The 1834 Dutch Reformed Church split, or the Secession of 1834 (), known simply as ''Afscheiding'' ("Separation, Secession, Split"), refers to a split that occurred within 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 traditional denomination of the Dutch royal famil ...
in 1834.
[Presbyterian Reformed Churches in America website, ''Chapter 49 - Hendrik De Cock: Reformed Reformer'']
/ref> The federation of churches resulting from the split, the Christian Reformed Churches
The Christian Reformed Churches in the Netherlands () is a Protestant church in the Netherlands.
History
The original name of the church was Christian Reformed Church in the Netherlands (''Christelijke Gereformeerde Kerk in Nederland'', CG ...
, still exists in the Netherlands
, Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...
.[Christian Reformed Church of North America website, ''History'']
/ref> The Free Reformed Churches are the North American
North America is a continent in the Northern and Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Caribbean Sea, and to the sou ...
counterpart.[Free Reformed Churches of North America website, ''Our History'']
/ref>
Leading up to Secession
The Secession of 1834 began in Ulrum, a town in the north of the Dutch province of Groningen.[ Christian Study Library website, ''Rev. H. De Cock and the Secession'' (1989)]
/ref> Before the secession, their pastor, Reverend Hendrik de Cock
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 convictions.
Hendrik de Cock protested aga ...
had been forbidden by the government to preach and had orders not to warn people against what he believed to be the erroneous teachings of some of his colleagues. Hendrik, along with other ministers, publicly opposed some of the heresies that were being tolerated by the churches. They also rejected the introduction of new hymns into worship in place of the use of the Psalms
The Book of Psalms ( , ; ; ; ; , in Islam also called Zabur, ), also known as the Psalter, is the first book of the third section of the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible) called ('Writings'), and a book of the Old Testament.
The book is an anthology of B ...
. He was also forbidden to baptize the children of believers who had refused to have their children baptized own ministers who they believed to be unsound in the faith.
Outcome
On 14 October 1834, a large majority of the congregation of the Dutch Reformed Church in Ulrum, signed the Act of Secession and Return" and broke away from the State Church.
/ref>
The Secession would play a role in the 1857 Dutch Reformed Church split between the Reformed Church in America
The Reformed Church in America (RCA) is a mainline Reformed Protestant denomination in Canada and the United States. It has about 82,865 members. From its beginning in 1628 until 1819, it was the North American branch of the Dutch Reformed ...
and the Christian Reformed Church in North America
The Christian Reformed Church in North America (CRCNA or CRC) is a Protestant Calvinist Christian denomination in the United States and Canada. Having roots in the Dutch Reformed Church of the Netherlands, the Christian Reformed Church was found ...
. There were three major principles that went along with the split. They withdrew from the "false" church, gave loyalty to the three reforms and the Order of Dort, and wanted to make connections with other churches with the same values and beliefs. Various churches came and left the movement, but the ones that stayed united under the Christian Reform Church.
Many of those trying to secede were treated poorly so they looked for a way to partake in their religion in peace. Some reformers decided it was time to move and so migrated to America,
See also
* 1857 Dutch Reformed Church split
* 1886 Dutch Reformed Church split The 1886 Dutch Reformed Church split, also known as the Doleantie (from Latin ''dolere'', 'to feel sorrow'), was the name of a prominent schism in the Dutch Reformed Church (''Nederlands Hervormde Kerk'') that took place in 1886 and was led by a re ...
Footnotes
{{Authority control
Secession of 1834
1834 in the Netherlands
Schisms in Christianity
1834 in Christianity
History of Reformed Christianity in the Netherlands