Episode 181: Synod 2024 - Trusting God's Providence - Dan DeGraff (Part 1)

“[This Messy Reformation is] the quiet development of fruit that’s been growing for decades, and finally—by God’s providence…this is what the church is about, what the faith is about, what being a confessional church is about…The essence of who we are and what we are as members of the Christian Reformed Church—this synod was a historic moment in bringing us fully on that track.” -Dan DeGraff

Summary of this Episode

This week on the Messy Reformation podcast, the first post-Synod guest to join Jason and Willy is Dan De Graff (aka the guy who writes most of these summaries, including this one). This was my third synod, and in addition to being delegated by Classis Lake Superior, I was also elected as the second clerk. After checking in about how my Synod-recovery has been, Jason and Willy ask what possessed me to let my name stand to be an officer especially for what was likely to be a historic synod. While I’m grateful to my fellow delegates for their trust, I wasn’t thinking so much about the historic-ness. I enjoy administrative work, think I have a good handle on how synod meetings run, and I thought that was fitting for a clerk. The heaviness of the work really hit me and the other officers in the weeks leading up to synod.

Willy asks what does a Synod clerk do? We maintain the electronic roll call, speaker queues, and voting. We help relay messages to the president and/or vice-president from synodical services or other delegates. We read announcements and get to pass along giveaway prizes. We also get to review the minutes with the Minutes Review committee. It’s also helpful for the clerks to be well-versed in church order and parliamentary procedure, and help the president and vice-president however we can to help things run smoothly.

From there, the conversation moves into what was the most surprising part of Synod for me. I share about the heaviness of the week and the loneliness I felt compared to other synods I’ve been at. Officers have some incredible opportunities to meet and dine with various groups of delegates, advisers, and representatives, but you’re not really with the other delegates. It’s hard to be fully involved with all the minutiae of matters on the floor. It is truly a different experience. This reminds Jason of his work last year, and while he sensed the heaviness as he tuned into Synod 2024, he experienced joy in watching others do the work. He and I applaud the work done by Committee 9 and their chair and reporter.

Jason also shares how seeing other people do the work building upon the recent past shows this is the movement of God in the Christian Reformed Church. While there isn’t a change in the whole trajectory, it feels like we’re heading back in the right direction. I describe it as “the quiet development of fruit that’s been growing for decades, and finally—by God’s providence…this is what the church is about, what the faith is about, what being a confessional church is about…The essence of who we are and what we are as members of the Christian Reformed Church—this synod was a historic moment in bringing us fully on that track.”

Picking up on the confessionality piece, Willy points out that the creeds and confessions aren’t just denials, but also (and far more) they are affirmations. As summaries of what God’s word teaches, they will inevitably provide affirmations and denials. Jason talks about the idea that catechisms are missional. “What makes a message easily spread and easily grabbing hold of people is clarity…If you have a clear, compelling message…it gives you the language and words to speak to people about your faith to share the gospel with them. So, clarity is a missional thing.” I share how I believe missional discipleship is what our confessions are intended to be, or at least how they can and should be applied in today’s church.

This episode wraps up with what I learned about myself. While it’s somewhat hard to admit, it is the need to trust God more. While I appreciate people who have been faithfully persevering and willing to enter and fight for confessionality in the CRC, I wasn’t optimistic—not just about how votes may go but the workload and time constraints of Synod. Yet I learned again that I can and should “trust God when it seems like there’s absolutely no way things are going to work out.”