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FORMS of UNITY OR of DISUNITY the CONFESSIONS in the RECENT HISTORY of the PROTESTANT CHURCH in the NETHERLANDS Henk Van Den

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CHAPTER ELEVEN FORMS OF UNITY OR OF DISUNITY THE CONFESSIONS IN THE RECENT HISTORY OF THE PROTESTANT CHURCH IN THE NETHERLANDS Henk van den Belt Th e confessions of the Reformed churches in the Netherlands, the Bel- gic Confession, the Heidelberg Catechism, and the Canons of Dordt, are sometimes called the Forms of Unity.1 Th e term ‘unity’ refers to the unity of the catholic and apostolic faith of which the confessions intend to be an expression. In practice, however, the forms can also lead to disunity, as the recent schism in the Dutch churches shows. On the 1st of May, 2004, the Protestant Church in the Netherlands originated as a continuation of the Netherlands Reformed Church (Nederlandse Her- vormde Kerk), the Reformed Churches in the Netherlands (Gerefor- meerde Kerken in Nederland) and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in the Kingdom of the Netherlands (Evangelisch-Lutherse Kerk).2 On that same day the Restored Reformed Church (Hersteld Hervormde Kerk) began—regarding itself as a continuation of the Netherlands Reformed Church.3 More than 100 congregations split. Th ousands of members 1 It is diffi cult to trace the exact source of the Dutch expression formulieren van enigheid, but it was used since the Arminian Controversy. Pastors and professors were obliged to sign the confessions. Church Order of Dordrecht, article 53. Even before the synod of Dordt the Belgic Confession and the Heidelberg Catechism were called the “formulieren der Christelycker eenicheyt.” Ireneus Philaletius [ps. of Ewout Teellinck], Querela ecclesiae. Oft e Clachte der kercke aende overheden des lants (Querela ecclesiae: Or Complaint of the Church to the Government of the Country), (Amsterdam: M.J. Brandt, 1617), 20–22. Cf. W.J. op ‘t Hof (ed.), Belijdenis en verbond: ecclesiologie in de gereformeerde traditie (Confession and Covenant: Ecclesiology in the Reformed Tradi- tion) (Zoetermeer: Boekencentrum, 2003), 68. Possibly the ‘Forms of Unity’ were seen as a Reformed alternative of the Lutheran ‘Formula of Concord’ (1577). 2 For the information on the history of the Protestant Church in the Netherlands cf. www.pkn.nl. Cf. B. Wallet, Samen op Weg naar de Protestantse Kerk in Nederland: het verhaal achter de vereniging (Together on the Way towards the Protestant Church in the Netherlands: Th e Story behind the Union), (Zoetermeer: Boekencentrum, 2005). 3 Seven churches previously belonging to the Reformed Churches in the Nether- lands regrouped in the Continuing Reformed Churches in the Netherlands (Voort- gezette Gereformeerde Kerken in Nederland). Th ey opposed the structure of the new 158 henk van den belt did not join the merged church because of its pluralistic character. In their opinion, the Netherlands Reformed Church had been exclusively Reformed while the Protestant Church was not Reformed at all. Historical Remarks Th e Secession of 1834 (Afscheiding) and the Doleantie of 1886 both protested against the Netherlands Reformed Church’s accommoda- tion to liberalism in doctrine and practice. Many orthodox believers left , but in both cases large numbers of Reformed orthodox mem- bers remained.4 One of the main reasons for their faithfulness to the church lay in the offi cial maintenance of the Reformed confessions. Even when William I reorganized the church and replaced the Church Order of Dordrecht by governmental General Regulations (1816), the Reformed confessions remained.5 Th ough the church was ill, she was still a mother. Underneath the confessional argument to stay within the church lay the trust in God’s covenantal faithfulness and the hope for revival. In a number of local churches, confessional preaching some- times returned aft er years, but the orthodox Reformed party remained a minority within the broader ecclesiastical body. In 1961, a group of 18 pastors of the Netherlands Reformed Church and the Reformed Churches in the Netherlands issued an urgent appeal to end the separation between the two churches. Aft er years of discus- sion concerning theological and ecclesiological motives, in 1986 it was concluded that there were no reasons for continuing separately. Th ere was formal agreement that the churches were ‘in a state of reunion,’ while the responsibility of the local congregations to determine the nature and the tempo of the merger at their level was respected. In terms of the national church, the ‘point of no return’ had been passed. church because the congregation is a branch of the denomination—a model inherited from the Netherlands Reformed Church. 4 For some examples of Reformed pastors who remained in the church in 1834 cf. K. Exalto, W. van Gorsel, and H. Harkema, Zij die bleven: schetsen over leven en werk van acht predikanten die niet met de Afscheiding meegingen (Th ose who Stayed: Sketches of the Life and Work of Eight Ministers who did not Join the Secession) (Nijkerk: G.F. Callenbach, 1981). 5 Cf. Gedenkboek Gereformeerde Bond tot verbreiding en verdediging van de waar- heid in de Nederl. Hervormde (Gereformeerde) Kerk: 1906–1931 (Memorial Volume of the Reformed League for the Propagation and Defense of the truth in the Netherlands Reformed Church) (Veenendaal: De Waarheidsvriend, 1931), 182..
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