Fourth Reformed Church in Grand Rapids partnered with New City Neighbors back in 2007. Together building meaningful community and urban renewal projects for youth in the Creston neighborhood. But last December, Fourth Reformed announced it would be ending its partnership citing theological differences. Pastor Eric Schalk refers to it as a lack of holistic discipleship.
“What we were starting to see last year especially in some of the high school and middle school programs is that spiritual discipleships that informs everything else was not taking place.”
Ricardo Tavarez, the executive director of New City Neighbors received a notice from the church requiring New City Neighbors vacate land it’s been community farming under Community Supported Agriculture or CSA guidance for the past 13 years.
“I was brought in to bring New City Neighbors back on track with many things including that I am a pastor, but because I am openly gay this presented a problem to the church rather than a solution.”
A longtime supporter of New City Neighbors, Julie Horndyk says supporting it shouldn’t be about whether or not someone agrees on the morality of same sex relationships, it’s about supporting the wellbeing of area youth.
“Everything about what they were doing..to us felt like it was a fulfillment of what God has called us to be in the world and so as people of faith we chose to invest in the CSA because that mission meant something to us.”
New City Neighbors will remain in the land until next year but is searching for farmland in the area to continue their work.