2026 Assemblies

CRCNA Synod 2026 Votes to Leave World Communion of Reformed Churches

The vote to exit the WCRC passed with just nine opposing votes—closing a chapter in the CRC's ecumenical history that stretched back to the organization's founding.

The Christian Reformed Church in North America's Synod 2026 met June 12–18 on the campus of Calvin University in Grand Rapids, Michigan, for a week of deliberations that included a largely one-sided ecumenical departure and a forward-looking strategic commitment.

The defining action was the vote to end CRCNA membership in the World Communion of Reformed Churches. Those presenting the recommendation cited 'troubling perspectives' in WCRC-connected publications on gender and abortion. The motion passed with just nine opposing votes. WCRC General Secretary Philip Peacock, present at the Synod, received an apology from Synod's vice president 'for all the ways that the body failed to guard and protect his good name.' Peacock responded: 'While we are no longer in communion, we will always be in fellowship.'

Synod also approved a church-in-cooperation relationship with the Nederlandse Gereformeerde Kerken, a Dutch Reformed denomination formed in 2023, while directing the CRC to 'guide and mentor' the NGK on human sexuality—acknowledging significant differences between the two bodies. Full church-in-communion status was withheld at this time.

Synod approved a study committee on Christian nationalism, affirmed a 10-year strategic plan for church planting under Resonate Global Mission, and expressed appreciation for Calvin University's continued work to align with CRC confessional standards on sexual ethics—while requesting additional clarity on how exceptions to confessional subscription are handled. The 2026 closure of Trinity Christian College was also recognized.

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