnant with 
Sharon, Margaret suffered from 
Hodgkin’s disease. For health 
reasons, her doctor offered her 
a therapeutic abortion. Mar¬ 
garet declined. Both mother 
and daughter turned out heal¬ 
thy. Sharon's aunt always 
referred to her as “the miracle 
baby.” Sharon herself says, 

“It’s an example of God’s grace 
early in my life.” 

Sharon made profession of 
faith in the Rehoboth Fellow¬ 
ship Christian Reformed 
Church orEfomcbkrnnt..Tri' 

June 1993, at which occasion 
she read the following poem. 


I Want to Know 

I want to know: 
how can it be 

that you predestined my life 
and yet I make my own 




Benjamin Gesch releases ducks he and his family fostered after 
“Mom duck" was killed by a hay mower. 


Sharon Rupke at the time of her baptism in / 
1976 and now at age 18 
choices? 

How do I know for sure 
that the books of the Bible 
are holy and canonical? 

How can you allow the 
world to go on 
in misery and sin? 

Where is heaven 
if hell is on earth? 

When is life 
if death’s before birth? 

And how can a person be bom 
twice? 

We say you are the three in one: 

Spirit, Father and Son. 

How can that be? 

How could Mary be a virgin if 
she bore a son? 

It’s impossible! 

If Jesus is both God and man, 

Where was he when the world 
began? 

Please Lord, answer my ques¬ 
tions! 

I cannot tell you, keep on 
pondering. 

Have faith and you will see 
that all these questions 
need no answers 
if only you 
believe in me. 

Sharon Kupke 
Woodbridgc, Ont. 


Features 

Choices 
for my son 

What glimpses 
of the future 
edge your horizon? 

Choices that dance 
in the distance 
like a mirage 

still beyond 
your grasp. 

Your questions: 
What will 1 do? 
Who will 1 be? 
What does my future hold? 


Yet only two 
choices 
will 
determine 
your future. 

Choosing to 
walk 
with the 
Father, 
or choosing 
to walk 
alone. 

Walking 
through 
the maze of life 

finding paths 
or dead ends 
without the perspective 
of the one who sees 
the pattern from above. 

or following the blueprint 
of the designer, creator. 

Striding 
close enough to him 
to dialogue, debate 
delight together 
in what surprising things 
he has prepared for you. 
Linda Siehenga 
Blackfald.s, Alta. 



Jason Siebenga age 16 








































MAY 20. 1994 


PAGE 11 


Nick Ovcrduin 

1( is clear that the book of 
Job steadfastly leads the reader 
forward. We are pulled, with ir¬ 
resistible suspense, to the 
grand finale. We become more 
and more eager to find a solu¬ 
tion to the horror in which Job 
finds himself — and indeed, a 
solution to every horror. 

But the two speeches of God 
at the end of the book have 
often been regarded as a major 
surprise. Although we were led 
to hope for something, we did 
not expect the specific 
speeches we finally hear from 
God. 

People have often been puz¬ 
zled. in fact, by what .seems to 
them to be an outright change 
of topic. Job, they say, dis¬ 
cussed suffering, but God talks 
about his creation. Job asked 
painful questions about why 
disastrous things were happen¬ 
ing to him. but God (apparently 
ignoring all Job’s remarks from 
chapters 3 through 37) utters 
majestic poetry about the 
universe. 

Imagine how you would feel 
if you talked about your cancer 
or some other personal tragedy 
to a friend, and the friend 
responded by saying. “Did you 
ever see the Grand Canyon? 
Have you ever surveyed the 
R(x:ky Mountains?" You would 
probably feel hurt. 

Despite feeling hurt, or at 
the very least puzzled, 
believers have often found 
much comfort in the speeches 
of God. Their general argument 
has been that, although it is 
true that God changes the 
topic, nevertheless God reveals 
his presence and his great 
power to Job, and this revela¬ 
tion is sufficiently comforting 
— both for Job and for us. We 
can get through anything so 
long as we know God goes 
with us through the very valley 
of the shadow of death. 

As one writer summed up 
this ancient believing ap¬ 
proach: “Job doesn’t need an 
answer from God; he just needs 
a God who answers him." 

The reaction of .sceptics 

Unbelievers, predictably, are 
not easily swayed by this ap¬ 
proach to finding comfort in 
God’s revelation to Job. Rather, 
they rise up in anger against 
the injustice of having the topic 
.so abruptly changed. How can 
God be so cruel as to simply 
sweep away all of Job’s strug¬ 
gles and point with sovereign 
fingers at his cosmos? 

George Bernard Shaw 


Did Crod answer Job? 

A new look at an ancient problem 



de.scribed all the words of God 
as “a sneer." Other theologians 
took similar positions. C. Zhit- 
lowsky called them 
“astoni.shingly poor logic that 
explains nothing." R.H. Pfeif¬ 
fer felt that God gives evidence 
of “contempt for human 
beings." C. Comill accused 
God of “unparalleled brutality 
and devilish scorn.” And A.S. 
Peake says that God comes 
“perilously near nagging." 

The.se are very serious 
frustrations and accu.sations. 
And we, too, need to be 
rigorously honest. Haven’t we 
at times felt also that we were 
disappointed in our Lord’s 
answer to Job? Have we really 
been as comforted by God’s 
speeches as we claim to be? 

One believer wrote once that 
God could have been reading 
from the yellow pages of the 
phone book and Job would still 
have been comforted because 
all Job really needed was the 
.sound of God’s voice and the 
nearness of God’s presence. 

Is that true? Personally, I 
don’t think it would comfort 
me if God would read to me 
from the yellow pages. 

Did God really change 
the topic? 

There is perhaps a better 
way to interpret the book of 
Job, a way which is gaining 
more and more credence, as in¬ 
dicated in recent commentaries. 

According to these insights, 
God talks about the creation 
not to change the topic, but 
precisely because Job and his 
friends had frequently talked 
about the creation! God, then, 
does not change the topic at all. 
Rather, he faithfully adheres to 
the topic, and the topic is his 
creation. 

In other words, say the.se 
modern commentators, the 
book of Job is not simply about 
suffering. It certainly includes 
many thoughts about suffering 
— as well as thoughts about 
prayer, friendship, pain, blame, 
responsibility, sin and punish¬ 
ment. But at its deepest levels 
Job is a book about the status 
of God’s creation. 

In Genesis 1, God had 
looked at everything he made 
and God declared: “Behold, it 
is very good.” The book of Job, 


according to this most recent 
angle, tests and probes this 
pivotal as.sertion by God. Is 
God’s creation, in actual fact, 
good? Was it good? Is it still 
good? Can we trust that it will 
remain “good”? 

A plausible approach 

There are many reasons for 
the modem approach to the 
book of Job, not all of which 
can be pointed out here. How¬ 
ever, we can give enough ex¬ 
amples of the creation theme in 
the book of Job to tantalize 
and, I hope, convince most 
readers of this article. 

First of all, it can be convinc¬ 
ingly argued that Job’s first 
speech (chapter 3) constitutes a 
massive satire of Genesis 1 and 
2. Job indirectly attacks 
Genesis 1 and 2 through a kind 
of “counter-co.smic incanta¬ 
tion.” 

For example, God’s first 
words had be^. “T.et there be 
light." But Job starts off his 
own speech by longing for 
darkness. God’s last words had 
been the establishment of Sab¬ 
bath rest. But Job ends his own 
first speech by using four 
separate words to express the 
fact that he can’t find any rest. 
As one commentator translated 
it: “I cannot relax! And I can¬ 
not settle down! And 1 cannot 
rest! And agitation keeps on 
coming back! 

Job’s very last speech, fur¬ 
thermore (chapter 31) likewi.se 
ends with a massive satirical 
comment on the original crea¬ 
tion .story. Job echoes, and per¬ 
haps even pretentiously 
replaces, God’s curse in 
Genesis 3:17,18 by declaring: 
“Let briers come up instead of 
wheat and weeds instead of bar¬ 
ley; the words of Job are 
ended." Herewith, as one com¬ 
mentator .said. Job pre.sents him¬ 
self as a kind of .second Adam 
who is faithful where the first 
Adam failed. 

Further evidence 

What about all the other 
material .sandwiched between 
Job’s first speech and Job’s last 
speech? Is there consistent 
evidence that Job, in fact, is 
heavily preoccupied with the 
doctrine of the goodness of 
creation? Yes, indeed; evidence 


abounds. 

For example, if Job’s first 
speech indirectly undermines 
Genesis 1 and 2, it .seems likely 
that Job’s .second speech in¬ 
cludes a very poignant satire on 
one of the most famous "crea¬ 
tion psalms" in the Hebrew 
Psalter — Psalm 8. That psalm 
.says, “When I consider thy 
heavens, the moon and the 
stars which thou hast made, 
what is man. that thou art mind¬ 
ful of him?” Job succeeds in 
turning this whole vision of 
God’s creation inside out by 
taunting. “What is man. that 
you make so much of him, that 
you give him so much atten¬ 
tion, that you examine him 
every morning and test him 
every moment? Will you never 
look away from me or leave me 
alone even for an instant?" 

God’s providential care for 
the world, in Job’s tortured 
vision of the creation, has be¬ 
come a nuisance. 


Another example of Job’s 
preoccupation with the doctrine 
of the goodness of creation is 
his twisted use in almost every 
speech of the terminology of 
light and darkness. A lucid ex¬ 
ample of Job’s sharp longue is 
his description of an eclip.se as 
a ca.se in which “GexI speaks to 
the sun and it does not shine." 
This is a barbed reversal of 
God’s declaration, “Let there 
be light, and there was light." 

In one especially vivid long¬ 
ing for thorough oblivion (chap¬ 
ter 10:21,22) Job piles up five 
different words for darkness in 
seven separate phrases. 

"Seven” was of course the an¬ 
cient number of compleienes.s. 
and God also made the world 
in seven days. It is as if Job is 
crying out. "Undo the creation! 
Roll back the cliKk! Di.smantle 
the cosmos!” 

Some of Job’s wre.stling with 
the alleged gtxidness of 

Continued on p. 12... 













PAGE 12 


CHRISTIAN COURIER 


Advice 

Did God answer Job? 


...continued from p.II 
creation is very similar to our 
own personal doubts. He 
develops a very keen sense for 
what we often call “natural 
disasters.” Job alludes in 
sarcastic, powerful language to 
floods, droughts, tornado 
tidal waves, volcanos, 
earthquakes and epidemics. 
Where is God in aJl these 
seemingly haphazard troubles? 
Job becomes almost insane 
with grief when he considers 
these problems. How can 
creation be called “good” in 
the context of all such 
“natural” disasters? (“acts of 
God,” as the insurance 
companies say). 

One of the most frightening 
things Job does is dabble with 
pagan creation myths, threaten¬ 
ing to forsake the basic Is¬ 
raelite creeds. He calls upon 
those who invoke Leviathan, 
for example, (chapter 3:8). He 
also asks God. “Am I Yam (the 
pagan god of the sea)?" And he 
refers caustically to Rahab, 
another chaotic monster god of 
the pagan religions. 

In all these semi-blas- 
phemous forays into pagan 
creation mythology, Job chal¬ 
lenges God by insinuating that 
perhaps God had never truly 
won the first battle of creation, 
namely the battle over chaos. 
According to the pagan 
religions, the battle between 
chaos and order had never been 
decisively won and remains an 
ongoing daily struggle. The 
revelation God gave to Israel 
made claims to the contrary. 
The spirit of God hovered over 
the waters, and there were no 
chaos momsters left. But Job 
still wonders, to the point, al¬ 
most, of apostasy. 

Job frightens us when he 
takes traditional metaphors of 
creation's stability and solidity, 
such as mountains and rocks, 
and turns them into symbols of 
change and decay. Consider 
chapter 14:18,19: “As a moun¬ 
tain erodes and crumbles, and 
as a r(Kk is moved from its 
place, as water wears away 
stones and torrents wash away 
the soil, ,so you destroy man’s 
hope.” The Creator God of Mt. 
Zion, who is himself often 
called Israel's Rock and 
Redeemer, is here under attack. 

Even when Job's mind 
wanders away from Genesis 1 
and 2, he never strays far from 
that territory. So at one point 
Job cries out, “O earth, do not 
cover my blood, may my cry 


never be laid to rest.” This is 
an explicit allusion to Cain’s 
killing of Abel, when Abel’s 
blood cried out to God. Abel’s 
murder proved that something 
had indeed gone wrong in 
Eden, and Job here suggests 
that the Creator himself may 
now be implicated in a murder 
— the elimination of Job! And 
yet. Job reaches out to that 
divine assassin in desperate 
hope! 

God really does listen 

More things could be men¬ 
tioned. In general, it is 
worthwhile to take a concor¬ 
dance and look up some of the 
key words that appear in the 
speeches of Job and the 
friends, and see if they recur 
and in what manner, in the 
speeches of God. That makes 
for a very interesting and excit¬ 
ing Bible study. For the friends 
too, just like God, gradually 
realize that Job is not just talk¬ 
ing about suffering but is seek¬ 
ing to reconstruct the universe 
in such a way that possible 
design flaws in the original 
would be corrected. 

Talking about the actual 
detailed contents of God’s 
speeches would require a 
.separate article. But the point 
is this: Although God does not 
resolve all of Job’s questions, 
God does rationally and mean¬ 
ingfully intersect with the con¬ 
cerns Job had been raising. 

And the more you consider this 
fact and the more you study 
God’s speeches, the greater 
comfort it is for the believer. 

We must still live by faith, 
not by sight. But our faith does 
not need to be a ridiculously 
blind sort of faith. We can have 
faith in a God who reveals that 
he really listens to us and really 
cares about the things we say 
to him — a God. in .short, who 
does not change the topic! 

Such a God can retain our ul¬ 
timate loyalty even though he 
leaves many questions un¬ 
answered. Promptings toward 
such loyalty have been my per¬ 
sonal experience when pursu¬ 
ing the above approach to the 
book of Job. 

Note: This .summer, CRC 
Publications, Grand Rapids, 
Mich., will publish an adult 
study booklet on Job written by 
Nick Overduin. 


Nick Overduin is the Christian 
Reformed chaplain at Brock University, 
St. Catharines, Ont. 




Dear P and M 

Reading through your two columns of Jan. 
21 and March 18, as well as many other 
church papers and books, it strikes me that so 
many people have a great struggle aligning 
suffering with the Good News and the power 
of God Almighty. 

1 do understand that we touch a very deli¬ 
cate subject here, and I hasten to add that 
many good things have been said concerning 
this problem. Allow me to add something to it. 

To state that suffering is caused by sin is a 
theologically correct statement. Some of it is 
caused by our own sin; some of it by the situa¬ 
tion we find ourselves in because of our fallen 
condition. 

We have to see that suffering is normal in 
this life and that the lack of suffering is abnor¬ 
mal. 

We also know that God intervenes in the 
lives of his people when they call on his name. 
But there is a problem here because the Lord 
does not always change things. Some prayers 
seem to be heard and other prayers seem to ^ 
go unheard because nothing changes. Why? 

To eliminate all suffering in this world, God 
would have to remove all human beings be¬ 
cause they are the cause of suffering. But this 
will not happen because the world continues 
to exist for the sole reason of filling the num¬ 
ber of the elect. 

God promises to help us through, but he 
will do it his way. 

Preparation for eternity 

We must bear in mind that the time we live 
here in this world is a preparation for eternity. 
We tend to over-value our earthly existence in 
comparison with eternity. The Lord does not 
do that. He is above everything and sees our 
lives from beginning to end. 

He also knows what impact my life or death 
will have on others. In fact, he knows every¬ 
thing. We pray according to our knowledge, 
which is little. God hears and acts according 
to his knowledge, which is unlimited. 

He takes all circumstances into account, 
and without a doubt, he does what’s best for 
everyone concerned. 

To summarize: God is not primarily in the 
preventing business. He's in the saving busi¬ 
ness. We must not be angry with God because 
we have to suffer. God is not the cause of our 
suffering. We must believe that upon our 
prayers he will do what's best for us, taking 
all circumstances into consideration. 

We must learn to see this earthly life as a 
preparation for eternity, and death as a door 
through which we enter the presence of the 
Lord, for which all God's people long. 


Dear Preparation for Eternity 

When the Apostle Peter writes, “Do not be 
surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, 
as though something strange were happening 
to you” (1 Peter 4:12), he prepares Christians 
for the agonizing reality of suffering in the life 
of the believer. So we agree with you that suf¬ 
fering is normal and we should stop thinking 
that God’s people are somehow exempt from 
pain and trouble. 

We also like the way you’ve pointed out that 
God is in the saving business, not the prevent¬ 
ing business. It is also true, however, that God 
reveals himself as our protector and our 
prayers for protection from evil and harm are 
certainly valid. 

It is not our intention to question the 
sovereignty of God and the eternal good that 
God can accomplish with our earthly suffering. 
Our only concern is that people don’t get the 
wrong idea about the way suffering comes to 
us, as if (jod wilfully dishes out pain in ran¬ 
dom proportions to whomever he pleases. 
That’s why we urge people to use greater cau¬ 
tion when they’re tempted to comfort a hurting 
individual with the words, “It’s God’s will.” 

For a more comprehensive discussion of the 
question of God and suffering, see three help¬ 
ful pamphlets prepared for broadcast on the 
Back to God Hour by Rev. David Feddes, en¬ 
titled “Screams of Faith.” “The God Who 
Hides” and “Where Is God When I Suffer.” 
They’re very good! 

Dear P and M 

Recently you answered a question about the 
appropriateness offunerals for miscarriages. 
You made us aware of a CRC publication 
which included a liturgy for those who have 
lost an unborn child. Please note that 
Reformed Worship (issue 24. June 1992), al.so 
includes a service of prayer on the occasion of 
a miscarriage, a stillborn child or an early 
death. 

Dear Service of Prayer 

Thanks for drawing this i.ssue of Reformed 
Worship to our attention. The service of prayer 
on p. 28 is identical to the one included in the 
pastoral guide “In Life and Death” published 
in 1992 by CRC Publications. It’s good to 
know that it can also be found in a resource 
readily available to the churches and their wor¬ 
ship committees. 

Write to: F & M 
do Christian Courier 
4-261 Martindale Road 
SI. Catharlne.s, ON L2W lAl 


Peter ami Marja Slofstra are a pastor ami wife team living 
in St. Catharines, Ont. They art assuted by an advisory 
panel consisting of Herman de Jong, Bill Udkea, Tom Zeyl, 
Irene Bom, Manan Van Til ami Bert Witvoet. 





















page 13 



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I (broker-owner) 


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HeipttMIlfIn 

DUTCH FOOD CHeeSE CHOCOLA TE TEXTILE $ GIFTS 


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Canada 


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European Imports 


SERVICE AND 
BUSINESS 
DIRECTORY 

Call these professionals 
for the service you want. 


Gary van Eyk, CMA 

Certified Management Accountant 

Providing services in 

— Management Accounting 
— Income Taxes 
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JSOSvullht.l^cullMnrPla/a) _ 

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Haalboom & Schafer 

Barristers Solicitors Nota ries 

Richard RIjk Haalboom 

Q.C..B.A..LL.B 


I 110 Wyndham St. N. 
I Guelph 622-4690 


Mountain Plaza Mall 
Hamilton 383-2981 


6012 ADA BOULEVARD 
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Charles R. Greenhorn ba. CGA 

Certified Generai Accountant 

350 Scott Street, UnN #17 
St. Catharine*, Ontario 
L2N6T4 

BUS; (905) 646-4515 RES: (905) 935-3337 


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Limited 


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Telephone: (SOS) 648-9273 
Fax; (905) 648-9404 


We ofter a complete line of printing eervloaa , and can 
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Ancaster 648-5339 

ARTISTS AND CRAFTSMEN 
IN STAINED GLASS 

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JERRY’S AUTO BODY 

(Beamsville) Inc. 

COMPLETE BODY AND COLLISION 
SERVICE TO ALL MAKES 
— TOWING SERVICE — 


Look for our 
CALENDAR 
OF EVENTS 
on page 19 


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Insurance brokara III). 

261 Marlindale Rd., Unit 17, 

St. Catharines, Ont. 

CorKannegleter.R.I.B. 

MAGNAVOX-MlTACHt-ZENlTH SALES »SERVICE 

^ televishdn-raoio-stereo 

^ antenna installation A REPAIRS 

GARY VAN DYK 

ig the Niagara area lor 30 years. 

GRANTHAM 

"tv centre ltd 


Winter Computer Services 


ctoM tool Serve* Sow Mocm Sharpening 


Kmma Winter 


/IRTSTOOLS^LES- 

StSERl'ICE LTD 

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L2N1U ^ 

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Aart van Krimpen -Weiptvlcewhaiwosoir 


- Full Bookkeeping Services 
I — Financial Siaiemenis 


Omcei (905) 563-4471 
Hume: (905) 563-4681 


— Ta» Relurn Preparallon 

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4184 Mountaia St. 
P.O. Box 844 
BearaavUtc, ON LOR IBO 


Glendale Motors 

407 Wilson St , Ancaster 
Just west of Mohawk onHwy. #2 
We supply propane 

Adrian Kloe! 

































PAGE 14 


CHRISTIAN COURIER 


Classifieds 


Classified Rates 


Births 


Anniversaries 


Anniversaries 


Marriages 


Births .$25.00 

Marriages & Engagements $40.00 

Anniversaries.$45.00 

2-column anniversaries . $90.00 

Obituanes.$45.00 

Notes of thanks.$35.00 

Birthdays .$40.00 

All other one-column classified 
advert sements: $13.50 per column 
inch. NOTE; Minimum fee is $25.00. 
Letter under file number $35.00 
extra. Photos; $25.00 additonal 
charge. (Free when published with 
anniversary announcement 
celebratng 50 years or more.) 

Note: All rates shown above are 
GST inclusive 
ATTENTION! 

b) Christian Courier roservos the 
nght to print classifieds using our 
usual format., 

b) A sheet with information about an 
obituary sent by funeral homes is 
nof acceptable since it leads to er¬ 
rors and confusion. 

c) Photographs sent by fax are not 
acceptable. If you wish a photo in¬ 
cluded. send us the original. 

d) Chnstian Courier will not be 
responsible for any errors due to 
handwntten or phoned-in advertse- 
ments. 

e) The rate shown above for clas¬ 
sifieds covers any length up to six 
column inches. Christian Courier 
resenres the nght to charge tor addi¬ 
tional column inches at the rate of 
$13.50 per column inch (GST incl.). 
NEWLYWEDS & NEW PARENTS 
We offer a one-year subscription for 
only $20.00 (GST incl.) to the 
couples whose wedding is an¬ 
nounced in the Christian Courier 
and to the parents of the child 
whose birth announcement appears 
in our paper. To faalitate matters, 
we encourage those who request 
the wedding or birth announcement 
to enclose $20.00 and the couple's 
correct address. 

Christian Courier 
4-261 Martindale Rd. 

St. Catharines, ON L2W 1A1 
Phone; (905)682-6311 
Fax; (905) 662-8313 


Births 


SNIPPE: 

We, Jack and Debbie (nee Riewald), 
give praise and thanks to God for 
the safe arrival of our fifth child, a 
son 

NATHAN CHRISTOPHER 
bom on April 24, 1994, 
weighing 8 lbs. 

Twenty-second grandchild for Mr. 
and Mrs. Bert Snippe of Wei- 
landport, Ont., and 37th grandchild 
for Mr. and Mrs. Gerrit Riewald of 
Hagersville, Ont. 

Home address; 200 Brock St., 
Smithville, ON LOR 2A0 


HAZENBERG (nee VEENSTRA): 
With great joy and thankfulness. 
Leonard, Sylvia and big brother Mat 
thaw, praise God tor the early and 
safe arrival of 

JORDAN WILLIAM 
bom on March 26, 1994 
Jordan is the fifth grandchild for 
Henry and Mary Hazenberg of 
Chatham, Ont., 17th grandchild for 
Wilma Veenstra of Clinton, Ont.. 
and 58th great-grandchild for Fred 
DeVnes of Chatham, Ont. 

Home address 180 Wellesley Cres¬ 
cent, London, ON N5V 1J7 


Birthdays 


STOLTE: 

On June 9, 1994, we hope to 
celebrate with our dad, opa and 
great-opa 

HERMAN STOLTE 
his 85th birthday. 

We thank God for being with him 
throughout his life and praise Him 
for His faithfulness to him through all 
these years. 

With love from your children; 

Harry & Jenny Van Belle — Edmonton 
Albert & Leona Stolte — Rocky 
Mountain House 
Arend & Geraldine Stolte — 
Edmonton 

Riky & Cliff Goebel — Calgary 
Gertie & David George — Cardiff 
Bertha & Bert Van Essen — 
Edmonton 

Herm & Grace Stolte — Calgary 
Allan & Bernadette Stolte — 
Edmonton 
and from his 26 grandchildren and 
one great-grandchild. 

Address; Emmanuel Home, 13425- 
57 St., Edmonton, AB T5A 2G1 





Congratulations to Walter and Ellen Kloostra (nee De Jager) on the 
occasion of their 65th wedding anniversary! 


1949 May 18 1994 

“In all your ways acknowledge Him 
and Ha will make straight your 
paths" (Prov. 3;6). 

TJEERD and ALfP BAKKER 
(nee BUITENHUIS) 

Happy 45th anniversary Mom and 
Dad. With love from your children 
and grandchildren; 

Aart & Alice Bakker — Drumbo, Ont. 

Melissa, Travis, Jordan 
Linda Anola (Bakker) — South Gillies, 
Ont. 

Allison, Cheryl 

Home address; R.R. 3, 4 Con. Rd., 
Thunder Bay, ON P7C 4V2 


N 

Marriages 


GRITTER: 

With great joy and deep gratitude to God, Evert and Jenny Gritter 
are happy to announce the weddings of throe of their children 
to some special people. 

Mamage ceremonies and surrounding celebrations 
are planned for 

June 4, 1994, in Calgary, Alta. 

RANDY GRITTER 
to 

MARY SEXTON 

ceremony in St. Pius X church at 1 p.m. 

August 20, 1994, in Belleville, Ont. 

CARL GRITTER 
to 

WENDY VANDERWAL 
ceremony in Maranatha Chr. Ref. Church 

October 1, 1994, in Lacombe, Alta. 

FRED BAONG 
to 

LINDA RIETEMA 

ceremony In First Lacombe Chr. Ref. Church 
May the Lord richly bless the desires of their hearts to serve the 
Lord and each other wherever Ho leads them. 

Address; 36 Covordale Avo., Cobourg, ON K9A 4H3 


Nes (W.D.) Chatham 

Fr. Ont. 

1929 May 23 1994 

With joy and thankfulness to God we 
hope to celebrate, D.V., the 65th 
wedding anniversary of our pTarants, 
grandparents and great- 
grandparents 

WALTER and ELLEN 
KLOOSTRA 
(nee DE JAGER) 

With love from your children; 

Sieger & Lena Kloostra — Chatham, 
Ont. 

Dick & Grace Kloostra — Chatham, 
Ont. 

Connie & Henk Van Rooyen — 
Beamsville, Ont. 

Bill & Christine Kloostra — Dresden, 
Ont. 

Joe & Henny Kloostra — Chatham, 
Ont. 

Simon & Brenda Kloostra — Peter¬ 
borough, Ont. 

Walter & Correen Kloostra — 
Brantford, Ont. 

31 grandchildren and 43 great¬ 
grandchildren. 

Home address; 209-40 Elm St., 
Chatham. ON N7M 6A5 


1954 May 29 1994 

With joy and thankfulness to God, 
we are happy to announce the 40th 
wedding anniversary of our parents 
and grandparents 

CORNEUS and TRUDY BOS 
(nee DEGROOT) 
Congratulations and love from; 

John & Nellie Bos — Nepean, Ont. 
Joanna, Michael 

Andy & Janet Bos — Newmarket, Ont. 

Neil, Marc, Stephen, Lindsay 
Wilma & Pete Westmaas — Essex, 
Ont. 

Laura, Krista 

Larry & Jackie Bos — Kingsville, Ont. 

Richie, Lisa, Jessica 
Address; 36 Cameron Drive, 
Kingsville, ON N9Y 3L7 


BUISMAN-FLIKKEMA; 

Albert and Henny Flikkema and Ed 
and Sjoukje Buisman are very 
pleased to announce the marriage 
of their children 

JAMES PAUL FLIKKEMA 
and 

CHARLENE KAREN BUISMAN 
on Juno 4, 1994, D.V., at 4 p.m., in 
the Jubilee Fellowship Chr. Ref. 
Church, 13 Wilholm Drive, St. 
Catharines, Ont. 

‘We thank and praise God for this 
union in the Lord." 



> Marriage* 

"But seek first His kingdom and His 
righteousness, and all these things 
will be given to you as well” 

(Matt. 6;33). 

On May 24, 1994, our dear parents 
GARY and HARMENE SYTSMA 
(nee ASSIES) 

hope to celebrate 25 years of mar¬ 
riage. We thank and praise God for 
His continual love and care over our 
family. 

With love from your children; 

Jerry & Lynn — Grand Rapids, Mich. 

Marcy & Vince 

Kim 

Lisa 

Home address; R.R. 43, 
Hagersville, ON NOA IHO 


SYTSMA-VANLAAR: 

It is with great joy and thankfulness 
that we, Garry and Harmene Sytsma 
announce the forthcoming marnage 
of our son 

JERRY ANDREW 
to 

LYNN ERIN 

daughter of John and Barbara Van- 
Laar of Grand Rapids, Mich. The 
wedding will take place, the Lord 
willing, July 1, 1994, at 5;30 p.m., in 
the Calvin Chr. Ref. Church of 
Grand Rapids, Mich. 


GUETTER-SYTSMA: 

Our celebrations of love continue as 
wo, Garry and Harmene Sytsma, 
joyfully announce the forthcoming 
marriage of our daughter 

MARCELLA CORINNE 
to 

VINCENT MARCEL 
son of John and Frances Guetter of 
Hamilton, Ont, The wedding will 
take place, the Lord willing, on Sept. 
24, 1994, at 2;30 p.m., in the Chr. 
Ref. Church of Jarvis. Ont. 

Future address; 27 Balmoral Crt,, 
Caledonia, ON NOA lAO 
































PAGE 15 



Classifieds 


Anniversaries 



Anniversaries 


Anniversaries 





Pemis Grimsby 

1931 1994 

Psalm 4:0b (Dutch Bible Psalm 4;9b). 
We thank the Lord for His continued 
care for our parents 

CORNEUS and NEELTJE 
VANDYK 
and we wish them both a wonderful 
day on May 27. 1994. 

From your children: 

Gary & Audrey VanDyk — St. 

Catharines 
Tom & Lina Zylstra — Glen Morris 
Harry & Nienke VanDyk — Hamilton 
Homer & Joan Bruinsma — St. 

Catharines 
John & Audrey VanDyk — Kitchener 
Charles VanDyk — Kitchener 
Gerard & Nellie VanDyk—Cambridge 
17 grandchildren and nine great¬ 
grandchildren. 

No reception due to ill health. 
Address: C. VanDyk, 12 Bartlett 
Ave., Grimsby. ON L3M 4N5 


Congratulations to Cornells and Neeltje VanDyk on the occasion of 
their 63rd wedding anniversary! 


Congratulations to Harm and Nellie Bloemberg (nee Vander Pol) 
on the occasion of their 50th wedding anniversary! 

Hollandscheveld London 

1944 May 20 1994 

With joy and thankfulness to our God. wo hope to celebrate, D.V.. the 50th 
wedding anniversary of our parents and grandparents 
HARM and NELLIE BLOEMBERG 
(nee VANDER POL) 

pray tnat tne Lord may coTitmue to kbepYouliblhln His loviri^caro arii 
give you strength for each new day. 

“For the promise is unto you and to your children, and to all that are afar off, 
even as many as the Lord our God shall call" (Acts 2:39). 

With all our love: 

Anno & Sid Vander Hoido — London 
Yvonne & John, Ron, Jill, Jonathan 
Ralph & Nancy Bloemberg — London 

Martin & Jo, Helen & Scot. Michael. Jennifer 
Nela & Mike Couchie — London 

Sean & Jackie, James, Thomas, Michael 
Corrie & Keith Bendall — London 
Kirsten, Matthew 

Margareth & Roger Baker — Ailsa Craig 
Timothy, Benjamin, Simon. Isaac 

An open house will bo held on Saturday, May 20, 1994, from 2:30 to 4:30 
p.m., at Heritage Bible College, 30 Grand Ave., London, Ont. 

Best wishes only. 

Homo address: 25-202 Grand Ave., London, ON N6C 1L3 





1954 Juno 3 1994 

JOHN and MARILYN NIEBOER 
Psalm 23. 

During the past 40 years, the Lord 
has indeed been our Shepherd. He 
iias kept us and .our children, Ron 
and Janice Spelt, and our 
grandsons, Bradley, Daniel and 
Paul, in His loving care. 

“Surely, goodness and mercy shall 
follow us all our days and we shall 
dwell in the house of the Lord 
forever!" 

We invite all who wish to celebrate 
the Lord's goodness with us to at¬ 
tend an open house on Saturday, 
May 20. 1994, from 2-4 p.m., at 
Rehoboth Fellowship Chr. Ref. 
Church, 000 Bumhamthorpe Road, 
Etobicoke, Ont. 

Best wishes only please. 

Home address: 7436 East Saanich 
Road. Saanichton, BC V0M 1W2 


1939 Juno0 1994 

With thankfulness to our God we are 
happy to announce the 55th an¬ 
niversary of our parents 

FRANS and DIEUWKE DAHM 
(nee VAN DER VEEN) 

With love from your children, 
grandchildren and great¬ 
grandchildren: 

Ann & Stewart Klompmaker— Stirling 
John & Heather, Tim & Annette, 
Yolanda 

John & Lynda Dahm — Sydenham 
Angie, Amy 

Harry & Gail Dahm — Etobicoke 
Micheal, Karin 

Etta & Frank Cerisano — Sydenham 
Shaun 

Ed & Kim Dahm — Sydenham 
Jillian, Jake 

Great Pakie and Beppe of Chris¬ 
topher and Mitchell. 

Home address: Portland Ave., 
Sydenham, ON KOH 2T0 



Den Ham Thunder Bay 

Overijssel Ontario 

1954 June 1 1994 

“That Thy eyes may be open night 
and day toward this house" (1 Kings 
9:29a). 

With thankfulness to our Lord for 
kbeplng them Tri Hf1TdVlri0't0re, we 
celebrate with joy. the 40th wedding 
anniversary of our parents and our 
Opa and Oma 

JAN and GE BLEKKENHORST 
(nee KAMPHOF) 

With love: 

Henry & Sue Ellen — Murillo. Ont. 
Gillian, Jonathan 

Berend & Leslie — Thunder Bay, Ont. 

Christine, Brian 
Art & Cathy — Murillo. Ont. 

Sheleen. Erik. Jason 
Leo & Susan — Murillo. Ont. 

Andrea, Laura, Daniel, Lindsay, 
Leah 

Jed & Lynnea — Thunder Bay, Ont. 
Sarah 

An open house will be held Satur¬ 
day, June 4, 1994, from 1-4 p.m., at 
the Fellowship Hall of First Chr. Ref. 
Church, Thunder Bay, Ont. 

Home address: 5454 Townline 
Road. Thunder Bay, ON P7B 5E2 


Congratulations to Frans and Dieuwke Dahm (nee van der Veen) 
on the occasion of their 55th wedding anniversary on June H! 


In thankfulness to the Lord wo 
celebrate on May 21, 1994, the 40th 
wedding anniversary of our parents 
TAMME and RIET SCHENK 
(STRUYK) 

May the Lord continue to be their 
source of joy and strength in years 
to come. 

Their loving children: 

John & Diane Leferink 
Bemie & Irene Menken 
John & Wendi Schenk 
Harry & Allison Schenk 
Jim & Debbie Kortleve 
and 15 grandchildren. 

Address: T. and R. Schenk, 79 
Charles St., Georgetown, ON L7G 
2Z6 


Ayeisford Niagara-on-the-Lako 

N.S Ont 

1954 May 20 1994 

“The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not 
wanf (Ps. 23:1). 

With joy and thanksgiving to our 
Lord we are happy to announce the 
40th wedding anniversary of our 
parents and grandparents 

HANK and RIEK POSTMA 
(nee LUYMES) 

May God continue to be near to you. 
bless you and keep you in His care 
for many more years to come. With 
love and best wishes: 

Evert Postma — Niagara-on-the- 
Lake, Ont. 

John & Janet Postma — Bear River, 
N.S. 

Sarin, Chelsae 

Hank & Annette Postma — Niagara- 
on-the-Lake, Ont 
Jason, Kristen, Eric 
Joanne & John Vink — St. Catharines, 
Ont. 

Brenda-Lynn, Cheryl 
Freda & John Pnns — Grimsby. Ont. 

Christopher, Steven. Lindsy 
Aubrey & Heather Postma — 
Abbotsford, B.C. 

Open house wilt be held on Satur¬ 
day, June 25, 1994. in our parents' 
garden, (in case of rain. Covenant 
Chr. Ref. Church, St. Catharines. 
Ont.), from 3-5 p.m. 

Homo address: 1513-Conc. 6, 

R.R. #2. Niagara-on-the-Lako, ON 
LOS IJO 


Look for our 
Summer Job 
Market ads 
on pages 17 and 18... 





































PAGE 16 


CHRISTIAN COURIER 


Classifieds 


Anniversaries 


Obituaries 


Teachers 


Job Opportunities 


Job Opportunities 


Op 1 juni 1994 hopen 

HARMEN en TRIJNTJE 
VAN KEIMPEMA 
(geboren DE HAAN) 
hun trouwdag van 50 jaar geleden te 
herdenken. 

Samen met hun kinderen: 

Frances Van Overbeek — Cornwall, 
Ont 

Sonya Tiekstra—St. Catharines, Ont. 
Peter van Keimpema — Cornwall, 
Ont. 

Adres: R.R. #1, St. Andrews West, 
ON KOC 2AO 


1954 May 31 1994 

With gratitude to God we announce 
the 40th wedding anniversary of our 
parents and grandparents 

DIRK and PET A VELTHUIZEN 
(nee VERKERK) 

DitV — Edmonton, Alta 
Gerakjino 4 Ken — Whitecourt, Alta. 

Carolina, Benjamin, Jason 
Bart & Alice — Hagersville, Ont. 

Jolene, Peter, Michael, Alisa 
Andrea & Jochen — Tatamagouche, 
N.S. 

Marlene & John — Drayton, Ont. 

Jody. Michael, Ehka, Nikki 
Tim 

Home address: R.R. 5, Kemptville, 
ON KOG 1J0 


Jarvis, Ont. Gorrie, Ont. 

1969 1994 

With thankfulness to God, we are 
happy to announce the 25th wed¬ 
ding anniversary of our parents on 
May 30, 1994. 

HANK and WINNIE WINKEL 
(nee VANNETTEN) 

With love from your children: 

Wendy Winkel & Steve Andrushak — 
Kitchener, Ont 
Steve Winkel & Chene Chapman — 
Stratford, Ont 
Wesley — at home 
June — at home 
Wedding text: “And now these three 
remain; faith, hope and love. But the 
greatest of these is love” (1 Cor. 
13:13). 

Home address: R.R.#2, Gorrie, ON 
NOG 1X0 


Church News 


'Trust in the Lord with all your heart 
and lean not on your own under¬ 
standing: in all your ways acknow¬ 
ledge Him, and He will make your 
paths straighf (Prov. 3:5-6). 

On March 22, 1994, the Lord called 
home to Himself our loving wife, 
mother and Beppe 

AALTJE 

STRAMPEL-SCHUILENGA 
Beloved wife of Jelte Strampel of 
Collingwood. 

Dear mother of; 

Wolter Strampel — Collingwood 
Taeke & Emily Strampel — Wasaga 
Beach 

Margje & Klaas Noordagraaf — 
Minesing 
Djoerd & Alie Strampel — Stayner 
Tineke & Neil Redder— EImvale 
John-Peter & Valerie Strampel — Red 
Deer, Alta. 

Lovingly remembered by 20 
grandchildren and four great¬ 
grandchildren. 

Dear sister of Djoerd Schuilenga 
and Harm Schuilenga of the Nether¬ 
lands, Edziena Monster of 
Brampton, Ont., and Etty van dor 
Sluis of Ridgeway, Ont. 

The funeral service was hold at the 
Chr. Ref. Church of Collingwood, 
Ont. 

Correspondence address: Mr. J. 
Strampel, 211 Seventh St., Col¬ 
lingwood, ON L9Y 2B5 


Christian Reformed Church 


Calls accepted: 

— to First, Barrie. Ont.. Rev. 
Jack Vos of Covenant, St. 
Catharines, Ont. 

New address: 

— Rev. John Ilellinga. IS4 
South St. W., Aylmer. ON Nfill 
1S3. Effective immediately 


Onze Ueve St. Thomas 

Vrouwe Parochie 
Oct. 8, 1933 April 20, 1994 

The Lord called home 

HEIN VAN DER LINDE 
Beloved husband of Maria H. (Neef) 
van der Linde, on Wednesday April 
20,1994. 

Dear father of: 

Hendrik D. & Linda van der Linde 
Hein M. van der Unde 
David E. & Barbara van der Unde 
Helena M. van der Unde 
and the late William R. van der Unde 
(1977) 

Dear grandfather of: 

Jonathan, Christopher, Amanda and 
Kelsie 

He is also remembered by his 
brother Teake and wife Liz van der 
Linde in the Netherlands; his 
parents-in-law David and Helen 
Neef, St. Thomas; and several 
brothers and sisters-in-law, nieces 
and nephews. Predeceased by his 
parents Hendrik and Hiltje 
(Hansma) van der Linde, and 
brother Evert. 

Funeral service was conducted by 
Rev. John Heidinga on Saturday, 
April 23. 1994. at First Chr. Ref. 
Church, St. Thomas. Ont. 
Correspondence address; Mrs. 
Maria van der Linde, R.R. 4, St. 
Thomas. ON N5P 3S8 


BURNS LAKE, B.C.: Burns Lake 
Chr. School is seeking three 
teachers to take up the challenge of 
helping our school develop its 
potential in its second year of opera¬ 
tion. Our school has multi-grade 
classrooms for primary/elementary 
grades, plus Kindergarten. 

Please contact us at: 

Burns Lake Chr. School 
Box 574 

Burns Lake, BC VOJ 1E0 


CAMBRIDGE, Ont.; Cambridge 
Chr. School invites applications 
from qualified teachers for a half 
time special education/resourca 
position, effective September 
1994. Please send letter of applica¬ 
tion and resume to: 

Andy Vender Ploeg, Principal 
Cambridge Christian School 
229 Myers Rd., Cambridge, ON 
N1R7H3 

Phone: (519) 623-2261 
Fax: (519) 623-4042 


Real Estate 


Attractive family home near 
Christian schools in Ottawa, Ont. 
f t 7 0 lf • & W * e gfiyg^hg^a~frft)V>S w” 
Ottawa or Kanata, please call or fax 
me for information on this excellent 
property: 3-bedrooms, hardwood 
floors, finished basement, double 
garage and large lot. Owner trans¬ 
ferred. $171,900. Call Gladys 
Baart, Century 21 John De Vries 
Ltd., at (613) 836-2570 or (613) 
832-2090. 


Personal 


WHY NOT? 

The Christian Marriage Contact 
Service assists men and women in 
the USA and Canada who would like 
to marry or remarry. 

Why not write to us at C.M.C.S.? 
Enclose $3.00 for our information 
package. 

P.O. Box 93090 
Burlington, Ontario, Canada 
L7M 4A3 

More mal9 membtrs ara 
ancouragad to apply. 


For Sale 


1 Cantor Classical Organ $4,995 
1 Eminent Organ $2,995 

Phone: (905) 455-0797 


Immediate opening for 

DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR 

Hamilton District Christian High School has an enrollment that has grown 
to over 400 students, with a capacity for 500. Join an energetic 
professional staff within a strong supportive community. 

Funds need to be raised outside of the regular operating budget to 
reduce the debt. The challenge is great and needs full-time attention. If 
you are up to the challenge, and this full-time position interests you. 
please send your letter of inquiry and resume before June 1, 1994, to: 

Clarence BIck, Secretary 
241 Wilson St E. 

Ancaster, ON L9G 2B8 
Phone: (905) 648-9559; Fax: (905) 648-8185 


m 


Hamilton District Christian High School 


The King’s University College requires the services of a person 
with strong administrative and systems skills to fill the position of 


REGISTRAR 


This .senior administrative post involves supervision of the 
student information system as well as admissions, financial aid 
and recruitment. Qualifications include academic administrative 
experience; a baccalaureate degree; extensive experience with 
computer-based information systems and assent to the College s 
Statement of Faith and Mission Statement. Salary range: 

$40,000-50,000. .... 

The King’s University College is a Christian liberal arts college 
offering its own B.A. and B.Sc. degrees. Interested parties should 
send letter of application, resume, and names of three references 

Dr. S. KflUi Ward, Vice President Academic 
The King’s University College 
9125-50 St, Edmonton, AB T6B 2H3 
Phone: (403) 465-3500 
Deadline for application: May 31, 1994. 

'% THE KING'S UNIVERSITY COLLEGE 

Christian University Education 

The Kings University College is an equal opportunity employer, but in 
accordance with Canadian Employment and Immigration regulations, this 
advertisement is directed to Canadian citizens and permanentjesidents^^^ 


The Tulip is the floral symbol of 
Parkinson’s disease 

(NO—In 1981, Mr. J. W. S. Van der Wcreld, the renowned 
Dutch horticulturist, himself u Parkinsonian, regi.stered his 
prize cultivar, the “Dr. James Parkinson" bulb to honour 
both the International Year of the Disabled and Dr. James 
Parkinson, a British physician who first described the 
symptoms of this disabling disca.se in ISU^This red and 
white tulip was introduced in Canada in 1984 to paimote 
Parkinson Awareness Week. The bulb is available for sale 
in the fall to raise funds for research from all 
the Parkinson Foundation of Canada. Call 1-800-565-3UUU^ 









































MAY 20, 1994 


PAGE 17 


Classifieds 


[ 


Miscellaneous Miscellaneous 


t \NAI)\-THI;N AM) NOW 


(NC)—Around 1890 this poster 
invited people from Holland 
to immigrate to Canada. It says 
• Read this! The best agri¬ 
cultural land in the world. Sixty- 
four hectares in Manitoba. 
America’s great North-West 
available to you all along the 
Canadian Pacific railroad. A ten 
days’ journey from Holland. 
Free information; maps and 
explanations available...". This 
year Canada’s Immigration 
department celebrates its IZSth 
birthday. Many people have 
immigrated over the years and 
we can take pride in the fact 
that Canadian citizens trace 
their collective ancestors back 
to every country imaginable. 
In 1992 a total of 680 people 
immigrated here from the 
Netherlands. 




Our Circulation Manager is at her job every day trying to keep 
our subscriptions up to date. We spend thousands of dollars each 
year in postage sending out renewal notices, reminders, etc. To 
top it off, Canada Post charges us an extra fee for using the 
handy business-reply envelopes we make available. This means 
that in order to get a subscription renewed we have to pay 
close to $1.00 in postage alone! 

The computer label on your Christian Courier copy shows the 
month in which your subscription is due. If your label .shows that 
your subscription is due two or three months from now, kindly 
consider sending us the renewal fee ahead of time. This way, you 
will be a.s.sured that C.C. will be coming to you regularly, as well 
as saving us time and postage expenses! 

Be an early bird! We appreciate your cooperation. Please 
use the coupon below when sending us your renewal fee. 

COUPON 

Plea.se renew my C.C. sub.scripiion for the period indicated: 

□ one-year renewal. Enclosed is $39.50 (32.00 U.S.) 

□ two-year renewal. Enclosed is $74.00 ($60.00 U.S.) 

□ three-year renewal. Enclosed is $111.00 ($90.00 U.S.) 

Name ___ 

Address __ 

City/Town _ 

Code _ 

P.S. If possible, glue your label in this space, or enclose it. 

Send to: 4-261 Martindale Kd., St. Catharines, ON 

L2W lAl 


Vacations Real Estate 


Hollands of Engels 

iii 


HomeLife 


200-32500 South Fraser Way. Abbot sford, 
BCV2T4W1 

Bus. (604) 053-7144 Fax: (604) 853-1839 
Res; (604) 854-1560 
' 'Serving the Fraser Valley” _ 



r 

Flourishing Deli 

Relocate to beautiful B.C. 

and assume ownership of a long-established Dutch 
deli business with a large customer base. Owner 
wishes to concentrate energies on a related business 
enterprise. Required is an energetic person or family 
to further develop the deli. Business has a solid 
growth pattern and is profitable. Owner is willing to 
provide guidance and training. Feel free to contact: 

Dave Pel & Co 
Phone:(604)585-1255 
Fax:(604)585-8525 


Come to beautiful Wasaga Beach 
and stay at 

ALTON LODGES 

Clean 1- & 2-bedroom house¬ 
keeping cottages, friendly family 
atmosphere, close to beach and 
river, 20% discount on weekly 
rates until June 18, 1994 

For information write 
or phone to: 

Len & Rita Bette, Alton Lodges 
459 Mosley St. 

Wasaga Beach, ON LOL 2P0 
(705) 429-2420 


£.Ooklfi^Oi4A 

CaUrtutoAr 

4 

CaeHrU 


Summer Job Market 


TORONTO, Ont.: 19-year old 
hard-working university student 
seeking summer job in child care 
(live-in/out) or indoor/outdoor work 
of any sort, in city or on farm. Ex¬ 
perience in teaching, babysitting, 
yard work, painting. Speaks Dutch. 
Please contact Mary at (416) 743- 
4452. 


KINGSTON. OnL: 

IS-year old student living in 
Kingston, Ont., wanting a summer 
job. Able and willing to train and 
work for any job. Call Terry 
Smedes at (613) 544-6385 after 6 
p.m. 


ST. CATHARINES. Ont.: 16-year- 
old student eager to work dunng 
summer months. Experienced 
babysitter but will consider any type 
of work. Please call Renee Numan 
at (905) 937-6046. 


MISSISSAUGA, Ont.: Paula Wub- 
benhorst (17 years old). Ex¬ 
perience includes cash register 
operation, keyboarding and desktop 
publishing. Seeking employment in 
any of these areas. Call (905) 826- 
2504. 


CAMBRIDGE, Ont.: 17-year-old 
diesel technician student seeking 
employment on a dairy farm. Ex¬ 
perienced in haying, worked on pig 
farm, and have worked in automo¬ 
tive and small engine fields. Own 
car. Adaptable, eager to work hard 
anywhere. Chris Van Dixhoorn at 
(519) 623-9924. 


University student in biology and 
environmental studies (25 years 
old), seeking summer employment 
in Niagara region. Six years 
secretarial experience, Word- 
°erfect. PlanPerfect, DataPerfect, 
spreadsheet, AccPac, multi-lingual. 

Please call 682-9068 (evenings) 


Job Opportunities 


Secretary to the Board and Activities Co-ordinator 

We are a significant voice in the Ontario farm community and are experiencing major growth in our support 
community. We need a self-motivated individual with a positive Christian commitment who will become the 
co-ordinating hub of a dynamic organization. 


Qualifications: 

* post secondary education 

* knowledge of agriculture 

* proven organizational skills 

* computer literacy 

Please apply to Christian Farmers Federation 
Guelph, ON N1H 2V1, Fax: (519) 824-1835. 


* management expenence 

* knowledge of the rural community 

* writing and presentation skills 

* willingness and ability to travel 

Ontario, 115 Woolwich Street, Second Floor, 


















































































CHRISTIAN COURIER 


Classifieds/Events 


Summer Job Market 


If you believe that honesty and in¬ 
tegrity far outweigh political correct¬ 
ness, please read the following ad: 
RBC student looking for summer 
employment paying “Big Bucks". 
Willing to work hard for it. Tuition 
isn't cheap those days! Call Tim at: 
(616) 669-9859 before May 7 
(905) 934-3547 after May 7 

GEORGETOWN, OnL: ' 

Hardworking, physically active, 
bicycling fanatic 17-year old girl, 
desperately looking for a summer 
job. I'm willing to do anything from 
farm work to child care, gardening, 
vacuuming, cooking, housework. 

You name it. I'll do it. Call Andrea 1 
at (905) 877-9998. 


Summer Job Market 


Summer Job Market 


JOIN THE 

CC SPRING 1994 
CAMPAIGN 




I 


Many magazines and tabloids in Canada are 
struggling and C C is no exception! If each subscriber 
would gain us one new subscriber before the end of 
May 1994 we would. In one wonderful swoop, be 
where we were 10 years ago. Look around you — 
you'll see signs of new life everywhere. Why not 
blossom with the lilacs and hatch with the robins? 
Convince only one person or one family that Christian 
Courier is worth subscribing to. Send us this coupon 
today and we will send you a copy of Building on the 
Rock, Rev. Henry Van Andel's insightful meditations on 
Christ's Sermon on the Mount. 


I 
I 
I 

I 

I SPECIAL INTRODUCTORY PRICE" 

\ 

I 


Yes, Please enter the following subscription, 
j Half year (22 issues) for just $ 19.95 Cdn* or $ 14.95 US 
1 j One year (44 issue) for just $34.95 Cdn* or $26.95 US 

I 'GST Included 

Name;__ 


(New subscriber) 


Address: 
City:_ 


Prov./State:. 


Code; 


N B ’ 

' a) offer not valid for subscription renewals 

b) cheque for subscription must be enclosed 

c) offer expires May 31,1994 

J Please send Rev. Van Andel's bookta; 

Nanre;----- 


Address; 
City. __ 


Prov./State: 


Code: 


Clip this out and send to: 
Christian Courier, 4-261 Martindale Road 
St. Catharines, ON L2W lAl 


Christian Studies degree in busi¬ 
ness administration seeking 
employment anywhere. 3 years 
secretarial experience. Working 
knowledge of ACCPac, Word¬ 
Perfect 5.1.Lotus 1-2-3 and Ultimate 
Database.Also have experience as e 
health care aide. Call Marilyn at 
(905) 389-3072. 


PORT PERRY. Ont.: 17-year old 

student at Durham Chr. High 
School, able and willing to train at 
any job. Experience in farm work 
and one summer of constmction 
work. Call Jeremy Stevens at (905) 
985-3962. 


WILLOWDAuE. Ont.: Student 
graduating with Honours 
Economics degree, looking for 
summer employment in business or 
inance. but will work at anything, 
.awn maintenance experience. Call 
(416) 221-3396. 


HAMILTON, Ont.: 19-year-old col¬ 
lege bound male seeking summer 
job. Available June 25. Willing to do 
indoor or outdoor work, ranging from 
coalminer to astronaut. Call Fred at 
(905) 383-0119 in Hamilton, Ont. 


We’re looking in the Calgary area 

for an exchange of vacation pos¬ 
sibilities. We offer our home in St. 
Catharines, Ont., or our car and tent 
trailer in exchange for a car and 
trailer or recreational vehicle for the 
last three weeks in July. We hope to 
travel through Alberta and BC. If in¬ 
terested. contact Bert and Alice Wit- 
voet at (905) 684-3991 (a«er 5 p.m.) 
or at (905) 682-8311 (during office 
hours). 


ANCASTER. Ont; Pre-seminary 
student at Redeemer College 
needs work for summer. Looking for 
jobs in home renovations, decks, 
trim carpentry, or floorcovering in¬ 
stallations. 20 years experience, 
have operated own business. Willing 
to sub-contract from homo builders. 
Have van and own tools. I'm 30 
years old with wife and four children. 
Phone (905) 648-9134 ask for 
George Holthof. 


NIAGARA REGION, Ont: 

NEED spring cleaning, lawn cutting, 
eavestrough cleaning, small paint¬ 
ing jobs, or driveway sealing? 

Call MR. ODD JOBS 
(905) 984-8397 

Ownod/operated by university stu¬ 
dent. MR. ODD JOBS developed out 
of frustration with current job 
market. Thank you for your support, 


Take advantage of 
our Business 
Directory 


ATTENTION! 

When you fax your 
display or classified 
ads to us (particularly 
obituaries), please 
type them and check 
spelling BEFORE you 
transmit the text. 
Thank you. 

ATTENTION! 



Calendar 


May 20-23 Young Calvinist Federation'.s 20lh anniversary 
all-Ontario convention, hosted by Niagara League, at Brock 
University, St Catharines, Ont. Info.: Tina VanGecst (905) 
892-1429. 

May 20-24 ‘Reformed Engaged Encounter” weekend at tlie 
Pearce Williams Christian Centre. Iona Station, Ont. Info.: 
(905)935-6875. 

May 24 Organ concert by Jonathan Oldengarm. 12 noon, 
St.James Anglican Catliedral. Toronto, Ont. Admission free. 
May 24 Organ concert by Jonathan Oldengarm, 12 noon, St. 

James Anglican Cathedral. Toronto. Ont. Admission free. 
May 28 Graduation ceremonies, 2 p.m., Redeemer College, 
Ancasler. Ont. Speaker: Dr. John Redekop on “What makes 
a college Christian." President Rev. Henry R. De Bolster will 
also he recognized. 

May 28 Annual ABC sale. 9 a.m.-l p m.. Shalom Manor. 
Grimsby. Ont. Breakfast from 8-10 a.m. Lunch from 
II a.m.-l p.m. Come and join us! 

May 29City-wide hymii-siug. 8 p.m.. First CRC, Sarnia, Ont. 
May 29 Dutch worship service, led by Rev.Ummert Slofstra. 
3 p.m. CRC Ancaster.Ont. 

June 3 Open house for Ancta Ztmdcrvan and Keith Grwn. 

7:30-9:30 p.m.. Qiatham Chr. High School. Chatham, Ont. 
June 6-10 “Milk A Honey Summer Festival," a Christian 
vacation experience focussing on the theme, "Not by Bread 
Alone." At Redeemer College. Ancaster. Ont. Call Janet at 
(905)648-2131. 

June 8 Twenly-fifiJi anniversary •Hollaiid.se Dag." 10 a.m.. 
Community Centre. MooreHeld, Ont. Speaker: Rev. L. 
Schaafsma. Take your own lundi and cup alongl 
June 13-16 FourUi annual "Avoiid Vierdaagse ”. a 4-day 
evening walk at tlic Royal BoUnical Gardens. Burlington, 
Ont. Info: (905) 383-6319 


June 15 Hollaiidse Dag. ” CRC. Brockrille, Ont. Speaker: 
Rev. S. Van der Schaaf. Tickets S7. Info.: Mrs. H. Pijl (613) 
342-3613. 

June 17 “Christian Singles and Single-Again 
confereiice/relreat at die Bible Conference Centre. Guelph, 
Ont. Info.: Andy at (905)521-8968 or Uzai (905)522-8207. 
June 23-26 “Canadian Christian Festival IV." at Copjw 
Coli.seum. Hamilton. Ont. Theme: “ Sharing the Joy.” 
Speakers include: George Carey. James Forbes Jr.. David 
Mainse. Jean Vanier (Founder of L’ Arche) and Lois Wilson. 
Info.: (905)523-3100. 

June 25 Chri-stians across Canada participate in “ A Day to 
Change the World.’ ’ as part of the “ “Global March for Je.sus. 
Watch for local announcements. Info.: (416) 778-7080. 

June 26 Retirement service for Rev. Henry R. De Bolster. 10 
a m.. CRC Ancaster, Ont. All welcome! 

July 11-22 Summer Sdiool at Wycliffe College. Toronto, 
Ont.. sponsored by Wycliffe and ICS. Speakers include: 
Grant UMarguand. Harry Fernhoul. Edith Humphrey. James 
Olihuis, Mary VanderVennen and Loren Wilkinson. 
Registrauon and info.: (416)979-2870. fax: (416)979-0471. 
July 13 ■ “Hollandse Dag" at the Caradoc Community Centre. 
Mount Brydgea. Ont. Starts at 10 a m (refreshments at 9:30 
a m ). Speaker: Rev. Jacob A. Quaitcl. Take your own lunch 
and cup along! 

July 28-Aug. I ICS Ontario Family Conference, at HDCH. 
Ancaster. Ont. Theme: “Uving in Grace: Forgiveness and 
Hope in Uncertain Times. ” Featured speaker: Dr Uwis 
Smedes (Fuller Theological Seminary). Info.: (416) 
979-2331. 

Aug. 19-21 40lh anniversary celebration weekend at iIk CRC 
Vernon. B.C. Fnends. former members ami pastors arc 
invited to attend. Info.: (604) 549-1746 





























































World news 


H ere in Ontario the air is 
crackling with the oc¬ 
casional spring thunderstorm 
and the rumblings of an ap¬ 
proaching election. PC leader 
Mike Harris just launched his 
province-wide “Common 
Sense Revolution." which 
promises jobs and joy with a 
lot of political jabber. Some of 
the jobs to put the campaign 
together went to Americans. 

★ ★ ★ 

Spring is definitely here; on 
a 200-km stretch of Highway 
401.1 counted 12 dead rac¬ 
coons. If that wasn’t convinc¬ 
ing enough Mother’s Day mush 
rang from pulpits and other 
platforms. 

it ir ir 

F rere Jacques Parizeau 
had a wonderful idea: 
get this sovereignty thing under 
way quickly or we won’t pay 
our share of the national debt. 
Even Quebecers are beginning 
to notice Mr. Parizeau s pom¬ 
pousness; sometimes he sounds 
^ i^ke he's only one small step 
away from royalty. Lucien 
Bouchard is much more 
popular in La Belle Province, 
even though he is less radical 
in his demands than Frere Jac¬ 
ques. Remember how Mr. 
Trudeau once said that 
separatism was dead in 
Quebec? Oops! Like what the 
doctor .said when he couldn’t 
find his stethoscope after 
sewing up the patient. 

★ ★ ★ 

The Reform Party, out to 
turn the Block’s crank, moved 
to have MPs sing “O Canada" 
in the House of Commons 
every Wednesday. Is Mr. 
Chretien going to be a 
Canadian version of a Teflon 
politician? Not much bad news 
seems to stick to him. Colum¬ 
nists were even quick to point 
out that the unexpected jump in 
the rate of unemployment was 
not poor Mr. Chretien’s fault. 
There were just too many 
people looking for jobs. There, 
don’t blame the government! 

★ ★ ★ 

W hen cabinet ministers 
get too much flak they 
usually divert the blame 
downward. So when Solicitor- 
General, old Liberal stalwart 


Carl D. Tuyl 


bytes 


Herbert Gray, had to field too 
many questions about crimes 
committed by people on parole 
he had the chairperson of the 
parole board walk the plank, 
and Mr. Bellavance could kiss 
his nice $90,000 job goodbye. 
Membership on the parole 
board, by the way, is the ruling 
party’s way of keeping its 
benefactors in spending money. 

★ ★ ★ 

Alberta doctors are prepared 
to swallow a five per cent pay 
cut and restrict the number of 
new doctors in the province to 
save tax payers $60 million this 
year. It is not so much every 
new patient that adds to the 
health costs; every new doctor 
adds even more. Alberta might 
have the right approach to cut¬ 
ting the health bill. 

★ ★ ★ 

I t’s 1994, and hard to im¬ 
agine that 40 years ago 
Dwight Ei.senhower was presi¬ 
dent of the good old U.S. of A., 
spending mneh ofhJslfme in 
office on the golf course. Per¬ 
haps. just maybe, things would 
improve if more politicians 
spent more time playing golf. 
Also 40 years ago, Canada ad¬ 
mitted the 100,000th Dutch im¬ 
migrant; Koosje Bol. Let us 
hear from you, Koosje, if you 
are still among the living. 

★ ★ ★ 

A Russian Aeroflot pas¬ 
senger jet made an emergency 
landing in Arkhangelks alter 
the crew was forced to replace 
missing hydraulic fluid in the 
landing gear with lemonade. 

★ ★ ★ 

J apanese Justice Minister 
Shiegto Nagano denied 
that Japan was the aggressor in 
World War II. It was just a 
colony of killer bees e.scaped 
from Disney World, I guess. In 
the area of historical 
revisionism I prefer the ac¬ 
count of a student, who wrote; 
“When Elizabeth exposed her¬ 
self before her troops, they all 
shouted hurrah, then her navy 
went out and defeated the 
Spanish Armadillo." 

★ ★ ★ 

While blood continues to cry 
to high heaven in Rwanda, 
peace is at the point of settling 
down on Palestine. Rabin and 


Arafat signed an accord which 
ended Israel’s 27-year hold on 
Jericho and the Gaza strip. 

And for people who deny the 
possibility of change, for the 
pessimists who wallow in hope¬ 
lessness, there was the in¬ 
auguration of Nelson Mandela 
as South Africa’s first black 
president. 

★ ★ ★ 

C ivil war broke out in 
Yemen between the 
southerners and northerners of 
that country. Fierce rocket, ar¬ 
tillery and tank battles raged in 
several areas of the country. 

Why do people all over the 
world want to keep arms 
manufacturers in busine.ss? 

★ ★ ★ 

The National Rifleman’s As¬ 
sociation lobbied in the U.S. 
against a bill which would 
prohibit the pos.session of 
heavy automatic assault rifles. 
What is it with these cement¬ 
headed people ? Besides having 
u-ouble of an entirely different ^ 
nature, the LTSrPresident also 
had to deal with the cenu-al 
banks of 16 other nations to 
buy dollars, in a global cam¬ 
paign designed to maintain the 
value of the old greenback. 

★ ★ ★ 

Time to hear from our roving 
travel reporter who spotted this 


announcement on a menu in 
Switzerland; "Our wines leave 
you nothing to hope for." 

★ ★ ★ 

T he next Dutch govern¬ 
ment will probably be 
led by the Labor Party which 
emerged with almost 40 seats 
in Parliament. The last labor- 
led government reigned till 
1977. The Christian Democrats 
might become part of a coali¬ 
tion cabinet with Labor leader 
Willem Kok as prime minister. 
Mr. Lubbers, who was prime 
minister in the Netherlands will 
be nominated to succeed Jac¬ 
ques DeLors of France as the 
European Union’s chief execu¬ 
tive. 

★ ★ ★ 

We conclude this week with 
a word of wisdom: “A man has 



a right to toot his own horn to 
his heart’s content, so long as 
he stays in his own home, 
keeps the windows closed and 
does not make himself ob¬ 
noxious to his neighbors." 

Carl Tuyl it chaplatncy co ordinator m 
Canada for the Christian Reformed 
Church and is a member of the Ontario 
Multifaith Council on Spiritual and 
Religious Care. 


CHRISTIAN STEWARDSHIP SERVICES 


Providing counselling in estate planning, 
will making. Insurances, Christian 
investments, and special giving. 

• Free of charge - Confidential 
► Public presentation - Home visits 


Please write; CSS, 455 Spadina Ave., #210, Toronto, ON 
M5S 2G8 or telephone: (416) 598-2181 



r 


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PAGE 20 


CHRISTIAN COURIER 


News 


Hamilton Christians march through red 
tape and dollar signs 



"Turning churches inside out”: marchers for Jesus in a 1993 parade 


Irene Bom 

HAMILTON.Oni—Over 
20,000 Chrislians ready lo 
walk for Jesus in downtown 
Hamilton nearly got their walk¬ 
ing papers from local leaders. 

The recent scuffle between 
March for Jesus organizers and 
the downtown merchants 


dumped a rainshow^r oF media 
attention on the second 
southern Ontario regional 
parade. 

But a closer look by business 
leaders at the march proposal 
later cleared the air. So June 
25, 1994, will become the first 
time marchers here will en- 


Christian Schools 
International listens and 
responds 


Bert Witvoet 

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — 
The printers delivered the first 
b(K>k of a new science series to 
Christian Schools International 
last week. It's the student book 
for grade three. The rest of the 
K-6 series will follow in the 
coming weeks. 

The new .science material 
was developed in response to 
teacher demands for more excit¬ 
ing .science textbooks. Director 
of CSI publications Gordon 
Bordewyk says that .schools 
can count on the whole series 
being available before Septem¬ 
ber. 

The scries will consist of 
teacher guides for grades K-6 
and student books for grades 3- 
6. There are no student books 
for grades K-2, but teachers in 


these grades will be teaching 
from their teacher guide, using 
numerous blackline masters. 

More than a revi.sion 

The new series replaces an 
older CSI science series Uiat 
was published in 1986 and 
covered grades 3-6. “People 
who have u.sed the old series 
will sec elements of the old 
material back in the new 
books," says Bordewyk. 

But he claims that the new 
.series is more than just a 
revision. The study material 
has been expanded and the new 
books sport color illustrations 
and photographs where the 
older series worked only with 
black and white. 

The basic approach to the 
teaching of science and the un¬ 


counter no opposition. 

Merchants in the city’s fail¬ 
ing core have always opposed 
downtown parades, including 
two previous annual Marches 
for Jesus, because no traffic 
means no shopping dollars for 
the day. So far, they’ve had to 
live with two Saturday parades 
a year that skirt around the 
core. 

But the route and size of this 
year’s March for Jesus — 
which coincides with the 
Fourth Canadian Christian fe.s- 
tival expected to attract 20,000 
people — led to a mini-ex- 
plosion in the local media. 

“We have nothing against 
Jesus, but we have something 
in favor of not hurting business 
in the core," Hamilton’s Spec- 
taior quoted Marvin Caplan, 
the chair of the Downtown 
Business Improvement Area, as 
.saying. 

Move date 

Caplan wanted the parade 
moved out of the city core or 
held on Sunday when most 
shops are closed. He withdrew 
his objections when Cowling 
pointed out that one and a half 
lanes of King Street would be 
kept open and that marchers 
would halt to allow traffic on 
cross streets to continue. 

“They can live with reduced 
traffic. We knew that, so that’s 
how we designed the 
proposal," says march or¬ 
ganizer Bob Cowling. His first 
plan had marchers skirt around 
the core like other paraders, but 
he later felt led to a.sk for per¬ 
mission to use half of King 
Street. 


derlying view that the world 
belongs to God has not 
changed, according to Bor¬ 
dewyk. The new series will 
have more hands-on activities 
than the older one. 

It took CSI about three years 
to write the material, field-test 
it and put it together at an es¬ 
timated cost of $291,000 US. 

Of that, the Canadian Christian 
Education Foundation (CEF) 
will be contributing $72,750 US. 


Response to parents 
While the .science series is 
coming out, a CSI literature 
series for grades 3-6 is making 


Cowling calls the substitute 
routes “a dLsgrace." “It’s 
dishonorable lo keep parades 
from downtown. King Street is 
the historic parade route, but 
there hasn’t been anything 
down King Street in the 14 
years since I’ve been here," he 
says. 

As for changing the parade 
date to Sunday, Cowling points 
out that the march is a global 
event. Ten to 15 million 
believers are expected to march 
in many international cities, in¬ 
cluding 90 Canadian cities. 

Bring church onto street 

March for Jesus began in 
England as a spontaneous, 
grassroots movement in the 
mid-1980s and went interna¬ 
tional in 1991. 

Cowling is asking churches 
to turn inside out for the 
march. “I tell them, ‘We want 
your banners, your musicians, 
your singers, your praise — 
whatever is happening within 
the walls of your church, bring 
it out onto the streets,"’ he says. 

Cowling is marketing the 
parade with its planned “up¬ 
beat, contemporary gospel 
music and choreographed 
movement,” the committee’s 
euphemism for dance. 

People in the media say chur¬ 
ches are dead, and the public 
has no way of balancing that 
message because everything 
happens inside church walls, 
says Cowling. 

“This march is one way to 
take the bushel off our candle," 
he adds. 


good progress, reports Bor¬ 
dewyk. It is being developed in 
response lo demands of 
parents, especially in Ontario, 
that CSI produce a .series of an¬ 
thologies that include Christian 
stories. 

A 1992 CSI survey showed 
that literature materials from 
secular publishers were being 
used by a majority of CSI 
teachers, says Bordewyk. 

Many Christian schools were 
using the Impressions series 
published by Holt and 
Rinehart, since CSI did not 
have a literature series. Some 
parents complained that this 
series included stories with a 


News Digest 


Edited by Irene Bom 

Serial killers in the 
womb 

TORONTO —A 
biochemist is linking serial 
killers lo prebirlh factors. 
According to a Globe and 
Mail report, the biochemist 
found that up to a third of 
the inmates on death row in 
the United States suffer 
from fetal-alcohol 
syndrome. He thinks that 
mothers may unwittingly 
create killers by drinking 10 
to 18 weeks after concep¬ 
tion, when a baby’s nerve 
cells start connecting. 

As well, the article notes 
that offender profiling 
seems laughable at times. 

For instance, when 
Maryland police were after 
a .serial rapist, says The 
Independent on Sunday, 
they warned the public to be 
on the lookout for a man in 
his 30s with medium build 
and “low self-e.sieem.” 

Coffee cuts pregnancy 
hopes 

NEW HAVEN, Conn. — 
Women who drink three 
cups of coffee a day reduce 
their likelihood of becoming 
pregnant by 27 per cent, ac¬ 
cording to a study by Yale 
University. Coffee also may 
heighten job stress, reported 
the Globe and Mail. 

Duke University researchers 
also found that stress-related 
hormones were considerably 
higher in the urine of people 
who had ingested caffeine 
than in those who had taken 
a placebo. 


New Age flavor and excluded 
stories that were overtly Chris¬ 
tian. 

CSI hopes to remedy this 
problem next spring with a 
series of anthologies that will 
answer the concerns raised by 
parents. 

In the meantime. Fred 
VandcrVelde. executive direc¬ 
tor of CEF. announces that his 
board recently approved 
$120,272 in the coming year 
for the development of cur¬ 
riculum material by CSI and 
$49,390 for curriculum work ^ 
done by the three Canadian - 
CSI districts.