Growth

Rev. J.W. Deenick. Trowel & Sword. May 1973

Preamble: (Taking Stock) It had been 22 years since the establishment of the CRC in Australasia. A lot had happened in that short space of time and the growth of the denomination would seem to be indicative of God’s blessing on this work. This begs the question: What of the 52 years since then? Has growth continued or are we now in decline? Whatever the answer, how do we account for it? These questions were also asked by Bill Deenick in his article below. So now perhaps we should ask ourselves: Where to from here? We do not look provide answers. That is the task of every member of the CRCA and CRCNZ. We, along with J.W. and many other contributors of T&S over the years merely ask the questions.

Growth

The 1973 yearbook for the Australian and New Zealand Reformed Churches has arrived, very nicely in time and very capably edited. The Rev. W.F. VanBrussel in a survey on the events of 1972 reports on many encouraging and some not so encouraging aspects of Reformed church-life in this part of the world.

From an organisational point of view the churches seem to be doing well. There are at present 34 churches in A. and 15 in NZ., that is if we count Canberra, Gosford and Wainui-o-mata as independent churches, which officially they are not (yet). In A. these churches are served by 30 ministers, one minister for evangelism and one overseas missionary; in NZ they are served by 11 ministers and one overseas missionary, the Rev. Stephen Feng, whose name unfortunately is missing; this ought to be rectified in next year’s edition. There are two emeritus ministers, one in A. and one in NZ. and two ministers serve as theological professors at the RTC.

In Australia 31 of the congregations have their own building, usually with some additional accommodation for youth work; one congregation has two church buildings. Four churches meet for worship at two different places, one at three places. In New Zealand 12 or 13 (I am not sure) of the congregations have their own building and one church meets for worship at two different places.

All churches have a session clerk, most have next to their elders one or more deacons. In the majority of the congregations there are Sunday schools and youth clubs: many have a cadet and a calvinette club (clearly a growing movement); women’s guilds, bible-circles and choirs are well represented; there are a good number of Christian day school associations, five of which have their own school; but men societies are a dying institution. From all this it appears that most local Reformed Churches are well organised bodies properly cared for by elders, deacons and ministers and with a stable membership. In A. and NZ together there is a membership of close to eleven thousand members.

Is it a growing membership? This question comes up immediately. We are pre-occupied with growth. Numbers are there to show increase. Statistics are there to indicate success in extension and growth.

There is at this stage no significant growth in numbers. In his NZ news the Rev. Harry L. Hoving asks for a justification (if there is any) for this lack of growth. I have no answer to that. The Reformed Churches have to struggle, no doubt, with the same problems as with which in a secularising society all the Christian Church is faced; and apart from that there are a few problems that are peculiar to the situation in which in this part of the world the Reformed Church finds itself, i.e. concentration in the main urban centres (through which members departing to country areas and provincial centres are often lost) and identification with a predominantly migrant membership.

Taking into account the “natural” growth through births and baptisms the churches have not grown in numbers. This has not been because people joined other churches or the sects. Relatively very few did; and in fact those who came over from other churches were more in number than those who left. Nor has it been because of (church-wise) mixed marriages. The great majority of marriages performed have been between two Reformed partners.

There are, however, two disturbing figures in the statistics. In 1972, we notice, 73 members in A and 17 in NZ (i.e including the baptised children) withdrew from the church without any church destination. That means they did not merely leave the Reformed Church, they left the Christian Church as a whole. They followed the trend of the time and joined the vast, spiritually colourless masses of those who no longer worship regularly (if at all) in any Christian Church. Notwithstanding all our preaching and the pastoral work of elders and ministers they were possibly never really converted and as Demas they preferred after all to live in the world.

The second disturbing figure is that of gains through evangelism. In Australia 22 members have been won through evangelism, in NZ 5 members. That is both in A and NZ about one soul per two churches or per two ministers. Even when we point out that evangelism does not aim at increasing the membership of the Reformed Church and that we have evidence that through our efforts in public evangelism (Back to God Hour, World Home Bible League, Vacation Bible Schools etc.) both adults and children have been won for the Lord Jesus Christ, we have not really given an explanation, far less a justification, for this figure.

Is it personal evangelism that is lacking both among members and ministers? And if it is, why is this so? Do we not really love the Saviour as much as we claim in our creeds?

BILL DEENICK

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