The Christian Reformed Church in Sierra Leone is a
Protestant
Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...
Reformed denomination in
Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone,)]. officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered by Liberia to the southeast and Guinea surrounds the northern half of the nation. Covering a total area of , Sierr ...
. It grew out of missions and development work of the Christian Reformed Church of North America that began in the late 1970s.
History
World Missions and the World Relief Committee of the
Christian Reformed Church in North America began to work in
Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone,)]. officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered by Liberia to the southeast and Guinea surrounds the northern half of the nation. Covering a total area of , Sierr ...
in the late 1970s.
In 1992 the church conducted weekly worship services in 14 villages, the attendance was 1,000. A civil war broke out in the early 1990s. During the civil war many missionaries from various denominations left; the war ended in 2001. After the war Christian Reformed World Missions renewed its evangelism effort through partnership with the
Reformed Church in Zambia led by Pastor Phiri, this work had led 36 congregations. and the Christian Reformed mission was developed, the church ministered in the
Kuranko speaking people in Sierra Leone's northern Kuinadodu district by 2006.
In February 2007 the Christian Reformed Church in Sierra Leone was registered by the government. While there were no churches in this area in 1980, by 2004 there were 18 congregations and 1,100 people attending the services. Now the church has 62 congregations and 6,000 members.
According to Rev. Piri, who is the coordinator of church development, the denominations 62 congregation is located in the
Koinadugu,
Tonkolili,
Bombali
Bombali is a district in the Northern Province of Sierra Leone. Its capital and largest city is Makeni, which is also the largest city in the north. The Bombali district is one of the sixteen districts of Sierra Leone. Bombali is one of the larg ...
,
Bo and the Western Districts of Sierra Leone. Although the Christian Reformed Church in Sierra Leone was started among Kuranko people, it has extended to the
Mende and
Limba tribes, and now with
Rochen Mara, to the
Temne people
The Temne, also called Atemne, Témené, Temné, Téminè, Temeni, Thaimne, Themne, Thimni, Timené, Timné, Timmani, or Timni, are a West African ethnic group, They are predominantly found in the Northern Province of Sierra Leone. too.
In addition there are more than 65 leaders in the church trained in the Timothy Leadership Institute.
The church has several outreaches and church planting ministry in
Bendugu and
Rochen.
[{{cite web , url=http://www2.crcna.org/site_uploads/uploads/crwm/whatwedo/projects/2011%20July%20CRCSL%20Update.pdf , title=Archived copy , accessdate=2013-06-21 , url-status=dead , archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20121203021710/http://www.crcna.org/site_uploads/uploads/crwm/whatwedo/projects/2011%20July%20CRCSL%20Update.pdf , archivedate=2012-12-03 ]
In 2013 Rev Piri was replaced by Rev Ifstifanus B. Bahago. He will help oversee the ministry in Sierra Leone and organise its ministries. The denomination is growing steadily.
Theology
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Apostles Creed
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Athanasian Creed
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Belgic Confession
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Canons of Dort
The Canons of Dort, or Canons of Dordrecht, formally titled The Decision of the Synod of Dort on the Five Main Points of Doctrine in Dispute in the Netherlands, is the judgment of the National Synod held in the Dutch city of Dordrecht in 1618†...
*
Heidelberg Catechism
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Nicene Creed
References
External links
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Christian Reformed Church
Reformed denominations in Africa
Churches in Sierra Leone
1960s establishments in Sierra Leone