Even as one 10-year renewal effort nears its end, the general secretary of the Reformed Church in America told delegates at the General Synod this weekend that they should prepare for a year-long effort to set a new path for the future of the denomination.

General Secretary Tom De Vries, on Friday at the start of the General Synod encouraged participants in the church's decade-long call - adopted in 2003 to revitalize and plant RCA churches, to finish well and prepare for an exciting, challenging future.

The 2003 call stated that God has called the RCA – building on the foundations of discipleship, leadership, and mission- to revitalize existing congregations and plant new churches; it also affirms a multiracial future freed from racism.

The RCA, like other mainline denominations, had experienced declining membership in recent decades. Current membership stood at around 250,000 as of 2010.

Members of the church have been taking steps to discover what's next for the church after the latest period ends.

In February, 530 participants from throughout the U.S. and Canada gathered for an event called "Conversations: Seeking God's Future for the RCA" where they worshipped together, discussed and listened carefully to each other.

Their efforts were meant to discover what God has planned for the denomination.

"We do not define the terms of our engagement," said De Vries. "They will be discovered as we seek the leading of the Holy Spirit."

De Vries said there will be twenty-one "Discovery" events this fall and winter in RCA gatherings throughout the U.S. and Canada.

"Your dialogues and discussions will prove to be a sifting and refining. It will bring us greater aim, rather than proceeding aimlessly. And with anticipated clarification, it will be passed on-to fellow sisters and brothers in Christ throughout the RCA, to the General Synod Council, to next year's General Synod-the defining of our next chapter," he said.

De Vries said there are signs about what the future holds for the denomination.

"The next chapter will be transformational," he said, transforming from a self-focused mentality to an outward-focused mindset that asks, How can we bless and serve our community as we serve Jesus Christ?

"The next chapter will be multiracial. It must move beyond racism, through reconciliation, to a place of restoration and righteousness.

"The next chapter will be missional. A missional church is engaged in the world: making a difference, living incarnationally-being the hands and feet of Christ, extending compassion, defending justice."

Synod Recommends Biennial General Synods

Also on Friday, Synod delegates approved four recommendations to move toward a biennial General Synod, proposing odd-numbered years would feature a gathering of congregational leaders to focus on equipping the RCA's congregations.

While General Synod vice president Tom Smith expressed support for the measure, General Secretary emeritus Ed Mulder said meeting every other year means "we will have lost something."

Synod Votes to Restablish Advocacy Network on Israel and Palestine

Delegates at the Reformed Church in America's General Synod voted to reestablish an advocacy network on Israel and Palestine on Saturday.

The delegates approved restarting a volunteer network called Middle East Peacemakers, and urged each classis (similar to a presbytery) to identify someone to participate in the network.

Delegates also voted to affirm the statements of previous General Synods, reaffirming Israelis' rights to live in a safe state and Palestinians' right to statehood, as well as advocating for an end to violence that includes an end to "the Israeli occupation and the removal of Israeli settlements in Palestinian territories."

Another related measure asked the volunteer network to raise $10,000 to be used scholarships to help RCA members travel to Israel and Palestine to participate in the Ecumenical Accompaniment Program "and experience the life of Palestinian Christians under occupation."

In 1987 and 1989 General Synods both affirmed Israel's right to exist and the Palestinian people's right to statehood. The 2002 synod called for political pressure to urge Palestinian groups to cease hostilities against Israelis and to urge Israel to withdraw troops and dismantle settlements in Palestinian territories. The 2004 synod declared Christian Zionism, the belief that Jewish possession of the Holy Land is necessary to facilitate Christ's second coming, a distortion of Scripture and a barrier to achieving a just peace in the Middle East.

RCA Approves Allan Janssen as General Synod Professor

The Reformed Church in America's General Synod approved Rev. Dr. Allan Janssen as the first part-time seminary professor to be installed into the office of General Synod professor.

Ten others make up a newly constituted corporate body called the professorate. He also becomes the first General Synod professor to be serving a church full-time.

The General Synod is taking place through June 26 on the campus of Trinity Christian College in Palos Heights, Illinois.

The RCA notes few denominations have an equivalent to General Synod professor, commonly known as the RCA's fourth office.

"Each of our four offices has a particular core to it," Janssen said in a released statement. " For ministers of Word and sacrament, it's proclamation of the gospel. For elders, it's government and discipline. For deacons, it's mercy and justice. For professors, it's teaching."

Janssen was recommended by the RCA-affiliated New Brunswick Theological Seminary Board of Trustees. He has also been a pastor for nearly 40 years and has served at the Community Church of Glen Rock, New Jersey, since 2000.