General Synod Daily Recap: Monday, June 9, 2025

Palsma elected as General Synod President, Prince to serve as Vice President in 2026

Rev. Sarah Palsma has served as a minister at New Hope Church in Powell, Ohio, since 2011. She is the youngest woman to be elected president in General Synod history. 

As Palsma approached the microphone after being elected, she said, “Confession: There have been bitter, angry tears that I have wept over the story of this church and this denomination. And I know some of you could probably confess the same thing. And it has been a joy to experience a different kind of tears at synod this year. Tears of healing, and tears of joy.” She concluded, “The work isn’t done, friends. God is still calling us to go back to our local context and do this work of restructuring the foundations of our denomination and how we operate as a church. But never forget that the true foundation of the church is Jesus Christ, our Lord.” 

Brad Prince has been elected as the next vice-president of the RCA General Synod on Monday evening. Prince serves as an elder at Christ Memorial Church in Holland, Michigan, and is currently a member of the Commission on Christian Action. He is a Hope College graduate and has served as a high school teacher and coach for 27 years at Hudsonville High School. Brad and his wife Jennifer (Jen) have three daughters.

The assembly considered two candidates. After serving at the pleasure of or in the absence of the president in the first year, the vice-president is typically the sole nominee for president the following year, meaning Prince will likely preside over the 2027 General Synod. The following two years of General Synod will continue to be historically significant as restructuring recommendations are considered and implemented, as well as the possibility that 2027 could be a synod that meets virtually. 

As Prince accepted the election results, he said, “I graciously accept this role with deep humility and a commitment to represent our synod as best I can with God’s help.”

Palsma and Prince will be installed at General Synod closing worship and will serve over the coming year.

Rev. Dr. Carol Bechtel honored on her retirement as General Synod Professor

General Synod Professor Rev. Dr. Carol M. Bechtel was honored at General Synod on Monday, June 9. Bechtel is retiring from Western Theological Seminary effective June 30, 2025, at which point she will become General Synod Professor Emerita.

Bechtel has served as a professor of Old Testament at Western Theological Seminary (WTS) in Holland, Michigan, since 1994, having received her Bachelor of Arts degree from Hope College, her Master of Divinity degree from Western Theological Seminary, and her Doctor of Philosophy degree from Yale University. General Synod Professor is one of the four offices of the church, alongside elders, deacons, and ministers of Word and sacrament. General Synod Professors prepare and certify candidates for the ministry of Word and sacrament, as well as offer a “ministry of teaching within the RCA as a whole,” according to the Book of Church Order. Bechtel has served as a General Synod Professor since 1998.

A tribute from WTS said Bechtel has been instrumental in nurturing future leaders of the church through her teaching of courses and has made significant scholarly contributions, including authoring books that have enriched both the academy and the church. Rev. Dr. Bechtel has greatly ministered to the church through her writing materials and active engagement in denominational leadership, serving as president of the General Synod from 2009 to 2010. She has also been a guiding voice in worship and education within the denomination.

“I will miss General Synod most because of the chance it has given me to catch up with all of you and to hear about the wonderful work God is doing through you,” Bechtel said.

WTS further addressed Bechtel’s profound impact on students, colleagues, and the broader church community exemplifies the highest standards of Christian scholarship and service.

After asking her past students in the delegation to stand, Rev. Dr. Bechtel responded by saying, “My heart is very full.”

“Lord, we are thankful, and speaking as one of those students of her teaching, that you, Holy Spirit, gave her the ability to creatively teach your Word … so that we would understand that these stories are not stories that we just read, but they are stories to be embodied,” Sarah Palsma, General Synod vice president, said in prayer. “May her legacy as a compassionate shepherd of your people live long after she is well enjoying rocking on that wraparound porch on her family farm, enjoying well-deserved sabbath rest.”

The delegation gave a standing ovation to honor Bechtel. General Synod president Joshua Scheid and Rev. Dr. Felix Theonugraha, WTS president, celebrated her with applause and blowing party noise makers.

Rev. Dr. James Brumm elected to office of General Synod Professor

Rev. Dr. James L. H. Brumm was appointed to the office of General Synod Professor on Monday, June 9. General Synod Professors are one of the four offices of the church, alongside elders, deacons, and ministers of Word and sacrament. General Synod Professors prepare and certify candidates for the ministry of Word and sacrament, as well as offer a “ministry of teaching within the RCA as a whole,” according to the Book of Church Order.

New Brunswick Theological Seminary (NBTS) proposed the recommendation on behalf of the NBTS Board of Trustees.

“As I finish my second and last year as moderator of the [NBTS] board, I am delighted and honored that my last official responsibility is to bring this recommendation regarding the appointment of a man who has been a generous mentor, friend, and teacher to me,” Rev. Abby Norton-Levering said. “I hope this appointment will be a rare moment when we can see the impact and value of a person’s work on the world, even the corner of the world called the Reformed Church in America, which, though be it small, remains, I believe, valuable and beloved in the eyes and hands of God.”

Brumm is ordained as a minister of Word and sacrament, has served as pastor of RCA churches, and as an area minister for the Regional Synod of New York. He has served as moderator of the Commission on History and most recently as moderator of the Commission on Theology. Brumm has worked ecumenically with counterparts in the Christian Reformed Church in North America and he is a recognized scholar, having authored or edited nine volumes in the Historical Series of the RCA, as well as numerous articles. Brumm  has also taught RCA liturgy and history in various schools and institutes.

Since 2014, Brumm has been the principal mentor to NBTS’s RCA students and their instructor in RCA history and worship. As a member of the seminary faculty, Brumm participates in the granting of Certificates of Readiness for Examination and is the director of the Reformed Church Center at New Brunswick Theological Seminary. Brumm has expanded the center’s teaching ministry for the RCA at large, while also organizing forums for the whole church, and has encouraged research on such matters through grant programs.

“James and I have been joking this synod that we have yet to speak in agreement on anything,” delegate Rev. Greg Brower said. “That is actually why I speak in support of him being General Synod Professor. I think that our strength as a denomination is that we are able to disagree and agree with grace. I know I am not right about everything and I need someone like James who disagrees with almost everything I think. And I think James thinks he needs someone like me, too. I am reminded in James that our unity is not uniformity, but it is our common love and our unity in Christ.”

“I accept the Scriptures as the only rule of faith and life, I accept the standards as historic and faithful witnesses to the Lord our God,” Brumm declared during his installation. “I promise to represent the Spirit of Christ in love and fellowship within the church, seeking the things that make for unity, purity, and peace.”

Applause resounded throughout the delegation when Brumm was appointed.

Commissions and racial and ethnic councils to collaborate annually

Following a referral from the 2024 General Synod, the Commission on Church Order (CCO), in consultation with the Commission on Race and Ethnicity, established a plan for annual collaboration between commissions and racial and ethnic councils. The plan is to incorporate an annual opportunity as soon as reasonably practicable. This will be done following the General Synod meeting so that the racial and ethnic councils may provide advice and input into the commissions’ work for the upcoming year. While the CCO recognizes this may add additional work for commissions, it believes it is important for commissions to stay in connection with the racial and ethnic councils. This recommendation was adopted by the 2025 General Synod.

Idea of GSC travel policy gets initial adoption

With the adoption of a constitutional amendment, the General Synod has taken a step toward creating provisions that allow for delegates from RCA churches in countries outside of the US and Canada to attend General Synod and have their travel paid by the synod. 

Currently, the Book of Church Order (BCO) specifies that the General Synod will pay for travel for voting delegates within Canada and the U.S., except Alaska and Hawaii. On Monday, delegates adopted a recommendation to create a GSC travel policy which would govern these decisions, rather than have them spelled out in the BCO. This change requires approval by two-thirds of classes and must be declared effective by a subsequent General Synod. 

The recommendation was developed by the Commission on Church Order, following an overture to the 2024 General Synod. It acknowledges the emerging reality of RCA ministers, elders, and churches beyond the traditional geographic bounds of the denomination. 

Other business:

• Honoring retired ministers: The 2025 General Synod expressed appreciation for 29 ministers of Word and sacrament who retired from active service in the church in 2024. Each year delegates take time to honor the faithful members of the RCA who have reached that well earned sabbath. The 2025 General Synod body unanimously voted to adopt the recommendation of appreciation for their faithful service with a voice vote, all declaring, “Thanks be to God.”
• Transfers of church across regional synod lines: According to the Book of Church Order (BCO), General Synod approval is required for congregations transferring between classes in different regional synods. Five such transfers were brought by the General Synod Council (GSC) to the 2024 General Synod, and were approved for transfer. Each had received the required affirmations from the involved consistories, classes, and regional synods. The approved transfers are: 
  • Bethany Reformed Church (Kalamazoo, MI), from the Classis of Southwest Michigan (Regional Synod of the Great Lakes) to the Classis of the City (Regional Synod of the Mid-Atlantics)
  • Trinity Reformed Church (Ridgewood, NY), from the Classis of Queens (Regional Synod of New York) to the Classis of the City (Regional Synod of the Mid-Atlantics) 
  • Platt Park Church (Denver, CO), from the Classis of Rocky Mountain (Regional Synod of the Far West) to the Classis of the City (Regional Synod of the Mid-Atlantics) 
  • Peace Reformed Church (Eagan, MN), from the Classis of Minnesota (Regional Synod of the Heartland) to the Classis of the City (Regional Synod of the Mid-Atlantics) 
  • Iglesia Reformada Impacto (Pittsburg, TX), from the International Classis of Texas (Regional Synod of the Heartland) to the Classis of the Americas (Regional Synod of the Far West)
• The Commission on Judicial Business (CJB) reported on an appeal filed with the General by Vida de Reino Church.  The church had petitioned to withdraw from its classis.  The church had various objections to the manner in which the petition was processed, and appealed the matter to the regional synod.  The regional synod denied the appeal, and it is that denial that was appealed to the General Synod.  The CJB focused on the limited question of whether the relevant procedures were followed properly by the classis, concluded that they were not, and recommended to the General Synod that the matter be returned to the regional synod with instructions that it insure that the matter be considered in accordance with the procedures outlined in the BCO and RF 21-3. For full details, see the CJB report.
• The General Synod Council (GSC) will form a six-member working group to address spiritual abuse within the RCA. In response to a 2024 General Synod directive (CA 24-2), a GSC subcommittee was established to investigate spiritual abuse. Drawing on resources from organizations such as CBE International, Tears of Eden, and My Sanctuary Healing, the subcommittee developed a three-phase plan centered on awareness, education, and support. In consultation with the Commission on Christian Action (CCA), the subcommittee proposed several initiatives, including a synod session on spiritual abuse, a counseling referral network, and regional response teams.The working group will include members from the CCA, Commission on Theology, and GSC. Their work will be to define spiritual abuse from a faith perspective and develop resources and educational materials. This work will begin by October 31, 2025, and the group will bring a final report to General Synod in 2026.
• The 2025 General Synod expressed appreciation for 29 ministers of Word and sacrament who retired from active service in the church in 2024. Each year delegates take time to honor the faithful members of the RCA who have reached that well earned sabbath. The 2025 General Synod body unanimously voted to adopt the recommendation of appreciation for their faithful service with a voice vote, all declaring, “Thanks be to God.”