Netherlands Reformed Church

Netherlands Reformed Church, Protestant church in the Reformed (Calvinist) tradition, the successor of the established Dutch Reformed Church that developed during the Protestant Reformation in the 16th century. In 2004 it merged with two other churches—the Reformed Churches in the Netherlands (Gereformeerde Kerken in Nederland) and the Evangelical Lutheran Church (Evangelische Lutherse Kerk)—to form the Protestant Church in the Netherlands (Protestantse Kerk in Nederland).

Reforming interest emerged in the Netherlands at least by the early 16th century. The emperor Charles V instituted the Inquisition against the Reformation in the Netherlands as early as 1522. The struggle for freedom from Spain was begun by the Netherlands as a protest in demand for greater liberties, including religious, within Charles’s empire. Eventually the Netherlands became free, and the Dutch Reformed Church was established. The first general synod of the Dutch Reformed Church took place in 1571, and subsequently other synods were held. The presbyterian form of church government was adopted, and the Belgic Confession (1561) and the Heidelberg Catechism (1562) were accepted as standards of doctrine.

In the 17th century a theological controversy arose over the Calvinist doctrine of predestination—i.e., that God has already elected or chosen those who will be saved. The followers of Jacobus Arminius, a Dutch professor and theologian, rejected a rigid version of this belief and argued that humans are free to a limited extent to effect their own salvation; in contrast, the followers of Franciscus Gomarus, a Dutch theologian, upheld a particularly strict version. To settle the controversy, the Synod of Dort (1618–19) was convened. It produced the canons of Dort, which condemned the theology of the Arminians (also called the Remonstrants) and set forth a strict interpretation of predestination. These canons, along with the Belgic Confession and the Heidelberg Catechism, came to constitute the theological basis of the Dutch Reformed Church.

In 1798 the Dutch Reformed Church was disestablished as the country’s official religion, but it remained partly under government control. In 1816 King William I reorganized the church and renamed it the Netherlands Reformed Church. Theological disputes in the 19th century resulted in schisms, one of which led to the formation in 1834 of the Reformed Churches in the Netherlands; nevertheless, the Netherlands Reformed Church remained the most influential Protestant church in the country, though it did not become the largest until the 20th century.

On May 1, 2004, after nearly 20 years of negotiations, the Netherlands Reformed Church and the Reformed Churches in the Netherlands merged with the Evangelical Lutheran Church. The united church, the Protestant Church in the Netherlands, became the largest Protestant church in the country, claiming 2.5 million members in the first decade of the 21st century.