The ''Confession of Faith'', popularly known as the Belgic Confession, is a doctrinal standard document to which many of the
Reformed churches
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 Calv ...
subscribe. The Confession forms part of the
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 ...
of the Reformed Church, which are still the official subordinate standards of the Dutch Reformed Church. The confession's chief author was
Guido de Brès
Guido de Bres (also known as Guido de Bray,L.A. van Langeraad, ''Guido de Bray Zijn Leven en Werken'', Zierikzee: S.Ochtman en Zoon 1884 p.9, 13 Guy de Bray and Guido de Brès, 1522 – 31 May 1567) was a Walloon pastor, Protestant reformer and ...
, a preacher of the
Reformed churches
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 Calv ...
of the Netherlands, who died a martyr to the faith in 1567, during the Dutch Reformation. De Brès first wrote the Belgic Confession in 1559.
Terminology
The name ''Belgic Confession'' follows the seventeenth-century Latin designation ''Confessio Belgica''. ''
Belgica'' referred to the whole of the
Low Countries
The term Low Countries, also known as the Low Lands ( nl, de Lage Landen, french: les Pays-Bas, lb, déi Niddereg Lännereien) and historically called the Netherlands ( nl, de Nederlanden), Flanders, or Belgica, is a coastal lowland region in N ...
, both north and south, which today is divided into the
Netherlands
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, image_map =
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, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
and
Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
.
Authorship and revisions
De Brès was a Presbyterian and a Calvinist, and the initial text he prepared was influenced by the ''
Gallic Confession The French Confession of Faith (1559) or Confession de La Rochelle or Gallic Confession of Faith or La Rochelle Confession of Faith is a Reformed confession of faith.
Under the sponsorship of Geneva a Calvinist church was organised in Paris N.V. ...
''. De Brès showed it in draft to others, including
Hadrian à Saravia,
Herman Moded, and
Godfried van Wingen (Wingius). It was revised by
Franciscus Junius, who abridged the sixteenth article and sent a copy to Geneva and other churches for approval; and was presented to
Philip II of Spain in 1562, in the hope of securing toleration for his Protestant subjects in the Low Countries.
In 1566, the text of this confession was revised at a synod held at
Antwerp. It was adopted by national synods held during the last three decades of the sixteenth century.
The Belgic Confession became the basis of a counter to the
Arminian controversy that arose in the following century and
Arminius opposed the notion that it could be used against his theology. Furthermore, contrary to popular thought and allegations to the contrary, Arminius maintained his affirmation of the Belgic Confession until his death in October 1609. The text was revised again at the
Synod of Dort in 1618-19, was included in 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� ...
'' (1618–19), and adopted as one of the doctrinal standards to which all office-bearers and members of the Reformed churches were required to subscribe. This revision was drafted in the French language (1618–19).
Composition
The Belgic Confession consists of 37 articles which deal with the doctrines of God (1-2, 8-13), Scripture (3-7), humanity (14), sin (15), Christ (18-21), salvation (16-17, 22-26), the Church (27-36), and the end times (37).
Editions and translations
The first French edition is extant in four printings, two from 1561 and two from 1562.
The Synod of Antwerp of September 1580 ordered a copy of the revised text of Junius to be made for its archives, to be signed by every new minister; this manuscript has always been regarded in the Belgic churches as the authentic document. The first Latin translation was made from Junius's text by
Theodore Beza
Theodore Beza ( la, Theodorus Beza; french: Théodore de Bèze or ''de Besze''; June 24, 1519 – October 13, 1605) was a French Calvinist Protestant theologian, reformer and scholar who played an important role in the Protestant Reformation ...
, or under his direction, for the ''
Harmonia Confessionum'' (Geneva, 1581), and passed into the first edition of the ''Corpus et Syntagma Confessionum'' (Geneva, 1612). A second Latin translation was prepared by
Festus Hommius for the Synod of Dort, 1618, revised and approved 1619; and from it was made the English translation in use in the
Reformed (Dutch) Church in America. It appeared in Greek 1623, 1653, and 1660, at
Utrecht
Utrecht ( , , ) is the fourth-largest city and a municipality of the Netherlands, capital and most populous city of the province of Utrecht. It is located in the eastern corner of the Randstad conurbation, in the very centre of mainland Net ...
.
See also
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Marks of the Church (Protestantism)
References
Sources
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External links
The Belgic Confession published by the
Christian Reformed Church in North America.
{{Authority control
History of Christianity in Belgium
Three Forms of Unity
1561 works
Protestantism in Belgium
Reformed confessions of faith
Protestantism in the Netherlands