Dutch Reformed Experiences in New Netherland

The Dutch Reformed Church (Nederduitse Gereformeerde Kerk) is in transition because of the influences of the more recent South African epochs of democratisation, Africanisation and globalisation. The histories of these epochs extend over more than 20 years and have had a significant influence on the church. The Dutch Reformed (DR) Church changed institutionally because its place and influence within society changed considerably as a result of political and social transformation since 1994. The ongoing process of Africanisation that accompanies these transformations brings certain reactions to the bosom of the church via the experiences of its members. Most are Afrikaners being more inclined to westernised social frames of reference. Ironically, these people are more susceptible to the effects of globalisation, especially secularisation, which transposes the religious set-up of the DR Church into an open and individuated system. These developments pose major challenges to the DR Church in the sense that it has to reconsider how it approaches society, what it can contribute to the ecumenical church, why it is necessary to reflect on its denominational identity and what its academic, theological endeavours in these regards entail.Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: This article has an interdisciplinary scope because the multiplicity of the present-day calls for interdisciplinary academic reflection. For the purpose of this article, Church Historiography helps to systemise recent ecclesiastical developments within the DR Church. To clarify the influences of these developments on the DR Church, sociological premises are incorporated to describe them within a broader social context. References to the conducted empirical study serve to explain respondents’ (members of the DR Church) social and religious constructs regarding these ecclesiastical and sociological phenomena.

Discipline has widely been seen as a deterrent to join Reformed communities. This chapter argues that the existence of church discipline was a key attraction of the Reformed Churches in the Dutch Republic. This applied especially to women. Contemporaries were well aware of the presence of women in the Reformed Church. Gisbertus Voetius, who spearheaded the most orthodox wing of the Dutch Church in the mid-seventeenth century, noted in his tract Concerning Women that women were more religious than men. For unmarried women, who had little opportunity to manifest themselves in the corporate mainstays of urban life, church membership offered a rare chance to engage in a form of sociability that conferred honor to them. For women who were at high risk of being tainted by dishonor, and who had no one else to share the responsibility of protecting their reputation, church membership could be a good solution. Keywords: church discipline; church membership; Dutch reformed churches; Gisbertus Voetius

OPSOMMING Daar is 'n wêreldwye tendens van afname in lidmaatgetalle van hoofstroomkerke. Hierdie artikel fokus op die Nederduitse Gereformeerde Kerk (NGK) in Suid-Afrika. Dit ondersoek of die hoofsaaklik rasionele verstaan van God eerder as 'n persoonlike spirituele ervaring 'n rede vir die afname in die spesifieke Gereformeerde kerklike tradisie kan wees. Die gewildheid van charismatiese en pinksterkerke in die konteks kan toegeskryf word aan hulle klem op subjektiewe ervaring, wat ook kenmerkend is van die postmoderne kultuur. Mense woon eredienste by met die verwagting dat hulle spirituele behoeftes bevredig sal word. Mense se spirituele en emosionele behoeftes verander saam met hulle leefwereld. In die moderne era was die klem op rasionele kennis terwyl die klem in 'n postmoderne era meer op subjektiewe ervaring is. Hierdie paradigmaskuif beïnvloed die wyse waarop mense godsdiens ervaar en beoefen. Die ondersoek maak gebruik van Corinne Ware se spirituele tipologie om insig te verkry in mense se ervaring van eredienste in die NG Kerk. Die resultate dra by tot 'n beter verstaan van lidmate se spirituele behoeftes met betrekking tot eredienste om by te dra tot hulle geestelike groei. Die vraag is hoe die NG Kerk getrou kan bly aan die gereformeerde tradisie terwyl 'n meer holistiese en inklusiewe benadering gevolg word, spesifiek wat eredienste betref. Trefwoorde: gereformeerd, spiritualiteit, spiritualiteitstipes, erediens, eredienservaring, liturgie, katafaties, apofaties, modern, postmodern ABSTRACT Membership of mainstream churches is declining all over the world. This article focuses on the Dutch Reformed Church (DRC) in South Africa. It investigates whether a reason for the decline in this specific Reformed ecclesial tradition could be the predominantly rational understanding of God rather than that of a personal spiritual experience. The popularity of charismatic and Pentecostal churches in the context could be attributed to their emphasis on subjective experience, which is also characteristic of postmodern culture. People attend worship services with the expectation of having their spiritual needs met. People's spiritual and emotional needs evolve as their lifeworld changes. In the modern era, the emphasis was on rational knowledge. In this era people resonated with the rational approach of the mainstream churches. The influence of the postmodern era is visible in the emphasis on subjective experience. This paradigm shift influences how people experience and practice religion. They tend to search for congregations that address their needfor a fulfilling spiritual experience. Many prefer worship services where they have a personal, emotional experience of God. Every person has unique spiritual needs and experiences God in unique ways. Therefore people exercise their faith in different ways. Spirituality plays an important role in people's lives. A qualitative approach was used to gain insight into people's experiences. The empirical part of the study was based on responses from volunteers who participated by completing spirituality questionnaires and took part in semi-structured interviews. The aim was to ascertain whether the DRC is experienced to be exclusive regarding spiritual preferences and, if so, whether this could be a contributing factor when it comes to the decline in membership of the Church. In 1980 Urban T Holmes wrote a handbook on spirituality, titled A history of Christian spirituality. Holmes' valuable contribution is a typology of spiritual preferences, specifically focused on prayer. In 1995 Corinne Ware used this typology and expanded it. She specifically focused on the way people responded to worship patterns. She explained differences in spirituality and spiritual preferences by distinguishing between four groups. She called the spirituality preferences "spirituality types" and named them "head", "heart", "mystic" and "hand". Ware developed a questionnaire to determine a person's "spirituality type". This investigation utilised Corinne Ware's spiritual typology to gain insight into people's experiences of worship services in the DRC. The results contribute to a better understanding of members' spiritual needs with regard to worship services in order for these experiences to contribute to their spiritual growth. The question is how the Dutch Reformed Church can remain true to its Reformed tradition while taking a more holistic and inclusive approach to spirituality, specifically with regard to worship. Keywords: reformed, spirituality, spirituality-types, worship service, worship experience, liturgy, cataphatic, apophatic, modern, postmodern

The status and real position of the Three Formulas of Unity in two South African Reformed Churches. The Three Formulas of Unity, which was accepted by the National Synod of Dordrecht (1618–1619) as confessions of faith, formulating the common faith of the Dutch Reformed Church, were also accepted by churches in other parts of the world. Two of them are the Dutch Reformed Church and Reformed Churches in South Africa. The Synod of Dordt regarded the formulation of core issues of faith in the Three Formulas as in accordance with Scripture. By doing so, they did not proclaim that every word and sign in the Formulas were according to Scripture, but the doctrine or faith as formulated. The Dutch Reformed Church and the Reformed Churches both indicate that they accept this viewpoint regarding the Three Formulas. In the case of the former, however, it sometimes lacks the using of the Formulas consequently in the life of the church.

Johan Heyns and Beyers Naudé as prophets against the Dutch Reformed Church supporting apartheid: Heyns prophesising from within and Naudé from without. Both Johan Heyns and Beyers Naudé came from a strong Dutch Reformed and Afrikaans background. Both supported and motivated a policy of apartheid in the Dutch Reformed Church and South Africa in their earlier years. As for Naudé, this conviction changed in December 1960 at the Cottesloe consultation of the World Council of Churches in South Africa’s member churches. Heyns changed in the early 1980s on the matter. In October–November 1980, Heyns initiated a public witness linked to Reformation Day in which the apartheid of the time was strongly criticised. This witness made an appeal on churches in South Africa to preach the gospel aimed at the full development of all citizens as people created in the image of God – be it in an inclusive society. In promoting his viewpoint, Heyns remained in the Dutch Reformed Church. Besides being an occasional controversial participant, he had a measured influence on the two documents, ‘Church and Society 1986’ and ‘Church and Society 1990’. In these documents, the Dutch Reformed Church, for the first time, spoke out against the way in which apartheid was implemented. As moderator from 1986–1990, Heyns was at the centre of events when the Dutch Reformed Church was welcomed back into Protestant ecumenic circles after apartheid. In these years, Heyns was a strong and visible force in the Dutch Reformed Church to change its stance on apartheid. He used reform from within to achieve this goal. Unlike Heyns, Naudé opted for critique on the Dutch Reformed Church and apartheid from the outside. As a vehicle for this, he founded his Christian Institute in 1963 and eventually left his church, with the effect that he was excluded from assemblies in the Dutch Reformed Church that decided on matters such as apartheid. It became impossible to find any sign of Naudé’s influence on decisions and declarations of assemblies such as presbyteries and synods against apartheid in the Dutch Reformed Church. Heyns used the norm in Reformed churches that a Reformed church should be reformed from within. In this article, the influence of both Heyns and Naudé on the General Synod of the Dutch Reformed Church to change its stance on apartheid is analysed by means of a study of literature. The purpose is to determine the more effective method of the two for ecclesiastical change. Heyns operated from within and Naudé from without. Heyns became the chairman of the General Synod which spoke out against apartheid in practice, but the church closed its ranks against the critique of Naudé.Contribution: Considering that both Johan Heyns and Beyers Naudé were members of a congregation of the Dutch Reformed Church as a Reformed church, the question is what the influence of reform was on their stance against apartheid. Both were regarded as prophets against the support of their church during apartheid. In this process, Heyns worked from within his church and Naudé from without. The method of both in this matter is investigated and evaluated. This article fills a gap in theological-historical scientific studies in this regard and adds an own interpretation to the issue.

In 1985 when storm clouds were gathering over South Africa, and a state of emergency was declared, a group of members of the Dutch Reformed Church (DRC) Family, clergy as well as laity, founded an organisation, Reforum. The two-fold aim of Reforum was to provide a prophetic witness against apartheid, calling the DRC to take leave of its theology of apartheid, and, secondly, to work towards the reunification of the DRC Family. The article researches the original Reforum documents, minutes, reports, conference material and letters, that hitherto laid untouched in the DRC Archive, in Pretoria. The programme of Reforum, especially the national and regional conferences held by the organisation over the 7 years of its existence, is discussed. The initial negative reaction of the DRC officials and synods, as well as the critique from some in the Dutch Reformed Mission Church and the DRC in Africa that Reforum was not radical enough in its approach, are recorded. The summation, at the end, is that Reforum did play a significant role, albeit humble and short lived, in the annals of the DRC’s apartheid saga. Relevance: The DRC’s apartheid saga, the story of a church that had over many years lived with apartheid and even provided a theological argument for separate development, eventually came to the point where the DRC not only repented of its past, but declared apartheid and the theology of apartheid a sin and a heresy, continues to fascinate historians, including church historians. For South African Christians, clergy as well as laity, it helps explain their often troubled past, as well as present. The often neglected story of Reforum and the role and contribution of the organisation in this process needs to be recorded. Original research: the author provides original qualitative research, using material that had lain untouched in the DRC Archive for three decades. This may be considered to be a preliminary study. The archival material merits more and deeper attention. It may well provide material for post graduate research.Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: The research is of value for the study of South African general history, South African church history, ecumenical studies, and practical theology.

Through an examination of Dutch Reformed church records and theological texts, Kyle Dieleman explores the local dynamics of religious life in the early modern Dutch Republic. The book argues that within the religiously plural setting of the Dutch Republic church officials used a variety of means to establish a Reformed identity in their communities. As such, the book explores the topics of church orders, elders and deacons, intra-confessional and inter-confessional conflicts, and Sabbath observance as local means by which small, rural communities negotiated and experienced their religious lives. In exploring rural Dutch Reformed congregations, the book examines the complicated relationships between theology and practice and ‘lay’ and ‘elite’ religion and highlights challenges rural churches faced. As they faced these issues, Dieleman demonstrates that local congregations exercised agency within their lived religious experiences as they sought unique ways to navigate their own Reformed identity within their small, rural communities.

Through an examination of Dutch Reformed church records and theological texts, Kyle Dieleman explores the local dynamics of religious life in the early modern Dutch Republic. The book argues that within the religiously plural setting of the Dutch Republic church officials used a variety of means to establish a Reformed identity in their communities. As such, the book explores the topics of church orders, elders and deacons, intra-confessional and inter-confessional conflicts, and Sabbath observance as local means by which small, rural communities negotiated and experienced their religious lives. In exploring rural Dutch Reformed congregations, the book examines the complicated relationships between theology and practice and 'lay' and 'elite' religion and highlights challenges rural churches faced. As they faced these issues, Dieleman demonstrates that local congregations exercised agency within their lived religious experiences as they sought unique ways to navigate their own Reformed identity within their small, rural communities.

The ongoing appointment of ministers between the Dutch Reformed Church and the Netherdutch Reformed Church of Africa: 1862–1917. This article highlights the situation prior to the establishment of the theological training of the Netherdutch Reformed Church of Africa (NDRCA). The training of ministers of the Dutch Reformed Church (DRC) started in 1859 with the establishment of the Theological Seminary at Stellenbosch. Since 1862 three churches operated in the then Transvaal (South African Republic). Many ministers of the DRC were called to serve in the NDRCA. The most notable were the Rev D.P. Ackerman and the Rev H.S. Bosman. They were called before the origin of the united church (of the NDRCA and the DRC) that existed between 1885 and 1892. After the split in 1892, they (as well as many others) continued as ministers in the DRC. The first lecturer of the NDRCA was called in 1917 − also a minister that was previously from the DRC. The calling of his successor sparked a major row. The NDRCA congregation of Pretoria called another minister from the DRC – the Rev H.D. van Broekhuizen. This eventually led to a special meeting of the General Assembly of the NDRCA in 1917 where his calling was eventually approved.

A social-psychological perspective on the attitude of members in the Mangaung area towards church unification within the Dutch Reformed family of churches: a cross-cultural investigation Until recently, only one investigation had been conducted into church members’ attitudes towards church unification. This was done from a theological instead of a social-psychological point of view. The term “attitude” may be defined as the expression of inner feelings that reflect whether the person concerned has a favourable or unfavourable predisposition towards a certain object. Church unification entails the process of uniting separate church denominations within the Dutch Reformed Church family. The aims of this study were achieved by gathering data from respondents of six Dutch Reformed congregations (N=104; 46, 6%), as well as six Uniting Reformed congregations (N=47; 21, 1%). The remainder of the respondents came from five Dutch Reformed Church in Africa congregations (N=72; 32, 3%). A biographical questionnaire was used, as well as the Attitude towards Church Unification Scale. The influence of different variables such as language, gender, age, marital status and church activities on the attitudes of church members was investigated. It was concluded on the basis of statistical analysis that members of all the different denominations of the Dutch Reformed Churches had a positive attitude towards church unification. It was found that language was the variable that had the greatest influence on the attitude of church members.

Some church historians are of the opinion that the Cottesloe Consultation of 1960 rejected apartheid and, by doing so, paved the way for the General Synods of the Dutch Reformed Church (DRC) of 1986 and 1990 with their documents, ‘Church and Society’, to do the same. This article investigates this statement. In its final declaration, Cottesloe made room for representatives of the DRC who believed that a policy of differentiation in South Africa can achieve justice. However, Cottesloe and these representatives also critised some aspects of the implementation of apartheid in South Africa in 1960. According to delegates of the DRC, they wanted to warn the supporters of apartheid: there is a danger that apartheid will not reach its goals. ‘Church and Society’ (1986 and 1990) rejected the concrete policy of the apartheid of its time as a whole. It defined the practical apartheid it rejects. In 1982, the World Alliance of Reformed Churches suspended the DRC as a member because of its theological and moral justification of apartheid. It also declared a status confessionis as the level on which it rejects this theological justification. The documents, ‘Church and Society’, were not acceptable to the Alliance as a token that the DRC rejects apartheid unconditionally and completely. The General Assembly of the Alliance of 1997 defined the apartheid, which it rejects. After the General Synod of the DRC of 1998 accepted this definition, the DRC was accepted again as a full member of the Alliance.

“A long road to reconciliation. The Dutch Reformed Church (DRC) in South Africa” examines one particularly significant player in South Africa’s church landscape during Apartheid times. The DRC was known for her close ties to Apartheid politicians and her theological justification of their racist system. The DRC’s still pending reunification with her daughter-churches of different ethnicities is widely regarded as the acid test for reconciliation and for the DRC’s willingness to deal with the guilt of her Apartheid past. In its first part, this essay traces the historical development of the DRC, leading to several schisms over the “race questions,” while the second part examines the gradual change in the DRC’s theological interpretation of Apartheid. A third part looks at central milestones on the DRC’s road to reconciliation, before a final part synthesizes the results in order to turn the focus from the past to the present and future of the DRC and the reconciliation process in South Africa.

In the 16th century, after the so-called Dark Middle Ages, the Reformation in the church in Western Europe aimed at reforming the church with consequences for society. Regarding the church itself, the Reformation aimed at bringing the total service of the church under the Word of God as its norma normans or norm of the norms. This is also true for the governing of the church and church polity.In the tradition of church polity and order that followed the thought of reformers, such as Bucer and Calvin, in the history of, specifically, the Dutch Reformed Church (DRC), scholars and churches came to the conclusion that the principle of sola scriptura means that Scripture provides the principles or norms for a church polity.This does not mean that every article in a church order should indicate the text of the Bible on which it is based. Rather, a church order should – at least – be based on principles derived from the Scripture or norms from outside the Scripture in harmony with the Bible.Contribution: The governing of the church cannot be isolated from society or, for example, from the generally accepted norms for natural justice. The Church order of the DRC of 1962 is an example of a reformed church order.

Church order and ecumenism: The Dutch Reformed Church in 1962–2015. The church order accepted by the first General Synod of the Dutch Reformed Church (DRC), the church order or DRC-CO of 1962, showed a preference for ecumenism with reformed churches. However, the term ‘correspondence’ with which it described the closest possible ties with a reformed church, was not explicit in the details of these ties. When the DRC broke its ties with the Reformed Churches in the Netherlands in 1976, the former could not explain in practical detail what had happened. The Netherlands church was the last church abroad with which the DRC had close ties. After this, the DRC were questioned more and more and became isolated from other churches outside South Africa because of, as it was called, its theological and moral support of apartheid. Changes within the DRC itself and in South Africa on apartheid in the years 1986–1994 also changed all this. The DRC was again accepted in church circles and became engaged in more ecumenical ties on a multi- as well as bilateral level than ever before. Intradisciplinary/interdisciplinary implications: This article is of a church-political nature, which helps the church in formulating a church order. It combines church history with church polity and uses it for an ecumenical purpose. Ecumenics concentrates on the relations between churches as a theological discipline. The history of the ecumenics of the Dutch Reformed Church, however, is also connected to its history as a church in the history of South Africa as a country.

Around 1600, Een testament ofte bekentenis van Abigael Gerbrants dochter was published. This booklet describes the pious deathbed of a young adult girl, Abigael Gerbrants (1582-1600); it was most probably written by her father, Gerbrandus Jansz (1552-1612), a minister in the Dutch Reformed church. The Testament also contains some details with respect to her exemplary behaviour before she fell ill, but the main content is of a spiritual thanatographical nature. The purpose of the text is to offer its readers a mirror for self-scrutiny and a model for imitation. When the time of religious persecution and its model martyrs was over and the Dutch Reformed church could be built up in relative freedom, the new generation was in need of contemporary models for living and dying in accordance with the standards of the Calvinist confession. Abigael was presented by her father as a timely and right model, especially for young adult girls. In those days many 'sympathisers of the Reformed religion' attended services in the Reformed church, but due to the strict conditions for admission they refrained from becoming full members. The ideal of a Reformed 'pure church' restrained its expansion. The Testament presented a young full-fledged member of the church, who demonstrated in her life and death the possibility and spiritual benefits of practicing the evangelical doctrine. Her exemplary embodiment of Calvinist devotion, depicted by Gerbrandus Jansz in a way reminiscent of the portraiture of the pious life by the Calvinist leader Jean Taffin (1529-1602), was not only meant to attract the 'undecided' but also to discourage defection to the Mennonites.