[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 89 (Tuesday, June 5, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1191]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




HONORING THE CHRISTIAN REFORMED CHURCH IN NORTH AMERICA ON THE OCCASION 
                        OF ITS 150TH ANNIVERSARY

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. VERNON J. EHLERS

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 5, 2007

  Mr. EHLERS. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor and congratulate the 
Christian Reformed Church in North America, which is celebrating the 
150th anniversary of its founding. The church is in the midst of a 
year-long series of observances and services centered on the theme 
``Grace Through Every Generation,'' in three phases of emphasis: 
Remembering, Rejoicing, and Rededicating.
  The Christian Reformed Church (CRC) is a group of nearly a thousand 
Protestant churches in the United States and Canada. The CRC has its 
roots in the Reformation of the 16th century. In 1517, the Reformation 
divided the Christian church, and several Protestant denominations were 
born. One branch developed under the influence of theologians Ulrich 
Zwingli and John Calvin. The ``Presbyterian'' church flourished in 
Scotland and the ``Reformed'' church in northern Europe, particularly 
in the Netherlands, with an emphasis on the sovereignty of God, faith 
in Him alone for salvation, and the preeminence of Scripture in 
worship.
  Dutch Protestants brought their deep faith and their practical piety 
with them when they emigrated to the United States in the 1800s. My 
district in West Michigan has some of the deepest roots of Dutch-
American history and heritage in the country. Dutch explorers, traders 
and settlers were a significant part of the earliest European 
exploration of the New World, especially in New York and New Jersey. 
However, the first major wave of Dutch immigration began in the 1840s 
with the Calvinists. Like so many of the original settlers here in 
America, they wanted more religious liberty than they experienced in 
their home country. They dared to journey across the Atlantic to New 
York and then moved across northern New York and finally settled near 
the shores of Lake Michigan. Waves of Dutch settlers soon found Grand 
Rapids and Holland, Michigan, to be the places of stability and 
religious liberty they were seeking. In 1857, a group of four 
churches--about 130 families--officially broke from the Dutch Reformed 
Church and formed the Christian Reformed Church in North America.
  Throughout its 150 years, the CRC has maintained a commitment to the 
teachings of John Calvin as well as the great Dutch theologian, Abraham 
Kuyper, who called the church not only to holy living but to assert 
Jesus Christ's lordship over all of creation. This means that every 
aspect of life belongs to God, and every sphere of life--from schools 
to homes to businesses to government--can be a forum for learning more 
about God and helping to make the world a better place.
  Throughout its 150 years, the CRC has wrestled with many of the same 
social issues faced by other churches and the country in general. The 
church's worldview has shaped its level of accommodation of different 
lifestyles and cultures, its discussions of ways to combat racism, its 
debates over the place of women in church leadership, and its 
consideration of the appropriate response to war and other 
international conflicts.
  Throughout its 150 years, several CRC programs and ministries have 
developed and grown to reflect this worldview. This includes The Back 
to God Hour, the church's worldwide radio and Internet ministry 
program; Christian Reformed World Missions, supporting more than 300 
missionaries in 30 countries in Africa, Latin America and Asia; the 
Christian Reformed World Relief Committee, which provides financial 
assistance and recovery workers in response to disasters and 
establishes long-term self-promotion and sustainable living projects 
around the world; and Calvin College and Calvin Theological Seminary, 
the church's educational institutions that help equip students for 
lives of work in God's service in every field.
  Madam Speaker, I am proud to be a member of this church denomination, 
which has helped me and millions of others through the last 150 years 
to worship God faithfully, to experience fellowship with other 
believers, and to provide spiritual and physical care to those in need. 
I commend its members during this special time of remembering, 
rejoicing and rededicating. I ask my colleagues to join me in 
congratulating the CRC on its 150 years of service.

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