Journal articles on the topic 'Reformed Church (Dutch) in London'
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1
Starreveld, J. C. L. "De Auteur Van De Politia Et Disciplina Civili Et Ecclesiastica (1585)." Nederlands Archief voor Kerkgeschiedenis / Dutch Review of Church History 77, no. 2 (1997): 145–57. http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/002820397x00234.
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AbstractThe name of the author of the anonymous work De politia et disciplina civili et ecclesiastica (1585) was a wellhidden secret for centuries. An attempt is made to solve this mystery. The name of the printer and the place are mentioned: Leonardus Niestus, Lugduni Batavorum. These explicit data do not lead anywhere. The dedication of the work contains valuable information about the author. He is a relative of F. Junius and H. Smetius, professors at Heidelberg University in theology and medicine and married to sisters of the Corput family from Breda. He mentions several times Italy and the Italians as his homeland, where he is not allowed to go. Lastly his initials are given: I.B.A.C. On the basis of recently published dissertations on one of the members of the Corput family and the Italian church in London in the sixteenth century the conclusion can be made that a member of the Corput family originating from Italy is the author. We found Ioannes Baptista Aurellius Calabrensis (ca.1540-1596) member of a Waldense family from the South of Italy. His mother had sent him in 1558/9 to the Academy of Geneva to prepare for the ministry in Italy. The family in Calabria fell victim to the Inquisition in 1561 and I.B.A.C. became a minister in France and subsequently in the small Italian reformed church of London from 1570 till his death in 1596. In London he married a member of the Corput family, Mary, and became related to Junius, Smetius and Emanuel van Meteren, the famous historian. He published two other works, not anonymous, one in Italian. His now forgotten 'De politia' was influential in the Dutch Republic because it was used by J. Wtenbogaert.
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Broeyer, F. G. M. "Het Trefwoord 'Holland': Opschudding Over Een Artikel in De Real-Encyklopädie (1856)." Nederlands Archief voor Kerkgeschiedenis / Dutch Review of Church History 81, no. 2 (2001): 142–67. http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/002820301x00086.
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AbstractIn 1856 the sixth volume of the editio princeps of the famous German encyclopedia Real-Encyklopädie für protestantische Theologie und Kirche was published. The volume included a lengthy article on the history and present situation of the Dutch Reformed Church and other protestant churches in the Netherlands. A reformed minister of Frankfurt am Main, Carl (or Karl) Sudhoff, was the author. His article provoked a fierce protest. A Dutch ministers' association demanded from the editor, the Erlangen professor J.J. Herzog, a new article that put right what they regarded as errors. Herzog was not very inclined to comply, for it is hardly common practice to enter critical supplements in an encyclopedia. Finally, however, he gave way. The Leyden professor J.J. Prins wrote an article with a mass of criticism and after the endorsement of the ministers' association this was sent to Erlangen. Those discontented men then fell into a rage again. There was indeed a supplement to the article on Holland at the end of the eighth volume of the Real-Encyklopädie, but it did not offer the text of Prins. Herzog had added his own commentary to Prins's review. Time and again he remarked that the severe criticism sent from Holland was the criticism of a party. Besides that it turned out that he had omitted many important matters in the critical review written by Prins. The point at issue was that the very orthodox Sudhoff gave a highly biased description of the history and contemporary situation of Dutch Protestantism. Already in 1851 many people in Holland were angry about Abraham Capadose's report on the Netherlands at the meeting of the Evangelical Alliance in London. The orthodox agreed with what men like Capadose said in other countries, but followers of other parties in the Dutch protestant churches wanted a balanced and more appreciative judgement of their position. All parties were keen on an image matching their own viewpoints. The reason why they were doing so much to correct a negative image elsewhere was the interest in their identity. In 1860 all that thinking about identity led to two brilliant treatises on Dutch Protestantism in the nineteenth century: Chr. Sepp's Proeve eener pragmatische geschiedenis der Theologie hier te lande and D. Chantepie de la Saussaye's La Crise religieuse en Hollande.
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Coertzen, Pieter. "The Dutch Reformed Church." Nederduitse Gereformeerde Teologiese Tydskrif 54 (July 18, 2013): 30. http://dx.doi.org/10.5952/54-0-287.
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Murray, Jocelyn. "Andrew Prior (ed.), Catholics in Apartheid Society. Cape Town and London: David Philip, 1982, 208 pp., R12, paperback. - Gerdien Verstraelen-Gilhuis, From Dutch Mission Church to Reformed Church in Zambia: the scope for African leadership and initiative in the history of a Zambian Church. Franeke: Wever, 1982, 366 pp., F49.50, paperback." Africa 55, no. 2 (April 1985): 234–35. http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/1160317.
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Strauss, Piet. "Die Nederduitse Gereformeerde Kerk en die Republiek van die Oranje-Vrystaat: Hooflyne van ’n kerk-staatverhouding, 1854-1902." New Contree 76 (November 30, 2016): 20. http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/nc.v76i0.129.
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A close relationship existed between the Dutch Reformed Church in the Orange Free State and the Republic of the Orange Free State during the existence of the latter in 1854-1902. This was due to a shared worldview and the fact that more than 80% of the voters of the Republic were members of a Dutch Reformed congregation. It has been said that the Dutch Reformed Church in the Free State was a state-church. Although it benefited in the circumstances, the Dutch Reformed Church remained independent and undominated by the government. An own approach could be seen in the thinking, resolutions and actions of the Dutch Reformed Synod in the Free State. Close ties between this church and state were visible in their formal and informal contact. The government supported the Dutch Reformed Church in the Free State spiritually and financially and the latter influenced the policies and actions of the Free State Government. Both institutions held great respect for each other.
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Wethmar, C. J. "Die NG Kerk en Gereformeerdheid: Gestalte en uitdagings." Verbum et Ecclesia 23, no. 1 (September 6, 2002): 250–56. http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/ve.v23i1.1251.
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The Dutch Reformed Church and the Reformed tradition: expression and challenges In this article a brief analysis is presented of the manner in which the Reformed tradition finds expression in die Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa. Such an analysis presupposes answers to the questions why such an attempt is necessary and what the identity of the Reformed tradition is. These answers are suggested in the first two sections of the article. The third section contains the envisaged outline of the manner in which the Dutch Reformed Church represents the Reformed tradition. This leads to the conclusion that the contribution which this church could strive to make to the church scene in South Africa is to promote the combination of the faith dimensions of knowledge, experience and obedience which is characteristic of the Reformed tradition.
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Theron, J. P. J. "Met die oog op genesingsdienste in die Nederduitse Gereformeerde Kerk." Verbum et Ecclesia 12, no. 1 (July 18, 1991): 92–108. http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/ve.v12i1.1032.
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Towards healing services in the Dutch Reformed Church The position of the Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa with regard to the world wide recovery of the Church’s healing ministry is discussed. Features of liturgical healing services of other denominational churches are utilised to develop a model for the Dutch Reformed Church in Initiating this kind of public ministry.
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Borchardt, C. F. A. "Die Nederduitse Gereformeerde Kerk en die Suid-Afrikaanse Raad van Kerke." Verbum et Ecclesia 8, no. 1 (July 17, 1987): 1–19. http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/ve.v8i1.960.
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The Dutch Reformed Church and the South African Council of Churches The General Missionary Conference which was founded in 1904 became the Christian Council of South Africa in 1936. In 1940 a founder member, viz. the Transvaal Synod of the Dutch Reformed Church withdrew from the council. In 1968 a change of name to the South African Council of Churches reflected a deeper involvement in social and political matters and it gradually also became more representative of the black Christian point of view. Despite various invitations, the Dutch Reformed Church has not rejoined the Council and relations have been very strained, but at its last synod in 1986 the Dutch Reformed Church decided that informal discussions could be held.
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Hendrich, Gustav. "Vereniger en opheffer: Die Nederduitse Gereformeerde Kerk in Rhodesië (1890-2007)." New Contree 62 (November 30, 2011): 23. http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/nc.v62i0.344.
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In the missionary and church history of Rhodesia (present day Zimbabwe) the Dutch Reformed church did not concentrate exclusively on the unity of the local Afrikaner community, but also played a pivotal role in the upliftment of the indigenous population. Ever since the coming into being of Rhodesia during the 1890’s, Afrikaner immigrants had brought with them their Christian values and religion. Rhodesia being pre-eminently an Englishspeaking colony of the British Empire until 1965, the Dutch Reformed Church considered it necessary to serve its Afrikaner members, thereby acting as a stronghold against Anglicisation and assimilation. Since 1895 Dutch Reformed congregations were established across the entire country as a reflection of their fellow countrymen in Africa. Between 1890 and 1980 the Dutch Reformed Church in Rhodesia would play an instrumental role in the spiritual life of many Afrikaners. At the same time the Dutch Reformed Church extended its missionary work to the black people – not merely to convert them to the Christian-Calvinist faith, but also to uplift them socioeconomically by means of education and the establishment of self-sufficient congregations. In this article the two-fold role of the Dutch Reformed Church in Rhodesia in unifying and uplifting both Afrikaners and indigenous peoples is analised.
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Strauss, Pieter. "Die Nederduitse Gereformeerde Kerk, kerkorde en onderwys." Koers - Bulletin for Christian Scholarship 81, no. 2 (October 31, 2016): 27–34. http://dx.doi.org/10.19108/koers.81.2.2256.
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The Dutch Reformed Church, church order and education. From the first church order of the General Synod of the Dutch Reformed Church in 1962, it has formulated stipulations for the church and education. In this regard the Dutch Reformed Church is unique among reformed churches. The wording of this article has changed over the years, but the main content has remained the same. The Dutch Reformed Church supports Christian education as a church, but also recognizes the competence of education authorities to finalise education standards and programmes. In 1962 the order of the Dutch Reformed Church on education also stated that the church would work on the Protestant character of the Afrikaner people. From 1990 onwards these words were omitted. The church nevertheless feels that education will allways be imbricated in a certain culture. In synodical resolutions in recent times the Dutch Reformed Church has recognized the calling of the South African state to subsidize all education enterprises that meet certain purely educational standards. Vanaf sy eerste kerkorde in 1962 koester die Algemene Sinode van die Nederduitse Gereformeerde Kerk die ideaal van nie-kerklike Christelike onderwys. Met sy kerkordelike bepalings oor die kerk en onderwys, is die Nederduitse Gereformeerde Kerk uniek onder gereformeerde kerke. Die bewoording van hierdie artikels het deur die jare verander, maar die hoofsaak het dieselfde gebly. Die Nederduitse Gereformeerde Kerk steun Christelike onderwys vanuit sy kerklike hoek, maar erken die interne bevoegdheid van onderwysinstellings om onderwysinhoude en standaarde te finaliseer. In 1962 het sy kerkorde bepaal dat die Nederduitse Gereformeerde Kerk hom beywer vir die Protestants-Christelike karakter van “ons volk”, die Afrikanervolk. Die uitsondering van “ons volk” is sedert 1990 egter weggelaat ten gunste die erkenning van alle kulture in die onderwys. In sinodebesluite van die afgelope tyd ondersteun die Nederduitse Gereformeerde Kerk die standpunt dat die Suid-Afrikaanse staatsowerheid onderwys alle lewensbeskoulik gerigte instansies subsidieer.
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Van den Belt, H. "De kerk slopen of renoveren? De vrijmaking van de plaatselijke kerken bij de oprichting (1906) en de doorstart (1909) van de Gereformeerde Bond." Theologia Reformata 62, no. 1 (March 1, 2019): 7–26. http://dx.doi.org/10.21827/5c5c4b8be2d72.
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Soon after the start in 1906 the ‘The Reformed League for the Liberation of the Dutch Reformed Churches,’ experienced a deep crisis. By 1909 the League, however, remade itself under the name ‘The Reformed League for the Promotion and Defence of Truth in the Dutch Reformed Church,’ a change often interpreted as a conscious shift away from the Doleantie and Abraham Kuyper’s ecclesiology. This article argues that in 1909 the Reformed League only renounced the appeal to political power for the liberation of the churches, an appeal that Kuyper was unhappy with. During its formative period the ecclesiology of the Reformed League emphasized the local congregations as the true confessional church, an emphasis that made its position within the Dutch Reformed Church vulnerable
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Groenendijk, Leendert F. "The Reformed Church and Education During the Golden Age of the Dutch Republic." Nederlands Archief voor Kerkgeschiedenis / Dutch Review of Church History 85, no. 1 (2005): 53–70. http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/187607505x00047.
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AbstractFrom the very first, the Dutch Reformed Church addressed the issue of education. If the people were to be confessionalized in a Reformed direction, then the place to start was with the young. Its greatest concern was to ensure elementary education for boys and girls in the vernacular. The Reformed primary schools were expected to impart reading and writing skills, and, above all, to instill the Reformed faith by means of school catechization. The Reformed Church continually urged the government to banish all "papist" schools and to appoint only Reformed teachers. This essay discusses two major opportunities (namely, the Synod of Dort and the Treaty of Munster) to strengthen the positions of the Reformed schools and of the Reformed Church in the seventeenth-century Dutch Republic. For several reasons the Reformed "public" Church never became the church of all. School catechization was in all probability not the hoped-for popularizer of the Reformed faith.
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Crafford, D. "Uitdagings vir die Ned Geref Kerk in Suidelike Afrika met Malawi en Zambië as illustrasiegebiede." Verbum et Ecclesia 11, no. 1 (July 18, 1990): 17–32. http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/ve.v11i1.1009.
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Challenges for the Dutch Reformed Church in Southern Africa with Malawi and Zambia as illustration areas What will be the challenges for the Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa if in the coming decades its isolation from Africa could be ended because of political developments in a post-apartheid era? The Dutch Reformed Church planted indigenous churches in many African Countries like Botswana, Malawi, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Mozambique and Namibia. The role of the church in Africa will be determined by its relations with these younger churches. The challenges in the fields of evangelism, church ministry, the youth and in the socioeconomic and political areas are illustrated specifically in the cases of Malawi and Zambia.
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Van den Belt, H. "Synodale machteloosheid en mystieke vrijzinnigheid: Louis A. Bähler (1867-1941) en de Gereformeerde Bond." Theologia Reformata 62, no. 3 (September 1, 2019): 223–40. http://dx.doi.org/10.21827/5d359594c55f2.
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The publication of Buddhist mission: ‘Christian’ barbarism in Europe, translated by Louis Adriën Bähler (18671941), a Christian anarchist and pastor of the Dutch Reformed Church, led to the founding of the Reformed League in the Dutch Reformed Church (Nederlandse Hervormde Kerk). The classis censured Bähler, but Synod rehabilitated him and therefore the orthodox Reformed within the church charged that Synod’s actions revealed its powerlessness to maintain doctrinal discipline. Bähler’s Buddhist leanings have drawn much attention. This article places Bähler’s sympathy for pietism and mysticism in the broader context of his theology, one characterized by a spiritualization and moralization of the Gospel.
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Harpster, Donald E. "The Reverend Joseph F. Berg: Revivalism, the Protestant Crusade, and the Mercersburg Movement." Pennsylvania History: A Journal of Mid-Atlantic Studies 91, no. 2 (2024): 127–64. http://dx.doi.org/10.5325/pennhistory.91.2.0127.
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ABSTRACT The Reverend Joseph F. Berg was pastor of First German Reformed Church in Philadelphia from 1837 to 1852. He was a revivalist in the tradition of Charles G. Finney. In addition, he was an active participant in the Protestant crusade against the Roman Catholic Church. His anti-Catholic sermons and writings contributed to the emotional atmosphere that culminated in the Philadelphia Riots of 1844. The faculty of the German Reformed Church Seminary in Mercersburg, Pennsylvania, was composed of Philip Schaff and John W. Nevin. Berg accused Schaff and Nevin of having “Romanizing Tendencies” in their writings, which resulted in heresy trials. He left the German Reformed Church to become a minister in the Dutch Reformed Church in Philadelphia. Later, he became the Professor of Polemic and Didactic Theology at the Dutch Reformed Seminary in New Brunswick, New Jersey.
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Knoetze, Johannes J. "POWERLESS PARTNERS: ONE BEGGAR TELLING ANOTHER WHERE TO FIND BREAD." Studia Historiae Ecclesiasticae 41, no. 1 (August 3, 2015): 40–55. http://dx.doi.org/10.25159/2412-4265/104.
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The relationship between the ‘powerful’ Dutch Reformed Church (DRC) and the many churches that were planted by the mission work of the DRC has always been and still is a very sensitive matter. This paper will take a historical look at the relationship over the last decade (2004-2014) between the Dutch Reformed Church in Botswana (DRCB) and the Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa, especially the Dutch Reformed Church in the northern Cape (DRCnC). It was during this time that a paradigm shift started developing in the relationship. After some socio-economic changes and ‘new’ missiological reflection from the DRCnC on their own understanding of mission, the DRCnC took a definite decision to move away from a deed of agreement relation with the DRCB and work towards a partnership relation. After requests from the DRCB regarding theological education, the DRCnC decided to broaden its vision to the church in Botswana and not only the DRCB. This paper wants to look at the process of transformation of a power relation which involves learning, unlearning, relearning and new learning of the different contexts, as well as the understandings and realities of mission, ecclesiology, partnership, tradition, interdependence, theological education and leadership.
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Ragsdale, John P., and Gerdien Verstsrdelen-Gilhuis. "From Dutch Mission Church to Reformed Church in Zambia." International Journal of African Historical Studies 18, no. 3 (1985): 566. http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/218680.
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GRAY, RICHARD. "From Dutch Mission Church to Reformed Church in Zambia." African Affairs 85, no. 340 (July 1986): 472–74. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/oxfordjournals.afraf.a097810.
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Van Aarde, R. B. "Die Barmhartigheidsbediening van die NG Kerk van Natal - afhanklik en eksklusief?" Verbum et Ecclesia 21, no. 2 (September 9, 2000): 371–86. http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/ve.v21i2.1265.
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The ministry of compassion of the Dutch Reformed Church in Natal - dependent and exclusive?This study highlights two major concerns in the history of the Dutch Reformed Church of Natal’s ministry of compassion. The church’s work became financially too dependent on government subsidies. The work originally started off with church finances, but was later financed by government. In principle there is nothing wrong with such a partnership, but the present financial dependency will have to make room for an independent ministry of compassion. The church’s ministry of compassion was also mainly focussed on the Afrikaner nation. In this the church supported the apartheid system of the day and started the perception that services of compassion are for the White community while missionary work is focussed on the Black communities. What history teaches us in this field of compassion and caring can help to rectify the ministry of compassion of the Dutch Reformed Church in KwaZulu/Natal and help the church to avoid the same mistakes in future
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Boesak, A. "Kan die NG Kerk vandag nog iets vir Suid Afrika beteken?" Verbum et Ecclesia 29, no. 1 (February 3, 2008): 32–44. http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/ve.v29i1.3.
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This article is the edited version of the presentation held at the University of Pretoria’s “Theological Day” on January 31, 2008. It seeks to answer the question: “Can the Dutch Reformed Church still make a difference in South Africa today?” This article places this question within the wider world and African contexts, then focuses on the South African situation. It describes the South African context as one of spiritual uncertainties and confusion, political tension, economic inequalities and social unravelling, which each in the their own way and together put particular challenges before the church. This paper answers the question the affirmative, provided that the Dutch Reformed Church meets its own direct challenges, the most important of which is the challenge toward reunification within the Dutch Reformed family of churches.
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Strauss, Piet. "Die Kaapse NG Kerk en die Groot Trek: ’n evaluering." STJ | Stellenbosch Theological Journal 1, no. 1 (July 31, 2015): 273. http://dx.doi.org/10.17570/stj.2015.v1n1.a14.
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<strong> Dutch Reformed Church in the Cape and the Great Trek: an evaluation.</strong> <br /> The reaction of the Cape Synod of 1837 of the Dutch Reformed Church and the presbytery of Graaff-Reinet of 1838 and 1840 marked the official stance of the Dutch Reformed Church (DRC) on the Trek. Both were negative about the Trek because they saw it as a revolt against the British Government. These two assemblies were, however, influenced by the negative approach of the Trek in public opinion and willingness on their side to follow and bow to the government in this regard. The Trek after all, was an emigration. Since 1843 the approach of the DRC on the matter changed and the members of the DRC on the Trek were regarded as full church members who are not in a process of discipline because of their emigration.
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Khusyairi, Johny A. "SOCIAL IDENTITY AND EQUALITY IN A CHURCH FORMATION IN YOGYAKARTA." Patra Widya: Seri Penerbitan Penelitian Sejarah dan Budaya. 21, no. 1 (April 30, 2020): 77–96. http://dx.doi.org/10.52829/pw.279.
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One of the important issues in the formation of Javanese Reformed-Christian (JRC) church was the usage of the Javanese language. The formation of the church did not only involve transplanting theological and ritual teachings of the Dutch Reformed Churches (GKN), but also the usage and the choice of registers of the hierarchical Javanese language for Javanese congregation. This article intends to examine the importance of Javanese in the formation of Javanese Reformed-Christian church in Yogyakarta. Archival sources, particularly of the GKN, were used to examine the importance of Javanese in the establishment of this JRC church in Yogyakarta. The author concluded that the usage of Javanese terms for “church” and “pastor”, and the choice of the highest level of the language, Krama, in church ritual was intended to preserve Javanese language and convey social equality between the Javanese and the Dutch.
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Faber, Ryan. "Dort, Doleantie and Church Order." STJ | Stellenbosch Theological Journal 6, no. 2 (January 22, 2021): 235–52. http://dx.doi.org/10.17570/stj.2020.v6n4.a10.
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This article attends to the relationship between minor and major assemblies as prescribed by the foundational principles of Reformed church polity proposed by Mary-Anne Plaatjies-Van Huffel. It reviews the limited autonomy of local congregations and the authority of broader assemblies in the Church Order of Dordrecht (1618/19), the touchstone of Dutch Reformed church polity. It considers the challenge to historic Reformed church polity posed by the ecclesiology of the Doleantie, a secession from the Nederlandse Hervormde Kerk (NHK) in 1886 under the leadership of Abraham Kuyper. Finally, it evaluates a contemporary church order (of the United Reformed Churches in North America), that explicitly codifies Doleantie ecclesiology. The church order fails to embody the principles of Reformed church polity set forth by Plaatjies-Van Huffel. This article concludes that it cannot be considered a Reformed church order.
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Wubs, Jacolien. "Presenting the Law: Text and Imagery on Dutch Ten Commandments Panels." Entangled Religions 7 (July 27, 2018): 78–108. http://dx.doi.org/10.46586/er.v7.2018.78-108.
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Many Dutch Calvinist churches house a Ten Commandments panel, installed in the late sixteenth or seventeenth century as part of the Reformed adaptation of the medieval Catholic church interior. In this article, the characteristic design of Ten Commandments panels is analyzed as a form of Calvinist visual culture. It suggests that these panels were primarilymade to be viewed rather than thoroughly read. The remarkably figurative Moses imagery on panels points at a divergence between the rigid Reformed theological image prohibition and the practice of the adaptation of the church interior. The placement of Ten Commandments panels in the Reformed church interior highlights their symbolic value: It signified the need for self-examination of the participants in the Lord’s Supper. The original spatial setting of Ten Commandments panels also shows how the newly Reformed furnishing and use of church space was rooted in its late medieval Catholic past.
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Van der Merwe, J. M. "Hervormers wat ons nie mag vergeet nie." Verbum et Ecclesia 18, no. 2 (July 4, 1997): 356–64. http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/ve.v18i2.569.
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Church Reformers we should not forget. On thefifth of November 1980, the Reformed Day Witness was published in Die Kerkbode by eight theologians of the Dutch Reformed Church. The Witness, as it became known, soon had storm clouds gathering in the church, because of it's content. It was a wakeup call to the church about it's prophetic call, it's guidance to government and it's role in reconciliation. Many ministers and members of the church supported The Witness while church leadership was mainly against it. In the end The Witness was silenced but the seed were sown. Many ministers and church members now knew that the Dutch Reformed Church had to take a new approach with regard to it's prophetic call and it's role in society. When we look back over what happened in the past seventeen years, history tells us that these men were prophets of their time, men that we must not forget.
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Léonard, Julien. "The French Church of Maastricht." Church History and Religious Culture 100, no. 4 (October 19, 2020): 463–86. http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/18712428-bja10009.
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Abstract The French Reformed church of Maastricht, founded in 1632 following the Dutch takeover of the city, was a geographically isolated institution within the Dutch Republic. This isolation was reinforced by the city’s unique status, which allowed the public exercise of Catholicism. Within this context, and situated next to the hostile Principality of Liège, the French church had to develop survival strategies and establish relations not only with the States-General and the Walloon synod, but also with the urban authorities and the Dutch Reformed church, in order to withstand the influence of Catholicism. Yet even though Maastricht was on the confessional and military front line—a place of passage for merchants, refugees, and Catholic clergymen—the French Protestant community survived the French occupation of 1673–1678 and managed to absorb the massive influx of Huguenot refugees from 1686 onwards.
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Rooden, Peter Van. "Dutch Protestantism and its pasts." Studies in Church History 33 (1997): 393–406. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s042420840001336x.
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The Dutch Reformed Church acquired its modern past fairly recently, at the beginning of the nineteenth century, during the first years of the new Kingdom of the Netherlands. From 1819 to 1827 the four volumes of Ypeij and Dermout’s History of the Dutch Reformed Church appeared, some two and a half thousand pages all together. The work has not fared well. Its garrulous verbosity, weak composition, and old-fashioned liberalism have been rightly denounced. Only the four accompanying volume with notes, more than a thousand dense pages full of facts and quotations, have been admired for their scholarship. Protestant academic ecclesiastical history prefers to trace its origin to the founding in 1829 of its scholarly journal, the Nederlands Archief voor Kerkgeschiedenis, by the two first occupants of the newly founded chairs for Church history at the universities of Leiden and Utrecht.
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Van er Watt, P. B. "Herlewing in die Ned. Geref. Kerk — 'n historiese blik." Verbum et Ecclesia 8, no. 1 (July 17, 1987): 85–96. http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/ve.v8i1.966.
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Revivalism in the Dutch Reformed Church — an historic overview In the course of the history of the Dutch Reformed Church the phenomenon of revivalism is by no means an isolated occurrence — on the contrary — revivalism of this nature was triggered by similar situations throughout the world. This situation was greatly the result of the aspirations of the faithful towards a special interaction with the Holy Spirit of God together with the persistent prayer of the devout.
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Meiring, P. G. J. "Sending en eenheid: ’n Perspektief vanuit die Ned Geref Kerk." Verbum et Ecclesia 12, no. 2 (July 18, 1991): 292–306. http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/ve.v12i2.1041.
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Mission and unity: A Dutch Reformed perspective The decisions on church unity and ecumenical relationships, taken by the Bloemfontein synod of the Dutch Reformed Church (October, 1990) came as a welcome surprise to many and as an unwelcome disappointment to others. The importance of six resolutions adopted by synod, as well as their implications for the mission of the church, are discussed. If Christians were to fulfil their calling in this respect, the author contends, they will have to leant to look in a new way in five directions: at one another; at their own hearts; at new models for unity, at the local church; and, finally, at God Himself.
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Spinks, Bryan D. "Bless the Lord, O my soul. The New-York liturgy of the Dutch Reformed Church, 1767. By Daniel James Meeter. (Drew University Studies in Liturgy, 6.) Pp. xxiii+339. Lanham, MD-London: Scarecrow Press, 1998. $65. 0 8108 3518 5 The eucharistic service of the Catholic Apostolic Church and its influence on reformed liturgical renewals of the nineteenth century. By Gregg Alan Mast. (Drew Studies in Liturgy, 7.) Pp. ix+183. Lanham, MD–London: Scarecrow Press, 1999. £49.40 ($52). 0 8108 3553 3." Journal of Ecclesiastical History 51, no. 2 (April 2000): 366–461. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0022046900953636.
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Strauss, Piet. "Die Nederduitse Gereformeerde Kerk en die aanvaarding van sy belydenisskrifte." STJ | Stellenbosch Theological Journal 1, no. 2 (January 22, 2016): 667. http://dx.doi.org/10.17570/stj.2015.v1n2.a31.
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<b>The Dutch Reformed Church and the content of the acceptance of its confessions</b> <br />In its acceptance of six confessions, the more general confessions from the early church namely the Apostolicum and the Confessions of Nicea and Athanasius as well as the Three Formulas of Unity from the Dutch Reformation, the Dutch Reformed Church follows the footsteps of the National Synod of Dordrecht in 1618-1619. It accepts the formulation or wording of faith in these documents. This wording has authority because (quia) it is according to Scripture. The same church also acknowledges the need for a Scriptural rehearsal of the confessions if needed. By using this basis for the acceptance of the confessions it takes into account the aim and purpose of these documents namely to formulate faith according to Scripture.
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Mandela, N. R. "Nelson Mandela on leadership and the role of the churches: An interview." Verbum et Ecclesia 23, no. 3 (August 7, 2002): 615–20. http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/ve.v23i3.1233.
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In October 2002 the editor of Die Kerkbode, official newspaper of the Dutch Reformed Church (N G Kerk) paid a visit to ex-president Nelson Mandela. He talked about his life, leadership, as well as the challenges to the churches in our day. His gracious remarks on the role of the Dutch Reformed Church is of special significance, in view of the fact that during many years the church not only supported the policy of Apartheid, but provided a theological argument for doing so. During the 1990s the church, on a number of occasions, confessed guilt in this regard. Dr Frits Gaum, editor, provided a transcript of the interview to Verbum et Ecclesia for this special edition on leadership.
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Mahne, T. G. "Wie was Andrew Murray (1828-1917) in werklikheid?" Verbum et Ecclesia 20, no. 2 (August 10, 1999): 369–84. http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/ve.v20i2.607.
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Murray (1828-1917) was an emissary of God. In the Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa, where he served as a full time minister for fifty eight years, he was elected Moderator six times. His influence, however, was not limited to the Dutch Reformed Church. Of the two hundred and fifty books (more than 20 000 pages) he wrote, some were translated into more than twenty languages. In spite of his intention not to write theological works, Murray was granted a doctorate degree in Theology by the University of Aberdeen in 1898. He was a man of prayer who published approximately thirty books about prayer. Murray, a mystic and peifectionist, was reared in an extremely legalistic home. As a student he joined the Secor Dabar association which was an offspring of the legalistic Reveil movement in the first half of the nineteenth century. At the age of roundabout 65, Murray was impressed by the writings of William Law (1686-1761), which fitted his mindset like a glove. But who was Andrew Murray actually? Other similar questions concerning his influence in the Dutch Reformed Church are equally important. First and foremost however: Who was this man? Was he possibly a "tossed salad" theologian? Still today we find traces of Murrayism in the Dutch Reformed Church. Fortunately his full-time service of fifty eight years has left behind a positive heritage of Scottish Calvinism.
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Kgatla, ST. "Ministerial formation policies of the Northern Theological Seminary of the Uniting Reformed Church in Southern Africa:." STJ | Stellenbosch Theological Journal 5, no. 1 (June 10, 2020): 191–216. http://dx.doi.org/10.17570/stj.2019.v5n1.a10.
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This article investigates the theoretical and practical effectiveness of the Uniting Reformed Church in Southern Africa’s (URCSA) ministerial formation of the Northern Synod. The URCSA is part of the Reformed Movement (Calvinism) that was established by the Dutch Reformed Church (DRC) of South Africa that mainly came from the Netherlands to establish itself in South Africa and later established ethnic churches called daughter churches into existence in terms of a racially designed formula. After many years of the Dutch Reformed Church missionary dominance, the URCSA constituted its first synod in 1994 after the demise of apartheid. It was only after this synod that the URCSA through its ministerial formation tried to shake off the legacy of colonial paternalism and repositioned itself to serve its members; however, it fell victim to new ideological trappings. This article is based on a study that traces some basic Reformed practices and how the URCSA Theological Seminary of the Northern Synod dealt or failed to deal with them in its quest for the ideal theological ministerial formation.
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Koffeman, Leo J. "‘Ecclesia Reformata Semper Reformanda’ Church Renewal from a Reformed Perspective." Review of Ecumenical Studies Sibiu 7, no. 1 (April 1, 2015): 8–19. http://dx.doi.org/10.1515/ress-2015-0002.
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Abstract With a view to the theme of Church renewal, this article explores the role of a wellknown and popular phrase in the Reformed tradition within Protestantism, i.e. ecclesia reformata semper reformanda (‘the reformed Church should always be reformed’). Is this a helpful slogan when considering the pros and cons, the possibilities and the limitations of Church renewal? First, the historical background of this phrase is described: it is rooted in the Dutch Reformed tradition, and only in the twentieth century was it widely recognized in Reformed circles. Against this background the hermeneutical problem, linked with the principle of sola Scriptura, is presented, and put into an ecumenical perspective: the Church as grounded in the gospel. Finally, the article focuses on Church polity as an important field of renewal, taking into account Karl Barth’s interpretation of this phrase. From this perspective, a balanced and ecumenical approach of Church renewal is possible.
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Van der Watt, J. G. "Aktualiteit? Die Ned Geref Kerk in Suid-Afrika in die lig van die situasie in Duitsland." Verbum et Ecclesia 13, no. 2 (July 18, 1992): 200–220. http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/ve.v13i2.1057.
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Actuality? The Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa in the light of the situation in Germany The social and religious developments in Germany show certain clear tendencies. Secularism as well as the resulting focus on human and individual rights have influenced the relevance of the church in a specific way. These developments also had a profound influence on the morality of society. Since the same type of developments are currently taking place in South Africa, certain suggestions are made regarding the relevance of the Dutch Reformed Church in such a changing society in the light of what can be learnt from the situation in Germany.
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De Villiers, D. E. "The interdependence of public witness and institutional unity in the Dutch Reformed family of churches." Verbum et Ecclesia 29, no. 3 (November 17, 2008): 728–43. http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/ve.v29i3.27.
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The Belhar Confession of the then Dutch Reformed Mission Church officially approved in 1986 confesses that the unity of the church should be made visible. Very little has since then come of this visible unity in the family of Dutch Reformed churches. Since 1996, however, new impetus has been given to the effort to bring about institutional unity. It has especially been in their ministries of public witness and service that these churches succeeded to a large extent to give visible and institutional expression to their unity. This would hopefully enable the churches of the Dutch Reformed family to play a more effective public role in the present South African society. They, however, face two serious restrictions in this regard: the limited scope for churches to play a public role within the new liberal democratic dispensation in South Africa and the limited motivation to play a transforming public role in the churches of the Dutch Reformed family. In the article a few pre-conditions for playing an effective public role the churches of the Dutch Reformed family have to meet are discussed. The most important one is that these churches should achieve full institutional unity as soon as possible. The conclusion of the article is therefore that the interdependence of institutional unity and public witness is a reality they will have to deal with effectively if they want to move forward.
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Van der Watt, G. "Die Sendingpraktyk van die Ned Geref Kerk: Enkele tendense vanaf 1952 tot met die eeuwenteling." Verbum et Ecclesia 24, no. 1 (October 15, 2003): 213–31. http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/ve.v24i1.322.
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In this past half century the Dutch Reformed Church was continuously building on the tradition of extended missionary involvement within South Africa as well as in several countries in Southern Africa. During the fifties and sixties there were a flourishing of activities, driven by, amongst other reasons, an idealism and optimism concerning the homeland-policy or grand apartheid. The seventies and eighties were therefore characterised by resistance; the DRC had to reconsider its approach. While the church had to largely withdraw from the traditional fields, it found alternative areas for involvement, mainly abroad. In the nineties a whole new world dawned and the church once again had to adapt. The emphasis shifted to local congregations and a variety of approaches. World mission came into the focus. The way ahead for the Dutch Reformed Family of Churches could only be as one united church, fulfilling it’s calling to mission within the African and especially South African context, while staying true to its reformed tradition.
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Van der Merwe, Johan M. "Versoening en die Nederduitse Gereformeerde Kerk: Die Algemene Sinode van 1994 as baken vir ’n lewe van volheid." Verbum et Ecclesia 38, no. 3 (October 6, 2017): 105–18. http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/ve.v38i3.1626.
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The Faculty of Theology at the University of Pretoria chose oikodome as a Faculty Research Theme (FRT) in 2014. This term refers to life in its fullness. The Dutch Reformed Church, as one of the partners of the Faculty, contributed to life in its fullness through the important role it played in the reconciliation in South Africa since 1986. One of the beacons on this road of reconciliation was the General Synod of 1994. It became known as the ‘Synod of reconciliation’ as a result of the visits of Mr Nelson Mandela, Prof. B.J. Marais and Dr Beyers Naudé, and the important decisions that the meeting took. It was however, not only the visits of these important roleplayers in history which made the meeting a beacon on the road to reconciliation. This chapter shows that it was imbedded in a much larger context of reconciliation in South Africa in which the Dutch Reformed Church played an important role. By participating in the process of reconcilation in the country, the Dutch Reformed Church contributed to oikodome – life in its fullness for all.
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Carr, Burgess. "Book Review: From Dutch Mission Church to Reformed Church in Zambia." International Bulletin of Missionary Research 9, no. 3 (July 1985): 126–27. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/239693938500900312.
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Strauss, Piet. "Die Nederduitse Gereformeerde Kerk en die Afrikanervolk kerkordelik verwoord." STJ | Stellenbosch Theological Journal 2, no. 2 (December 31, 2016): 447–65. http://dx.doi.org/10.17570/stj.2016.v2n2.a21.
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The Dutch Reformed Church and the Afrikaner – in its church orderThe Dutch Reformed Church (DRC) and the Afrikaner people had close ties in the 1960’s. This was intensified by the apartheid system in South Africa. The policy of apartheid was supported by the DRC, most of the Afrikaners and the National Party in government. In 1962 the DRC determined in its church order that it will protect and build the Christian-Protestant character of the Afrikaner people. This group was singled out by a church that was to be for believers of all nations. It also gave the DRC an active part in the development of this group. The documents Church and Society-1986 and Church and Society-1990 changed all this. The close links between the DRC and Afrikaans cultural institutions ended and the DRC declared that it caters to any believer. The church order article about the Afrikaner was omitted.
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Parker, Charles. "Pilgrims' Progress: Narratives of Penitence and Reconciliation in the Dutch Reformed Church." Journal of Early Modern History 5, no. 3 (2001): 222–40. http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/157006501x00186.
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AbstractHistorians over the past twenty years have utilized consistory records to analyze long-term patterns of illicit behavior and church punishment in Reformed congregations across Europe. Despite the value of these studies, a narrative approach to consistory records offers an opportunity to penetrate the assumptions of local church leaders and to discover real men and women in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Using examples from the pivotal moments in the discipline process in the Dutch Reformed Church at Delft, this article reconstructs the narrative framework of discipline there. The author argues that consistory secretaries recorded discipline cases as ongoing stories of penitence and reconciliation in the lives of all sorts of church members.
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Van Niekerk, A. S. ""But where's the bloody horse?" Die NG teologie in Afrika." Verbum et Ecclesia 22, no. 2 (August 11, 2001): 418–33. http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/ve.v22i2.663.
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The relation between theology in the Dutch Reformed Church and the African world is discussed with reference to: (a) the relation between theology in the Dutch Reformed Church and science, and specifically the university with its policies; (b) the relation between science and the African world, especially as seen by African writers; and (c) the way that certain theologians in the Dutch Reformed Church have dealt with the African world and African theology. The relation between theology and praxis depends on the conception of truth held by the theologian involved. If truth is seen as the product of the theologian as subject (each subject produces his or her own truth), or if truth is identified with propositions or statements, the related theology can be expected to be unrelated to the praxis. A relation concept of truth is where God addresses a person and confronted by the realities of life and discovers truth in these relationships. Such a concept of truth does offer the prospect of a theology that interacts with reality. It is suggested that opportunities to engage existentially in such relations should become a strong characteristic of the way in which our theology is structured.
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De Villiers, D. E. "Suid-Afrika in die jaar 2000: Watter morele leiding kan die NG Kerk gee?" Verbum et Ecclesia 21, no. 1 (August 6, 2000): 33–47. http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/ve.v21i1.1181.
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South Africa in the year 2000: What moral guidance can the Dutch Reformed Church provide? An attempt is made in the article to answer the question: What moral guidance can the Dutch Reformed Church (DRC) provide in the present South African society? Attention is given, first of all, to the room left for the DRC to provide such guidance in the new South Africa. The suitable nature and range of this moral guidance are discussed. Recommendations are also made about the style of the moral guidance and a suitable strategy for motivating the members of the DRC to fulfil their moral responsibility in society.
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WITMER, OLGA. "Between Compliance and Resistance: Lutherans and the Dutch Reformed Church at the Cape of Good Hope, 1652–1820." Journal of Ecclesiastical History 73, no. 2 (February 4, 2022): 326–47. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0022046921002190.
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The Reformed Church was the official denomination at the Dutch Cape of Good Hope. Lutheran immigrants constituted the second largest Protestant group, and received recognition in 1780. This article argues that Cape Lutherans had an ambiguous relationship with their Church. They oscillated between the two denominations, guided by personal preferences, but also due to restrictions imposed on Lutherans by the Reformed authorities. The prolonged inability to secure recognition prompted the Cape Lutherans to seek support among coreligionists in the German lands, India and elsewhere in the Dutch Empire. This network challenged, but did not overcome, their restricted social and religious position in Cape society.
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Dewulf, Jeroen. "Emulating a Portuguese Model." Journal of Early American History 4, no. 1 (March 14, 2014): 3–36. http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/18770703-00401006.
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This article presents a new perspective on the master-slave relationship in New Netherland in order to complement the existing theories on the treatment of slaves in that Dutch colony. It shows how prior to the loss of Dutch Brazil, the West India Company modeled its slave policy after Portuguese practices, such as the formation of black militias and the use of Christianity as a means to foster slave loyalty. It also points out that in the initial slave policy of the Dutch Reformed Church was characterized by the ambition to replace the Iberian Catholic Church in the Americas. While the Reformed Church in the early decades of the Dutch colonial expansion was characterized by a community-building spirit and a flexible attitude toward newcomers, the loss of Brazil shattered the dream of a Protestant American continent and gave way to a more exclusivist approach with a much stronger emphasis on orthodoxy. This led to a dramatic change in attitude vis-à-vis slaves, which is reflected in the segregationist policies―both at a social and a religious level―in later Dutch slave colonies such as Suriname.
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Strauss, Piet. "Die NG Kerk se profetiese stem teenoor die Suid-Afrikaanse owerheid in die dekade na 1994 – vanuit kerklike perspektief en op kerklike wyse." STJ | Stellenbosch Theological Journal 4, no. 1 (June 30, 2018). http://dx.doi.org/10.17570/stj.2018.v4n1.a19.
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The prophetic voice of the Dutch Reformed Church to the South African Government in the decade after 1994When referring to the viewpoints of the Dutch Reformed Church as a whole, one should look for the decisions of its general synod. In trying to be a church and a prophet, this General Synod should speak out according to the Bible and in the way of a church or an institution of faith.The Dutch Reformed Church indeed spoke as a prophet to the government in the decade after 1994. However, it was done with a certain reluctance and not from an overall perspective. Two main factors contributed to this. There is a difference in worldview between this church and the government. The Dutch Reformed Church had the experience that a little came of its efforts.In the meantime the Dutch Reformed Church remains convinced that it should promote the kingdom of God in South Africa as a church and through its individual members.
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Van Wyngaard, Arnau. "The Dutch Reformed Church Mission in Swaziland - A dream come true." HTS Teologiese Studies / Theological Studies 74, no. 1 (February 27, 2018). http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/hts.v74i1.4785.
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This article covers the time from 1652 onwards when employees of the Dutch East India Company – most of whom were members of the Reformed Church in the Netherlands – arrived at the Cape of Good Hope in present South Africa. With time, a new church, the Dutch Reformed Church, was established in the Cape. In 1836, a number of pioneers moved from the Cape to the east of South Africa and some of them eventually made Swaziland their new home. Although most members of the white Dutch Reformed Church opposed any integration with Christians from other races, there was nevertheless a desire that they should join a Reformed Church. In 1922, the first Dutch Reformed congregation in Swaziland was established in Goedgegun in the southern region of the country, intended for the exclusive use of white, Afrikaans-speaking church members. In 1944, the first Reformed congregation for Swazi members was formed, which later became known as the Swaziland Reformed Church. This article documents the history of this church and concludes with a description of the Swaziland Reformed Church in 1985, with four missionaries from South Africa ministering in the four regions of Swaziland.
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Strauss, Pieter Johannes. "Kerkorde en Leer en Aktuele Sake: NG Kerkorde Artikel 56 in Perspektief." Koers - Bulletin for Christian Scholarship 85, no. 1 (May 22, 2020). http://dx.doi.org/10.19108/koers.85.1.2485.
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Church order, doctrine and current affairs: a perspective on the church order article 56 of the Dutch Reformed Church In 1982 at the General Synod of the Dutch Reformed Church of that year, a new article 56 was added to its church order. This article stipulated that the church, through its assemblies and other work, strives to stimulate views in church and society that depart from Scripture. The Dutch Reformed Church wants to see such an approach in doctrinal, current and ethical affairs. The Dutch Reformed Church is part of the South and Southern African society and wants to influence these affairs to be handled according to the Bible. The same Synod referred to the Bible as a God-given document which sheds light on life as a whole and has an in-principle influence on the whole of society and the total existence of every believer. In approaching this calling and task, the Dutch Reformed Church opted to do it in an ecclesiastical way. It believes that creation as a whole is a unity in which everything can have an effect on any other thing. Every matter in society and creation can develop an ecclesiastical aspect for the church to act on in an ecclesiastical way. This article shows examples of this in the Dutch Reformed Church.
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Strauss, Pieter J. "Die mislukte sinodale eenwording van die NG Kerk in 1911." HTS Teologiese Studies / Theological Studies 78, no. 2 (December 8, 2022). http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/hts.v78i4.7840.
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Synodical unity in the Dutch Reformed Church in 1911 – an attempt that failed. In 1862 the Supreme Court of the Cape Colony terminated the synodical unity of the Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa. Delegates of congregations outside the Colony could no longer represent them in the Cape or Mother Synod. The court used Ordonnance 7 of 1843 of the Colony. In 1907 the newly founded Federal Council of Dutch Reformed Churches decided to lead an effort in the Church to replace this federal bond with a closer synodical bond. The Council was a combined body of the four Dutch Reformed Churches of respectively the Transvaal, Free State, Natal and Cape. However, to achieve this, they needed the help of the state authorities of the Union of South Africa to scrap all legal obstacles in the way of the Dutch Reformed Church. After consultations with the authorities, the Church was asked to formulate a concept act to replace these hindrances. The act was accepted by Parliament, but the Church could not get the required three quarters of a majority in three quarters of its consistories for the bill to be accepted. Thus, the effort for a new synodical unity failed.Contribution: This article adds to the history of the synodical structure in the Dutch Reformed Church. In doing so it concentrates on the failed attempt in this church in 1911 to form an all-inclusive – as far as congregations are concerned – synodical bond with attention to the required church political principles behind such a structure. This is also relevant to the present efforts for unity in the family of Dutch Reformed Churches, as well as other reformed churches in Southern Africa. The approach is a reformed perspective on the relationship between state and church.