Reformed Reflections

Rev. Clarence Boomsma, (1917-2007), a pastor in the CRC with an active church ministry for six decades, and a longtime denominational leader, knew the challenges of current and intellectual trends of our time firsthand. He was an avid reader in many areas: theology, history, philosophy, political trends, and current events. In his candid small book, Boomsma gives the reasons for the hope that lived within him. After his honest disclosure of his crisis of faith in his spiritual journey, the remainder of the book is his passionate quest to know and declare the truth and consequence of Jesus' resurrection. He argues that it is a strong, if not the strongest, apologetic for the truth of the Christian faith, "and for the finality of Christianity among the religions of the world." God in Jesus Christ has proved himself stronger than the cross and the tomb. He states that the heart of the Gospel is that Almighty God, the Creator, is in the Jesus of history reconciling the fallen world unto Himself through the crucifixion, death, and resurrection, whereby He becomes the Christ of faith as Saviour and Lord of all who believe in the Gospel. It remains an enormously important and indispensable factor in the historical interpretation and understanding of today's world two thousand years later, as well as in the continuing vitality and visibility of the church. Boomsma also shows how desperate and ridiculous some critics become in their search for a naturalistic solution to the unknown. In the light of the fierce Islamic opposition to the Christian faith, the befuddled thinking of New- Agers, and arrogant claims of the current imperialism of the secular scientific method, Boomsma's Why I Still Believe the Gospel is a fine apologetic. It is not only a persuasive case for the factual reality of Jesus' bodily resurrection and its consequences, but it is also an encouraging and hope affirming read for believers. We believe in and serve a living Saviour!

Johan D. Tangelder.