Hendrik de Cock (12 April 1801 – 14 November 1842) was a Dutch minister responsible for the 1834-35 Dutch Reformed Church split due to his incarceration and suspension from office for his

Calvinist Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Ca ...

convictions. Hendrik de Cock protested against the perceived theological liberalism in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

government-controlled

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 19th century. This protest led to the Secession (Afscheiding) of 1834. He is sometimes called the father of the

Secession of 1834 The 1834 Dutch Reformed Church split, or the Secession of 1834 ( nl, Afscheiding van 1834), known simply as ''Afscheiding'' ("separation, secession, split"), refers to a split that occurred within the Dutch Reformed Church in 1834. The federation ...

Early life

Hendrik de Cock was born in the city of

Veendam Veendam () is a town and municipality with a population of 27,752 in the province of Groningen in the northeast of the Netherlands. Veendam was established in 1648 as a peat colony by Adriaan Geerts Wildervanck. A Holland America Line cruise ship ...

Groningen Groningen (; gos, Grunn or ) is the capital city and main municipality of Groningen province in the Netherlands. The ''capital of the north'', Groningen is the largest place as well as the economic and cultural centre of the northern part of t ...

, the

on 12 April 1801 to father Regnerius Tjaarda de Cock and mother Jantje Kappen. His grandfather Regnerus Tjaarda de Cock was a minister in the

around 1750. His parents were associated with the

. Shortly after de Cock's birth his family moved to

Wildervank Wildervank is a village in the Dutch province of Groningen. It is located in the municipality of Veendam, about 3 km south of the centre of Veendam itself. It was founded in 1647 by Adriaan Geerts Wildervanck as a peat colony in the Wilderv ...

. In 1824 he married Frouwe Venema (b 1803 - d 1889).

Education

He entered into the

University of Groningen The University of Groningen (abbreviated as UG; nl, Rijksuniversiteit Groningen, abbreviated as RUG) is a Public university#Continental Europe, public research university of more than 30,000 students in the city of Groningen (city), Groningen in ...

to study to become a minister of

theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

. In 1823 he graduated from this university. He was called to the

congregation A congregation is a large gathering of people, often for the purpose of worship. Congregation may also refer to: *Church (congregation), a Christian organization meeting in a particular place for worship *Congregation (Roman Curia), an administra ...

of Eppenhuizen,

and (shortly after his marriage in 1824) was ordained there as a Minister. He would serve this congregation for three years until in 1827 he became Minister in

Noordlaren Noordlaren is a village in the municipality of Groningen in the Dutch province of Groningen. It had a population of around 545 in 2021. In 2010 it was said to be 850 years old. In the past Noordlaren was a farming village. Nowadays there are still ...

for two years.

History

In 1829, Hendrik de Cock (who is also known as the father of the Secession) became minister of the

in the town of

Ulrum Ulrum () is a village in the Dutch province of Groningen. It is located in the municipality of Het Hogeland. History The first time the town was named was as ''Uluringhem'' in the 11th century. Ulrum is sited on two mounds. On the western one st ...

, near the city of

. He was not

evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide Interdenominationalism, interdenominational movement within Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being "bor ...

but his congregation was. One of the members gave him the

Canons of Dordt 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 1618–1 ...

to read. This, plus his own discovery of

John Calvin John Calvin (; frm, Jehan Cauvin; french: link=no, Jean Calvin ; 10 July 150927 May 1564) was a French theologian, pastor and reformer in Geneva during the Protestant Reformation. He was a principal figure in the development of the system ...

's ''

Institutes of the Christian Religion ''Institutes of the Christian Religion'' ( la, Institutio Christianae Religionis) is John Calvin's seminal work of systematic theology. Regarded as one of the most influential works of Protestant theology, it was published in Latin in 1536 (at th ...

'', led to a great change in his preaching. This change in his preaching attracted many people from other congregations to his worship services. Later these same people requested Hendrik de Cock to baptize their new babies. They could not, in good conscience have their babies baptized in their own churches, partly because the old Baptism Form had been replaced with, in their view, other heretical practices and liturgy, and partly because if the old Form was still used they could not answer "Yes" to the question whether they "believed the doctrine taught in their church was the truth of God's Word". After careful consideration, consultation with his

consistory Consistory is the anglicized form of the consistorium, a council of the closest advisors of the Roman emperors. It can also refer to: *A papal consistory, a formal meeting of the Sacred College of Cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church *Consistory ...

and others, and through anxious prayer, De Cock did baptize these children. This infuriated the clergy from the other congregations, who in turn notified the authorities. It was, in fact, this issue that De Cock's colleagues brought in protest against him at Classis. In his defense he wrote a pamphlet defending what he and his consistory believed to be the truth. This sparked off much debate and as a result the

suspended him as a minister on 13 December 1833.

in order to maintain law and order in the Reformed Church, to protect the name and honour of the ministers of the Gospel, and to prevent more disorders, divisions, and revolutions in several congregations in our Fatherland; . . . if preachers as DeCock were not halted in their reckless enterprise, this Board fears the worst.

Hendrik de Cock submitted to his suspension and stayed off his pulpit, but tensions continued to rise. They reached a kind of climax when Rev. Heinrich Scholte (later to settle and establish a colony in

Pella, Iowa Pella is a city in Marion County, Iowa, United States, with a population of 10,464 at the time of the 2020 U.S. Census The United States census of 2020 was the twenty-fourth decennial United States census. Census Day, the reference day use ...

), who was known to be friendly to him, was forbidden to preach in Hendrik de Cock's church. In this way, a modernist could occupy the pulpit instead. The congregation did not take kindly to this and the police were called in to prevent what was a near riot. Hendrik de Cock refused to recant, and finally, with his congregation, officially parted (seceded) on 13 October 1834 from the

. The next day they signed th
Act of Secession or Return (1834)
The first two years under de Cock saw the formation of over 200 churches that quickly developed out of local Bible studies called, "oefeningen," with a leader who served as the "oefenaar," that were meeting in homes. Here believers had been reading together from the "Old Writers" (17th century

Further Reformation ''Nadere Reformatie'' (Dutch Second Reformation or Further Reformation) is the period of church history in the Netherlands, following the Reformation, from roughly 1600 until 1750. History The period and its representatives are known for thei ...

" pastors and theologians) who emphasized not only mindful apprehension of Reformed doctrine but also personal appropriation of these

truths. Other churches also left the

to join Hendrik de Cock in 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

(CGKN). These churches and their members would be called the "Secessionists" or "Seceders".

The Secession (Afscheiding)

The

and the Dutch government made the Seceders suffer terribly for their convictions. Their meetings were often broken up by

mob violence A riot is a form of civil disorder commonly characterized by a group lashing out in a violent public disturbance against authority, property, or people. Riots typically involve destruction of property, public or private. The property targete ...

; they were fined and imprisoned. On 25 October 1834 a company infantry (104 soldiers) were sent by the Dutch government to

and to other places where the Seceders had established separate congregations and were billeted in the homes of the seceders. These people were usually rather poor, which also why the other clergymen held them in contempt; yet they were forced to feed and shelter the soldiers, tend to their needs, and live their lives with the soldiers always present. The soldiers stayed there until the end of January 1835, and even then, half of them remained until 7 July 1835. As a counter-measure to the Secession, the Dutch government reinstated an old French law from the time of

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

, that forbade any assembly of more than 20 people. This made it difficult, if not impossible, for the Seceders to gather to worship. If any regulations imposed on them were broken, they were fined vast sums of money. And if they were unable to pay the fines, their possessions were sold in Sheriff's sales and the proceeds paid to the government. If even this did not suffice, they would be imprisoned. Hendrik de Cock himself was fined 150 florin (

guilders Guilder is the English translation of the Dutch and German ''gulden'', originally shortened from Middle High German ''guldin pfenninc'' "gold penny". This was the term that became current in the southern and western parts of the Holy Roman Empir ...

) and spent three months in

prison A prison, also known as a jail, gaol (dated, standard English, Australian, and historically in Canada), penitentiary (American English and Canadian English), detention center (or detention centre outside the US), correction center, correc ...

, separated from wife and family. Not until under King William II in 1841 would this counter-measure and the religious persecution end.

Later years

In 1837 Hendrik de Cock was called to the city of

to be minister of the Reformed Church (Gereformeerde Kerk) there. He would serve this congregation until his death. He died from a lung disease at the age of 41, on 14 November 1842. He is buried in

at the Southern Cemetery (Zuiderbegraafplaats) in a well marked (and maintained) grave. He was survived by his wife and five children, three of whom were very young. De Cock's grave stone was erected in 1891 (two years after his wife died) and renewed in 1911. The known names of his children are Helenius de Cock (son), Eelbrina de Cock (daughter) and Jantje de Cock (daughter) (born 20 January 1836). {{DEFAULTSORT:Cock, Hendrik de 1801 births 1842 deaths People from Veendam Reformed Churches Christians from the Netherlands 19th-century Dutch Calvinist and Reformed ministers