Dutch Reformed Mission Church Research Articles

A Historical Survey of the Acceptance and Impact of the Belhar Confession since 1986

The Belhar Confession was adopted by the Dutch Reformed Mission Church (DRMC) in 1982, and in 1994 it became the theological foundation for the newly emerging Uniting Reformed Church of Southern Africa (URCSA). Focusing on the themes of unity, reconciliation and restorative justice, it challenged apartheid in South Africa. Since then, it has become a “gift” to the world-wide church to challenge all forms of discrimination and oppression in the world. The Belhar Confession has been adopted by ecumenical bodies and other denominations both nationally and internationally. This article attempts to assess the acceptance and impact of the Belhar Confession in South Africa and globally. The methodology employed is that of a historical survey examining the responses of churches to the Belhar Confession and conducting interviews to assess the impact of the Confession in transforming lives and communities today.

Neither White nor Black: The Dutch Reformed Mission Church and the Colour Issue (1881–1982)

This study investigates the role and understanding of race, particularly “Coloured” identity on the formation and life of the Dutch Reformed Mission Church. Particular focus is given to how the DRMC has dealt with and responded to the colour issue since its inception. An attempt is made to indicate how the history of the DRMC and “Coloured” identity in South Africa are inextricably bound up together. More emphasis is placed on “Coloured” being perceived as neither White nor Black and how the initial critique from the DRMC comprised of “Coloureds” being “less” than White, but superior than Blacks. The study concludes with the influence of Steve Biko and the Black Consciousness Movement on the DRMC.

Reforum: A brief but not unimportant chapter in the Dutch Reformed Church’s apartheid saga

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.

The Claims of Diversity: The Uniting Reformed Church, Diversity and Qualitative Unity

The first 25 years of the Uniting Reformed Church in Southern Africa was dedicated to stabilise and deepen the unity achieved between the former Dutch Reformed Church in Africa and the Dutch Reformed Mission Church, while simultaneously fighting off challenges posed by the break-away DRCA. A vital characteristic of these two churches was that they brought multiple diversities to the unification process—diversities of language, gender, laity, age, spirituality, and different abilities. URCSA did not often address these challenges openly, but they functioned as underground currents that reached visible manifestations when leaders had to be elected. At the last regional synod of URCSA in the Cape (2018), a debate ensued and a contesting of leadership positions occurred, that affirmed a mechanistic model of cultural representation and side-lined greater gender recognition. These attempts bear witness to the reality of diversity and compel URCSA to address this vital issue in a way that remains true to the Gospel, affirming our fundamental unity while drawing on our diversity as sources of enrichment. URCSA has the inestimable resource of the Belhar Confession 1986 that drew on the biblical tradition to approach the issue of diversity and unity. This essay will clarify the issue of diversity in relation to unity in the church and investigate how diversities are addressed as they impact on culture and gender. The author will draw on the work of the late political philosopher, Iris Marion Young, to investigate various approaches to diversity. The essay proposes that if we do not address the reality of diversity in a significant way, the unity of the church will not reach meaningful depth and a new dominating hegemony will replace the aspiration to qualitative unity, thereby limiting the contribution and access of different constituencies in URCSA.

Allan Boesak

This article attempts to exhibit the theology of prophetic resistance presented by Allan Boesak during the church struggle against apartheid and how it influenced the theological landscape. Firstly, the methodology applied in this article is to place Boesak against the backdrop of the significant historical events of the 1960s and 1970s. The purpose of this is to illustrate both the growing resistance of the oppressed black people and the unjust rule of apartheid against which Boesak will assert himself. The article goes on to focus on the theological contribution of Boesak between 1976 and 1990. The author will investigate specific events during the 1980s to showcase Boesak’s involvement within the Dutch Reformed Mission Church and beyond.

Whose Land Is it anyway? A historical Reflection on the Challenges URCSA Encountered with Land and Property Rights

The proposal to amend the Constitution of South Africa 1996 regarding the expropriation of land without compensation has invigorated a robust discourse with regard to the land issue in South Africa. Cognisance should be taken of how the land issue was handled during the apartheid dispensation and the way it has played out in the constitutional democracy dispensation since 1994 in South Africa. This article will attend to issues relating to land in the Uniting Reformed Church in Southern Africa (URCSA). URCSA was constituted in 1994 due to a merger of two racially segregated churches, the Dutch Reformed Mission Church (DRMC) and the Dutch Reformed Church in Africa (DRCA). The DRMC was constituted through mission endeavours of the Dutch Reformed Church (DRC) during 1881 to serve so-called coloured members of the DRC. The DRCA was constituted in or about 1910 to serve African members. In order to understand the controversy in URCSA from 1994–2012 with regard to property rights, one has to understand how the colonists and missionaries (and later the apartheid regime) utilised “divide and rule” and supremacy strategies to secure property rights for churches of people from mixed descent and Indian people (the DRMC) and the Reformed Church in Africa [RCA]); while at the same time restricting property rights for churches of members from African descent (the DRCA). This is evident in the way the constitutions of the above-mentioned mission churches were drafted. This article will attend to the following subthemes: property rights of the DRMC challenged by apartheid laws; property rights of the DRCA challenged by apartheid laws; a court case regarding the expropriation of land without compensation; controversy regarding property rights (1998–2012); from litigation to out-of-court settlement on property rights (1998–2012); and lastly out-of-court settlement between the DRC, the DRCA and URCSA.

The Awkward Positioning of a Dutch Reformed Missionary in Apartheid South Africa

The Rev. D. P. (David) Botha was a lifelong apartheid critic and minister in the Dutch Reformed Mission Church (DRMC) and later the Uniting Reformed Church in Southern Africa (URCSA). Early in his career, he served as a “missionary” in a DRMC congregation in Wynberg, and subsequently in other congregations in the Western Cape, South Africa. During his career, he wrote an important book and engaged in public discourse through contributions in newspapers and other mainstream publications. Focusing on these sources, most of which now form part of his private collection in the Dutch Reformed Church (DRC) Archive, this article traces Botha’s growing agitation regarding the implementation of apartheid policies, in the aftermath of the institution of the 1950 Group Areas Act. Among other things it illuminates the early apartheid-era white view of the other, as experienced and critiqued by this insider-outsider minister with respect to his assessment of general white perceptions of so-called “coloureds” in the Cape Town area. Through specific attention to Botha’s correspondences with A. P. Treurnicht and Beyers Naudé, this article also shows the problematic perspective of a white missionary seeking to alleviate the impact of policy decisions on his church members, while simultaneously buying into the predominant ideology of racial categorisation.

Where have all the Prophets Gone? URCSA 25 years Later: Re-Acquainting with Prophetic Theology in Post-apartheid South Africa

The Uniting Reformed Church in Southern Africa (URCSA) was formed in 1994 as a merger between the former Dutch Reformed Mission Church (DRMC) and the Dutch Reformed Church in Africa (DRCA). URCSA, as the bearer of the Belhar Confession, has always stood within the tradition of Prophetic Theology. This article upholds the presuppositions that the prophetic nature of Black Liberation Theology impacted on the reasoning of the authors of various anti-apartheid documents like the theological declarations of the Belydendekring and Alliance of Black Reformed Christians in Southern Africa (ABRECSA), the Kairos Document and Belhar Confession; and with the advent of our democracy, URCSA not only lost her Kairos conscience but parted with Prophetic Theology—hence the title of this paper. Issues like state capture, corruption, the expropriation of land without compensation, poverty, racism, and so forth are all issues plaguing our young democracy and require a clear theological response. This article argues for renewed acquaintance from the church, URCSA, with Prophetic Theology, which will enable the church to not only speak prophetically but to challenge the status quo. Prophetic Theology is much better prepared to engage with the challenges posed in post-apartheid South Africa because it is grounded in a hope that is unprepared to accept the world as it is.

Twenty-fifth Anniversary of Church Unity between former DRMC and DRCA, 1994

T
 Church unity between the former Dutch Reformed Mission Church (DRMC) and the Dutch Reformed Church in Africa (DRCA) took place in 1994 under particularly difficult circumstances. South Africa was on the brink of civil war, as the oppressed majority of the country was pressurising the apartheid regime to surrender to their legitimate demands for a democratic dispensation. The regime was relentless and violently resisted any change that would franchise black people. The struggle involved political, social, economic and religious dimensions and many people lost their lives as a result. It was under these circumstances that the DRMC and the DRCA forged ahead with church unity. The most enabling means for survival in the struggle for unity of the two churches was their faith in God as expressed in the Belhar Confession. This article explores the circumstances under which church unification was forged between the two Reformed churches and their eventual unity in 1994, as well as the concrete steps they took in their ritual of unification.

The rocky road travelled by the Dutch Reformed Church in Africa towards church unity: from Tshilidzini to Pretoria, 1971 to 1991

This review of the rocky road travelled by the Dutch Reformed Church in Africa (DRCA) towards church unity consists of five parts. First, the historical background to the DRCA is briefly traced. Second, the author investigates the various decisions of the general synod of the DRCA regarding church unification from Tshilidzini in 1971 to Pretoria in 1991. Third, decisions of the general synod of the then DRCA on the fourth confession are considered. Fourth, the decision of the general synod regarding the Belhar confession prior to 14 April 1994 and the unity talks among the then Dutch Reformed Church (DRC) members and their impact on unity are discussed. Fifth, the final decisions of the then DrcA regarding church unification with the Dutch Reformed Mission Church (DRMC) as the result of the delay on the part of the DRC are investigated.

The Belhar Confession – 29 years on

Twenty-nine years down the line, this essay revisits the birth of the Belhar confession in 1982. It describes the immediate reaction in South Africa, specifically by the Dutch Reformed Church, to the acceptance of this confession by the then Dutch Reformed Mission Church. It shows how the confession was “held hostage” by church politics in the Dutch Reformed family of churches in South Africa from 1982 until 1994, constituting and continuing to constitute, a major stumbling block for efforts of reunification between the DRC and DRMC (and later, URCSA) – either to the chagrin or relief of those involved. In light of the continued importance of this confession with regard to the issue of church reunification and its positive reception over time in some North American and European Reformed churches, the article calls for a reconsideration of the possible role the confession can play in a new millennium, in a vastly different South African church and society and in a time thinking about confessions seem to be closer to those of Calvin and the Reformers, and of Karl barth, steering away from the dogmatic Dordt way in which it for long understood by many Dutch Reformed Christians in South Africa.

HUMAN DIGNITY IN THE THEOLOGICAL DISCOURSE AGAINST APARTHEID IN THE DUTCH REFORMED FAMILY

The purpose of this article is to investigate the explicit and implicit use of the concept �human dignity� in the theological discourse against apartheid in the Dutch Reformed family of churches. Specifically its use during the Synod of the Dutch Reformed Church in Africa in 1975, within the Broederkring and during the Synods of the Dutch Reformed Mission Church in 1978 and 1982 is investigated. It is argued that the term �human dignity� was consistently formulated from a specifically Christological point of view and can be distinguished from its use in more general human rights discourses of the twentieth century.

Die stryd om die aard en omvang van die tugreg by die Nederduitse Gereformeerde Sendingkerk (1881−1994)

The struggle of the Dutch Reformed Mission Churches (1881–1994) with reference to the character and extend of discipline. In this article the struggle concerning the nature and extent of the disciplinary power in the Dutch Reformed Mission Church (DRMC) (1881–1994) is discussed. Since the establishment of the DRMC in 1881 until 1982 the Dutch Reformed Church (DRC) retained the right to censure and discipline the missionaries in the DRMC. The article argues that the struggle for disciplinary power under the Constitution of the DRMC, the Statute of the DRMC as well as under the memorandum of agreement between the DRMC and the DRC, was nothing less than an attempt by the DRMC to entrench the principles of Voetius in the disciplinary power of the church polity and church government of the DRMC. In 1982 the DRMC accepted a new church order in which these principles were entrenched. The acceptance of this church order provision concluded the DRMC’s struggle for disciplinary power of all its officers, missionaries included, which already began in 1908. At the inaugural meeting of the Uniting Reformed Church in Southern Africa a Church Order was adopted in which provisions with regards to the disciplinary power based on above principles was hedged.

Die kerkreg en kerkregering van die Nederduitse Gereformeerde Sendingkerk (1881-1915)

The church polity and church governance of the Dutch Reformed Mission(1881-1915)One can discern five church polity principles in this article to adjudicate the churchpolity and church governance of the Dutch Reformed Mission Church (DRMC):1. The autonomy of the local church,2. The character of the denominational ties,3. The character of the power of the major assemblies,4. The power to discipline church officials,5. The right to appeal with regarding to the decisions of the major assemblies,This article deals cursorily with the church polity development of the DutchReformed Mission Church (1881-1915). The foundational grounds and main notionson Doleantie Church polity are being drawn upon in this article. The Doleantie didnot try to develop a new church polity system, but is rather a regression to a systemof church polity as enacted by the National Synod of Dordrecht (1618-1619). TheDoleantie church polity (oud kerkrecht) impacted the church polity and the churchgovernance of the DRMC.

The reception of the Barmen Declaration in South Africa

The reception of the Barmen Declaration in South Africa

The interdependence of public witness and institutional unity in the Dutch Reformed family of churches

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.

The Nederduitse Gereformeerde Sendingkerk and the Nama Experience in Namaqualand, South Africa

In Steinkopf, a former coloured Reserve in the Northern Cape Province, the Nederduitse Gereformeerde Sendingkerk (NGS; Dutch Reformed Mission Church), a former sub-branch of the Nederduitse Gereformeerde Kerk (NGK; Dutch Reformed Church) forged a legitimate public space for the expression of Nama identity in the 1960s. The legitimisation of aboriginal identity was not accidental, but very much an expression of apartheid policies of the day. I hope to demonstrate both the content and the consequences of this particular episode in Steinkopf, and thereby contribute to an understanding of the links between a crumbling capitalist infrastructure and the ideological efforts to reinforce that infrastructure through processes of ethnic strengthening. My claim is that the NGK played an ideological role supporting the capitalist interests as it strengthened the super-structural pillars of the segregation and apartheid eras.

Waaihoek se N.G. Sendinggemeente in Bloemfontein: 1891-1903

The Dutch Reformed Mission Church Waaihoek in Bloemfontein: 1891-1903 This article considers the early history of a unique Dutch Reformed mission congregation in the capital of the Free State Republic. Members, especially elder John Fraser of the local ";Tweetoringkerk";, initiated the establishment of a separate mission congregation in Waaihoek, at that time the non-white residential area of Bloemfontein. In terms of the Ecclesiastical Laws of the Dutch Reformed Church of the Orange Free State, this church was founded in 1891. In 1895, the Waaihoek church, which was related to the (white) Dutch Reformed congregation of Bloemfontein, obtained a religious teacher, who was eventually ordained as missionary in 1897. Tension grew within the congregation because of the influx of black Basotho people who neither understood Dutch nor had the culture of the initial ";Coloured"; (brown) members. Consequently, the services and the administration of the sacraments (both Baptism and Holy Communion) were held separately. The congregation experienced the Anglo-Boer War in its own way. Their perspective on the War differed from that of those belonging to the white congregation. The Waaihoek congregation had to contend with a neighbouring concentration camp for black people. Ultimately it survived the war. (Acta Theologica: 2002 22(2): 1-18)

CHRISTIAN MISSION IN SOUTH AFRICA: A HISTORICAL REFLECTION

International Review of MissionVolume 83, Issue 328 p. 11-19 CHRISTIAN MISSION IN SOUTH AFRICA: A HISTORICAL REFLECTION Willem Saayman, Willem Saayman Willem Saayman is professor of Missiology and Head of the Department of Missiology at the University of South Africa in Pretoria, South Africa. He is a member of the Dutch Reformed Mission Church and has worked as a missionary in Zambia, Namibia and South Africa.Search for more papers by this author Willem Saayman, Willem Saayman Willem Saayman is professor of Missiology and Head of the Department of Missiology at the University of South Africa in Pretoria, South Africa. He is a member of the Dutch Reformed Mission Church and has worked as a missionary in Zambia, Namibia and South Africa.Search for more papers by this author First published: January 1994 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1758-6631.1994.tb02335.xCitations: 1 AboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat Citing Literature Volume83, Issue328January 1994Pages 11-19 RelatedInformation

Book Reviews

Book reviewed in this article:Readings In Islam: Society and Economics in Islam, by Sayyid Mahmud Taleghani.Readings In Islam: Occidentosis, by Jalal Al‐i AhmadReadings In Islam: Man and Islam, by Ali Shariati.Readings In Islam: Trialogue of Arahamic Faiths, ed. by Isma'il Raji al Faruqi.Readings In Islam: The Muslim Zanzibaris of South Africa, by G. C. Oosthuizen.Readings In Islam: Islam in Indonesia, by B. J. Boland and I. Farjon.Readings In Islam: Missionare und Moslems, by Andreas Waldburger.AN EXCEPTIONAL BISHOP: R. O.: The life and Times of Bishop Ronald Hall of Hong Kong, by David M. Paton.TRANSFORMATION OF A MISSIONARY: Evangelist på indiska villkor. Stanley Jones och den indiska renässansen 1918–1930, by Sigfrid Deminger.APARTHEID, REVOLUTION AND CHRISTOLOGY: The South African Churches in a Revolutionary Situation, by Marjorie Hope and James YoungAPARTHEID, REVOLUTION AND CHRISTOLOGY: Survey of Race Relations in South Africa 1982, ed. by Peter Randall.APARTHEID, REVOLUTION AND CHRISTOLOGY: Apartheid is a Heresy, ed. by John W. de Gruchy and Charles Villa‐Vicencio.APARTHEID, REVOLUTION AND CHRISTOLOGY: A Moment of Truth—the Confession of the Dutch Reformed Mission Church 182, ed. by G. D. Cloete and D. J. Smit.APARTHEID, REVOLUTION AND CHRISTOLOGY: The Crucified among the Crossbearers—Towards a Black Christology, by Takatso A. Mofokeng.APARTHEID, REVOLUTION AND CHRISTOLOGY: A Certain Sound, by Cedric Mayson.