A LETTER TO THE CLASSES AND CHURCHES OF THE REGIONAL SYNOD OF CANADA
Dear friends and leaders of the Canadian RCA churches.
In light of growing awareness and outrage over sexual abuse and harassment, not only in the culture around us but also within the church itself, and assisted by increasingly rigorous biblical scholarship around the theology of human dignity and God’s intent for restorative justice, the Reformed Church in America has reevaluated its own policies regarding harassment and has restated its strong stand against harassment of any kind.
At 2018’s General Synod, the following recommendations were approved:
W 18-1 - Approved
To affirm the #wearespeaking statement; and further,
To encourage that this statement and the subject of harassment, abuse, and sexual violence be used to inform services of worship; to encourage pastors to preach on this topic as well as to care for victims of harassment, abuse, and sexual violence; and to encourage congregations to form study groups to explore and reflect upon this topic.
W 18-2 - Approved as amended
To instruct the GSC to develop and implement a sexual harassment policy and procedures for reporting and responding to incidents;
and further,
To enact denomination-wide education and training to include boards, institutions, agencies, commissions, regional synods, classes, consistories, and congregations, reporting back to General Synod 2019 its progress and details of implementation.
W 18-3 - Approved
To urge every classis to have a sexual harassment training in place by General Synod 2019 and to have a plan for sustained accountability through continued education.
In response to these recommendations, the Regional Synod of Canada urges Canadian churches and classes to review their existing harassment policies and/or implement new policies if needed, and to seriously consider implementing harassment or boundaries training within their jurisdiction.
In partnership with the Reformed Church in America, we offer the following resources:
TRAINING RECOMMENDATIONS
HARASSMENT POLICY TEMPLATES AND RESOURCES (ADAPTABLE)
We thank you for your prayerful and careful attention to this topic.
If you have any questions or suggestions, please do not hesitate to contact the Regional Synod of Canada ad hoc committee on harassment prevention, policies and training.
Sincerely,
Marijke Strong and the Regional Synod Board
*With thanks to the Anglican Church of Canada for permission to adapt their parish policy template.
Dear friends and leaders of the Canadian RCA churches.
In light of growing awareness and outrage over sexual abuse and harassment, not only in the culture around us but also within the church itself, and assisted by increasingly rigorous biblical scholarship around the theology of human dignity and God’s intent for restorative justice, the Reformed Church in America has reevaluated its own policies regarding harassment and has restated its strong stand against harassment of any kind.
At 2018’s General Synod, the following recommendations were approved:
W 18-1 - Approved
To affirm the #wearespeaking statement; and further,
To encourage that this statement and the subject of harassment, abuse, and sexual violence be used to inform services of worship; to encourage pastors to preach on this topic as well as to care for victims of harassment, abuse, and sexual violence; and to encourage congregations to form study groups to explore and reflect upon this topic.
W 18-2 - Approved as amended
To instruct the GSC to develop and implement a sexual harassment policy and procedures for reporting and responding to incidents;
and further,
To enact denomination-wide education and training to include boards, institutions, agencies, commissions, regional synods, classes, consistories, and congregations, reporting back to General Synod 2019 its progress and details of implementation.
W 18-3 - Approved
To urge every classis to have a sexual harassment training in place by General Synod 2019 and to have a plan for sustained accountability through continued education.
In response to these recommendations, the Regional Synod of Canada urges Canadian churches and classes to review their existing harassment policies and/or implement new policies if needed, and to seriously consider implementing harassment or boundaries training within their jurisdiction.
In partnership with the Reformed Church in America, we offer the following resources:
TRAINING RECOMMENDATIONS
- Safe Church is our most highly recommended training resource. It is developed through the CRCNA, is free, and is compatible with Canadian laws. (www.crcna.org/SafeChurch)
- Plan to Protect is a church-based harassment and boundaries policy/training package currently implemented by several of our Canadian churches. There is a fee, but the quality of the resource is also high. (www.plantoprotect.com )
- Faith Trust Institute (https://www.faithtrustinstitute.org/healthy-boundaries)
- Earlier this year the Global Leadership Network produced an 8-part video series in response to #MeToo #ChurchToo and their own recent challenges with Bill Hybels. The series was hosted by the RCA’s Rev. Liz Testa, who affirms that it is informative and covers a broad range of related topics and concerns. Several RCA churches are using this free series to educate and foster conversation around next steps and it could be a useful tool for congregations in your region. Here is the link: https://globalleadership.org/ministry-and-me-too
- The RCA’s Eliza Cortes Bast is also available to help leaders strategize on how to leverage local organizations that offer support services in their area. (ebast@rca.org)
HARASSMENT POLICY TEMPLATES AND RESOURCES (ADAPTABLE)
- Several sample policies can be found at www.synodcanada.com/safe-churches
- The Regional Synod of Canada offers an adaptable Harassment in the Workplace Policy* as a template for churches and classes to consider, adapt and implement for their own environments and contexts.
We thank you for your prayerful and careful attention to this topic.
If you have any questions or suggestions, please do not hesitate to contact the Regional Synod of Canada ad hoc committee on harassment prevention, policies and training.
Sincerely,
Marijke Strong and the Regional Synod Board
*With thanks to the Anglican Church of Canada for permission to adapt their parish policy template.
CLICK HERE FOR ADAPTABLE HARASSMENT POLICY TEMPLATE
General Synod 2018 approved a recommendation to affirm the RCA’s #wearespeaking statement, which calls for an end to harassment, abuse, and sexual violence against women and girls. Synod also approved recommendations instructing the GSC to develop and implement sexual harassment policies and training and urging classes to put sexual harassment training in place by General Synod 2019.
Access resources on sexual harassment at CRC Safe Church Ministries.
Check out the Plan To Protect Program,
which has been implemented in several Ontario churches.
Check out the Plan To Protect Program,
which has been implemented in several Ontario churches.
Synod encouraged pastors to preach on the topic of sexual harassment; to care for victims of harassment, abuse, and sexual violence; and to form study groups to study this topic in their churches.
The #wearespeaking statement was released by the RCA Women’s Transformation and Leadership and Local Missional Engagement initiatives in January as a response to the #metoo and #churchtoo movements. Members of the RCA were invited to sign the statement, and the response has been powerful, with more than 800 people supporting it. A number of people also participated in webinars designed to help people prevent and process harassment, abuse, and sexual violence.
“For far too long, women and girls have been victims of harassment, abuse, and sexual violence rather than being treated with the dignity God intended for them,” the statement reads. “These people have not felt safe to share their stories because of the very real fear that their lives would be destroyed by those in positions of power. This culture has begun to shift in recent days and weeks, and we in the church are obligated to listen and respond.”
At the time of the statement’s release, Liz Testa, coordinator for Women’s Transformation and Leadership, reflected, “Our sincere prayer is that by speaking into this pivotal societal moment, Christ’s light will shine into a broken, shadowed world that keeps crying out, ‘Where is the church?’ bringing with it the hope, healing, and transformation we know is found in following Jesus.
Read the statement and add your name.
The #wearespeaking statement was released by the RCA Women’s Transformation and Leadership and Local Missional Engagement initiatives in January as a response to the #metoo and #churchtoo movements. Members of the RCA were invited to sign the statement, and the response has been powerful, with more than 800 people supporting it. A number of people also participated in webinars designed to help people prevent and process harassment, abuse, and sexual violence.
“For far too long, women and girls have been victims of harassment, abuse, and sexual violence rather than being treated with the dignity God intended for them,” the statement reads. “These people have not felt safe to share their stories because of the very real fear that their lives would be destroyed by those in positions of power. This culture has begun to shift in recent days and weeks, and we in the church are obligated to listen and respond.”
At the time of the statement’s release, Liz Testa, coordinator for Women’s Transformation and Leadership, reflected, “Our sincere prayer is that by speaking into this pivotal societal moment, Christ’s light will shine into a broken, shadowed world that keeps crying out, ‘Where is the church?’ bringing with it the hope, healing, and transformation we know is found in following Jesus.
Read the statement and add your name.