Theological University of the Reformed Churches () is an academic

theological Theology is the study of religious belief from a religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of an ...

seminary A seminary, school of theology, theological college, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called seminarians) in scripture and theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as cle ...

in the Dutch city of

Utrecht Utrecht ( ; ; ) is the List of cities in the Netherlands by province, fourth-largest city of the Netherlands, as well as the capital and the most populous city of the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of Utrecht (province), Utrecht. The ...

(formerly Kampen). It was founded on 6 December 1854 in Kampen. The university primarily caters to ministerial education. In order to be an ordained minister in the Reformed Churches a six-year training including a Bachelor of Theology (BA) and Master of Divinity (MA) are required. Next to these programs the seminary offers one-year master programmes (MA) in several disciplines. Most MA-programmes can be taken in English. Since 2015 the university also offers a full English programme: Master of Intercultural Reformed Theology, which attracts International and Dutch students. Especially the MA in 21st Century Mission under the supervision of

Stefan Paas Stefan Paas (born 17 September 17 1969) is a Dutch theologian and missiologist. He is Director of the Centre for Church and Mission in the West, Professor of Missiology at Theological University Kampen, and J. H. Bavinck Professor of Missiology ...

is a popular programme. Academic research is carried out by the faculty, several post-doctoral fellows, and PhD-students. The doctoral course offered by the university is typically a four-year program.

History

In 1854, a Theological School () was founded by the Christian Reformed Church in the Netherlands, a church resulting from a schism in 1834 from the mainline Reformed Church in the Netherlands (Hervormde Kerk), to provide for education for its ministers. The name was changed to Theological College ("Theologische Hogeschool") in 1939. In 1892, a large part of the Christian Reformed Church in the Netherlands merged with another group split from the mainstream

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 ...

to form the

Reformed Churches in the Netherlands The Reformed Churches in the Netherlands (, abbreviated ''Gereformeerde kerk'') was the second largest Protestant church in the Netherlands and one of the two major Calvinist denominations along with the Dutch Reformed Church since 1892 unti ...

, which founded a new

Calvinist Reformed Christianity, also called Calvinism, is a major branch of Protestantism that began during the 16th-century Protestant Reformation. In the modern day, it is largely represented by the Continental Reformed Protestantism, Continenta ...

university in

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...

: the

Vrije Universiteit The (abbreviated as ''VU Amsterdam'' or simply ''VU'' when in context) is a public research university in Amsterdam, Netherlands, founded in 1880. The VU Amsterdam is one of two large, publicly funded research universities in the city, the othe ...

. This university also has a theological faculty, but the Theological School at Kampen remained a separate institution. In 1944, another schism within the Reformed Churches in the Netherlands occurred, called the Liberation (), which resulted in the

Reformed Churches in the Netherlands (Liberated) The Reformed Churches in the Netherlands (Liberated) () was an orthodox Calvinist federation of churches. This church body arose in 1944 out of the so-called Liberation (') from the Reformed Churches in the Netherlands, when many pastors and me ...

. This new church also had a need for its own ministerial education institute, and so a new Theological College of the Reformed Churches (Liberated) was founded from parts of the Theological College. In 1986, both colleges became universities when a change in the Dutch

university A university () is an educational institution, institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly ...

polytechnic A polytechnic is an educational institution that primarily focuses on vocational education, applied sciences, and career pathways. They are sometimes referred to as ''institutes of technology'', ''vocational institutes'', or ''universities of app ...

system was carried out. Notable faculty of the seminary in the past include systematic theologians

Herman Bavinck Herman Bavinck (13 December 1854 – 29 July 1921) was a Dutch Calvinist theologian and churchman. He was a significant scholar in the Calvinist tradition, alongside Abraham Kuyper, B. B. Warfield, and Geerhardus Vos. Biography Backgro ...

(1854–1921) and

Klaas Schilder Klaas Schilder (19 December 1890 – 23 March 1952) was a Dutch Neo-Calvinist theologian and professor in the Reformed Churches in the Netherlands (Dutch ''Gereformeerde Kerken in Nederland'' or GKN) and later in the Reformed Churches in the N ...

(1890–1952), and more recently the New Testament scholar Jakob van Bruggen (born 1936). In 2021, the Minister of Education, Culture and Science approved the intention of university's board to move the study programs to

in process of establishing a Theological University there. The decision was followed by a positive advice from the Higher Education Efficiency Committee giving the board six months to make a final decision to establish the university in Utrecht.

Notable people

* Benne Holwerda * Rikko Voorberg, theologian and minister

References

External links

*
Official website
{{authority control Universities in the Netherlands Universities and colleges established in 1944 1944 establishments in the Netherlands Education in Overijssel Kampen, Overijssel Protestant universities and colleges in Europe Seminaries and theological colleges in the Netherlands