The Reformed Churches in South Africa () is a Christian denomination in South Africa that was formed in 1859 in

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 ...

. Members of the church are sometimes referred to as ''Doppers''.

History of the Gereformeerde Kerke in South Africa

In the early 19th century a new hymnbook was introduced in the Dutch churches in the Netherlands, which was implemented in the

Dutch Reformed Church The Dutch Reformed Church (, abbreviated NHK) was the largest Christian denomination in the Netherlands from the onset of the Protestant Reformation in the 16th century until 1930. It was the original denomination of the Dutch Royal Family and ...

in the

Cape Colony The Cape Colony ( nl, Kaapkolonie), also known as the Cape of Good Hope, was a British colony in present-day South Africa named after the Cape of Good Hope, which existed from 1795 to 1802, and again from 1806 to 1910, when it united with t ...

. Many of these songs contradicted the teachings of the three confessions accepted at the Synod of Dort in 1618/1619 (

The Heidelberg Catechism The Heidelberg Catechism (1563), one of the Three Forms of Unity, is a Protestant confessional document taking the form of a series of questions and answers, for use in teaching Calvinist Christian doctrine. It was published in 1563 in Heidelberg, ...

, the Belgic Confession and the

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� ...

). Some of the church members could not accept these doctrines. When they refused to sing the hymns, they were threatened with excommunication. They had the view: ''In Gods huis Gods lied'' (''In God's house God's songs''). The main founders of the denomination, were particularly concentrated in the vicinity of

, in the

Transvaal Transvaal is a historical geographic term associated with land north of (''i.e.'', beyond) the Vaal River in South Africa. A number of states and administrative divisions have carried the name Transvaal. * South African Republic (1856–1902; af, ...

. In 1859, 15 brothers decided to separate them from the Dutch Reformed Church. These 15 members made a meeting on 10 February 1859 convened under a seringboom at Rustenburg. At this meeting, 300 members have enrolled as members of ''Gereformeerde Kerke''. The spot is marked today by the Syringa Tree Monument. The Gereformeerde Kerke founded a seminary for theological studies as well as teacher training in Burgersdorp in the Eastern Cape. It was moved to Potchefstroom in the early 20th century, where it became the Potchefstroom University College for Higher Christian Education, now the North West University. One of the faculties is the seminary for training their ministers.

The Gereformeerde Kerke today

The official name of the church body today is ''Die Gereformeerde Kerke in Suid-Afrika'' (GKSA). It is also known as the ''Reformed Churches in South Africa'' (RCSA). It has 415 Congregations ministering to people in all 11 official languages of South Africa. There are congregations in Zimbabwe, Namibia and Lesotho. The ''General Synod'' meets every third year in Potchefstroom. It has ecumenical ties with churches on all the continents of the world, except Antarctica.

Songbook of Gereformeerde Kerke

The Gereformeerde Kerke today uses only hymns from the Bible: the

Psalms The Book of Psalms ( or ; he, תְּהִלִּים, , lit. "praises"), also known as the Psalms, or the Psalter, is the first book of the ("Writings"), the third section of the Tanakh, and a book of the Old Testament. The title is derived ...

as well as ''Skrifberymings''. ''Skrifberymings'' are hymns based on passages from the Bible. Besides the Psalms and ''Skrifberymings'', the hymnal contains the following: *

Three Forms of Unity The Three Forms of Unity is a collective name for the Belgic Confession, the Canons of Dort, and the Heidelberg Catechism, which reflect the doctrinal concerns of continental Calvinism and are accepted as official statements of doctrine by many Ca ...

, which consist of the Belgic Confession, the Heidelberg Catechism and the

. * The liturgical forms for the baptism of children, public confession of faith, the baptism of adults, the holy communion, confirmation of elders and deacons, confirmation of ministers, and the marriage ceremony. * The Church Order * A number of prayers.

Theology

Creeds

* Apostles Creed * Athanasian Creed * Nicene Creed

Confessions

* Belgic Confession * Heidelberg Catechism

Church government

The Reformed Churches have a

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...

– Synodal system of church government. The church consists of the Eastern Regional Synod, the Bushweld Synod, the Northwest Synod, the Regional Synod of Free State and KwaZulu-Natal, the Southern Regional Synod, and the Randvaal Regional Synod.

Seminary

The Reformed Churches in South Africa have their own Theological Seminary " Die Teologiese Skool" in Potchefstroom.

Missions

The Reformed Churches in South Africa has a number of growing local congregations. The denomination has local outreaches in

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

Mozambique Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi ...

. There are churches that support missionaries in Burundi. The Reformed Church in Rustenburg, South Africa has agreement with Koshin Presbyterian Church in Korea to support evangelism, and establishing new multicultural churches in Rustenburg area. The church cooperates with the

Presbyterian Church of Brazil The Presbyterian Church of Brazil ( Portuguese: ''Igreja Presbiteriana do Brasil'', or ''IPB'') is an Evangelical Protestant Christian denomination in Brazil. Oldest of the Reformed family of Protestantism in Brazil. It is the largest Presbyt ...

in missions in

Angola , national_anthem = " Angola Avante"() , image_map = , map_caption = , capital = Luanda , religion = , religion_year = 2020 , religion_ref = , coordina ...

and

. It is also involved in a Reformed church plant in

Hanoi, Vietnam Hanoi or Ha Noi ( or ; vi, Hà Nội ) is the capital and second-largest city of Vietnam. It covers an area of . It consists of 12 urban districts, one district-leveled town and 17 rural districts. Located within the Red River Delta, Hanoi is ...

. Through membership in the World Reformed Fellowship, Gereformeerde Gemeenten collabotates WRF's works, also for example in the International Institute of Islamic Studies.

Relations with other Reformed churches

Reformed Churches in South Africa is a member of the

World Reformed Fellowship The World Reformed Fellowship (WRF) is an ecumenical Christian organization which promotes unity between confessional Calvinist churches around the world. History The World Fellowship of Reformed Churches was formed in 1994 by the Presbyterian ...

and the

International Conference of Reformed Churches The International Conference of Reformed Churches (ICRC) is a federation of Reformed or Calvinist churches around the world. The ICRC was founded in 1981. The ICRC convenes international meetings every four years. Its theology is more conservative ...

The Gereformeerde Kerke has sister church relationship with the : *

Christian Reformed Churches The Christian Reformed Churches in the Netherlands ( nl, Christelijke Gereformeerde Kerken in Nederland) is a Protestant church in the Netherlands. History The original name of the church was Christian Reformed Church in the Netherlands ('' ...

in the Netherlands *

Reformed Churches in the Netherlands (Liberated) The Reformed Churches in the Netherlands (Liberated) (Dutch: Gereformeerde Kerken in Nederland (vrijgemaakt)) are an orthodox Calvinist federation of churches. This church body arose in 1944 out of the so-called Liberation (') from the Reformed ...

Netherlands Reformed Churches The Netherlands Reformed Churches are a conservative Reformed Protestant Christian denomination in the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The denomination came into existence in 1967 out of a schism within the Reformed Churches in the Netherlands (Libera ...

*Reformed Churches in Botswana *

United Reformed Church in Congo United Reformed Church in Congo was formerly the Confessing Reformed Church in Congo, and belongs to the Presbyterian and Reformed family of churches. History The Church was formed thanks to a broadcasting program by Rev. Aron R. Kayayan in t ...

* Christian Reformed Church in North America *

Orthodox Presbyterian Church The Orthodox Presbyterian Church (OPC) is a confessional Presbyterian denomination located primarily in the United States, with additional congregations in Canada, Bermuda, and Puerto Rico. It was founded by conservative members of the Presbyter ...

* Christian Reformed Churches of Australia * Free Church of Scotland * Reformed Churches of New Zealand * Reformed Church in Japan * Presbyterian Church in Korea (Koshin).

Footnotes

References

* "Professor Dirk Postma (1818–1890)", Dr. G.C.P. van der Vyver, Pro Rege Pers, 1958 * "Handleiding vir die studie van Kerkgeskiedenis" (''Guide for the Study of Church History''), Prof. S. du Toit, Pro Rege Pers, 1970

External links

Official website

Reformed Church in Rustenburg, South Africa

Reformed Church in Pretoria, South Africa
{{Authority control Protestantism in South Africa Reformed denominations in Africa Members of the World Reformed Fellowship Religious organizations established in 1859 1859 establishments in South Africa Establishments in the South African Republic 1859 in the South African Republic 1859 establishments in Africa Dutch-South African culture