Click here for the new Delegate Host form (overnight June 26-27th)

From June 15 through June 17, 2010, world leaders in Reformed thinking will gather in Grand Rapids, Michigan for a global conference, “Reformed Mission in an Age of World Christianity.”

The conference, co-sponsored by Calvin College and the International Association for the Promotion of Christian Higher Education (IAPCHE), is designed to strengthen the intersection between Reformed Christian faith expressions and global movements in world Christianity. The goal is to learn how Reformed Christian faith and work can effectively support the hopes and address the challenges encountered across a variety of contemporary cultures. The conference has already attracted registrants from 42 countries.

Richard Mouw, president of Fuller Theological Seminary, will deliver the conference keynote address at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, June 15, 2010, in the Prince Conference Center. The conference will also include a number of breakout sectionals, which will weave together four core themes: living roots for living water; translation across borders; the covenantal community and roles at the table of the church. They will focus on Christian understanding and action in the church as well as social and natural environments. Sectional leaders will include educational, ministry and public leaders from around the world. For example, one of the sectional leaders, Augusto de la Torre, is a former head of the Central Bank of Ecuador and now chief economist for World Bank in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Conference organizer and director of Calvin’s Van Lunen Center for Executive Management in Christian Schools Shirley Roels, said the conference is an unique opportunity to think and learn about what it means to be a Reformed Christian in relationship to a changing world, particularly when believers everywhere can be more easily and deeply connected.

“This is a golden opportunity to explore the treasures of Reformed heritage in relation to shifting world-wide faith dynamics,” said Roels. “We want participants to rediscover old jewels as they polish new gems of faith and action.”

The event is a pre-conference to the Uniting General Conference (UGC), a nine-day assembly being held Friday, June 18, 2010, to Sunday, June 27, 2010, at Calvin College. At the UGC, two networks of Reformed denominations, representing 80 million reformed Christians all over the world, will merge. With leaders from all over the world converging on Grand Rapids, Roels said it made sense to take advantage of this opportunity.

“A Reformed Christian interchange of this type will not happen again in Grand Rapids because the merger assembly is a one-time event,” said Roels. “This is an opportunity for us to create a very special space to think about being Reformed Christians within a changing global culture.”

“Reformed Mission in an Age of World Christianity” is open to all Christian leaders and particularly welcomes those from Reformed denominations such as the Christian Reformed Church, Reformed Church of North America, Presbyterian Church (USA) and the United Church of Christ, all of which are supporting the merger assembly.

The conference will be translated into French, Spanish, Korean and Bahasa, to accommodate the many languages of those attending.

Registration for the conference extends through the first week of June. To register, visit www.calvin.edu/go/rcc.

For more info on the conference, contact the Calvin College Seminars Office at 616-526-8558. 

Welcome the World, June 18-28, 2010
Held on the campus of Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Michigan

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On June 18, more than 1,000 people from 100 countries will come together to launch the World Communion of Reformed Churches. At global ecumenical events such as this, there is an opportunity for local congregations to get involved and meet delegates who have traveled from around the world to attend the meeting. There are many ways your congregation can take part in this historic and inspiring event.

Welcome delegates on Welcome Weekend (Sunday, June 20). This opportunity for congregations within 50 miles of Grand Rapids will allow delegates to join a local congregation for a warm welcome, worship, and lunch. Members of host congregations will be invited to accompany delegates to an exciting ecumenical worship service at 4:00 p.m. on the campus of Calvin College. Your congregation can choose to welcome anywhere from 10 to 100 delegates on June 20. The WCRC will transport delegates to churches hosting groups of more than 20 delegates.

Share your congregation’s life and work with a smaller group of delegates on Saturday, June 26, and Sunday, June 27 This is a great opportunity for members of your congregation to connect on a more personal level with Christians from around the world. You can pick up a group of 3 to 12 delegates at Calvin College at 2:30 on Saturday afternoon and spend time with them Saturday night and Sunday morning.

You may choose to have delegates stay overnight with members of your congregation or, if you are within a short driving distance, you may wish to bring the delegates back to their dorms at Calvin on Saturday night and pick them up again for worship on Sunday morning. On Sunday morning, you could recognize the delegates in your worship service and offer them the chance to preach, teach, or share their stories with your congregation as you share with them.

Volunteer at the Uniting General Council event Hundreds of volunteers are needed at Calvin between June 18 and 28 to assist with activities and help individual delegates. There are a variety of options, including driving a golf cart to shuttle delegates around campus, ushering at events, and welcoming delegates at the airport. Volunteering at this remarkable event will be a rewarding experience.

For more information about hosting delegates on either of the two weekends or volunteering on Calvin’s campus, visit the Uniting General Council website at www.reformedchurches.org or contact one of the following individuals, depending upon your church’s denominational affiliation.

PC(USA) churches:
Rev. Karen Fitz La Barge
Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it  

Historic Merger!

r churches are Congregational, Presbyterian, Reformed and United churches with roots in the 16th-century Reformation led by John Calvin, John Knox and others. WARC has a small secretariat in Geneva, Switzerland.

Historic merger planned for 2010

An historic merger between the World Alliance of Reformed Churches (WARC) and the Reformed Ecumenical Council (REC) is scheduled for June 2010 when the two organizations meet to form the World Communion of Reformed Churches (WCRC) at a uniting General Council to be held in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Visit www.reformedchurches.org for the latest information.

Bible study for churches that explains the purpose of this new organization through a study:
http://www.reformedchurches.org/docs/BibleStudy-ThisIsOurFamily.pdf

In the flurry of Eastertide, it is easy to get focused on your own congregation and your own community.  It is often easy to forget the rest of the world in the flurry of emails and deadlines.  --But this summer you and your church have an unbelievable once in a lifetime opportunity.  1000 people from all over the world are coming to West Michigan, and they want to meet YOU!   From June 18th - June 27th, the World Alliance of Reformed Churches and the Reformed Ecumenical Council will be merging into a brand new organization, the World Communion of Reformed Churches.  Your congregation is needed to represent the entire PC (USA) as we host our guests.  Every church in the presbytery needs to be involved in some way in order to make this work.  Please sign up for the Welcome Weekend to invite international participates to worship with you on Sunday June 20th; or get them involved even more with your community on the Share and Host Weekend, June 26th - 27th.   For more information, please read the online brochure, and to sign up, contact your Lake Michigan Presbytery liaison, Rev. Karen Fitz La Barge at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .  Thanks so much for your hospitality to the world!