The Dutch Reformed Church in Botswana was founded by Swiss missionaries led by the Rev. Henri Gronin begun working in 1863 among the tribe Bakgatla, Kgafela in Saulsport and

Rustenburg Rustenburg (; , Afrikaans and Dutch: ''City of Rest'') is a city at the foot of the Magaliesberg mountain range. Rustenburg is the most populous city in North West province, South Africa (549,575 in 2011 and 626,522 in the 2016 census). In 20 ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...

. In 1870 part of the tribe moved north to

Botswana Botswana (, ), officially the Republic of Botswana ( tn, Lefatshe la Botswana, label= Setswana, ), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory being the Kalaha ...

and the missionaries followed them. The great chief was baptised and most of the tribe followed him. In 1966 when Botswana become independent, a Synod of the Reformed Church was formed. In the 1970s the church gained independence. The church in the following years expanded to

Basarwa The San peoples (also Saan), or Bushmen, are members of various Khoe, Tuu, or Kxʼa-speaking indigenous hunter-gatherer cultures that are the first cultures of Southern Africa, and whose territories span Botswana, Namibia, Angola, Zambia, ...

Bakalanga The Kalanga or Bakalanga are a southern Bantu ethnic group mainly inhabiting Matebeleland in Zimbabwe, northeastern Botswana and Limpopo Province in South Africa. They are historically related to the Nambya, Karanga, Bapedi and Venda. Curre ...

and Bakgatla. The denomination has 6,000 members and 13 parishes with 50 house fellowships in 2 presbyteries and one Synod. The 14 churches are in : Muchudi, Muchudi East, Muchudi West, Sikwane,

Gaborone Gaborone ( , , ) is the capital and largest city of Botswana with a population of 246,325 based on the 2022 census, about 10% of the total population of Botswana. Its agglomeration is home to 421,907 inhabitants at the 2011 census. Gaboron ...

Tlokweng Tlokweng is a peri-urban settlement classified as an urban village located east of the capital of Botswana, Gaborone and falling under the jurisdiction of South East District Council. It can be considered part of the conurbation of Gaborone. ...

Lobatse Lobatse is a town in south-eastern Botswana, 70 kilometres south of the capital Gaborone, situated in a valley running north towards Gaborone and close to the border with South Africa. Lobatse has a population of 29,772 as of 2022. The town is an ...

, Kgalagadi,

Ghanzi Ghanzi is a town in the middle of the Kalahari Desert the western part of the Republic of Botswana in southern Africa. The region is the country's pride in contributing a large portion towards the beef industry. In fact, Ghanzi farmers provides ...

, Maun, Makaleng, Selebi Phikwe, Boseja (Mochudi). The church subscribe the Reformed confessions: * Apostles Creed * Nicene Creed *

Canons of Dort The Canons of Dort, or Canons of Dordrecht, formally titled The Decision of the Synod of Dort on the Five Main Points of Doctrine in Dispute in the Netherlands, is the judgment of the National Synod held in the Dutch city of Dordrecht in 1618� ...

* Heidelberg Catechism.

Ecumenical relations

The church is member of the

World Communion of Reformed Churches The World Communion of Reformed Churches (WCRC) is the largest association of Calvinist churches in the world. It has 230 member denominations in 108 countries, together claiming an estimated 80 million people, thus being the fourth-largest Chris ...

. It is also a member of the Botswana Council of Churches.

References

{{Religion in Botswana Reformed denominations in Africa Members of the World Communion of Reformed Churches Protestantism in Botswana 1863 establishments in Africa