| Remonstrants | |
|---|---|
| Classification | Protestant |
| Theology | Arminianism |
| Origin | early 17th century Netherlands |
| Separated from | Dutch Reformed Church |
| Official website | www |
TheRemonstrants (or theRemonstrant Brotherhood) is aProtestant movement that split from theDutch Reformed Church in the early 17th century. The early Remonstrants supportedJacobus Arminius, and after his death, continued to maintain his original views calledArminianism against the proponents ofCalvinism. Condemned by thesynod of Dort (1618–1619), the Remonstrants remained a small minority in theNetherlands. In the middle of the 19th century, the Remonstrant Brotherhood was influenced by the liberal Dutch theological movement.
In formulatingArminianism,Jacobus Arminius disagreed withCalvin, especially onpredestination. He defended free examination as superior to the doctrines of established churches.
In 1610, Arminius' followers presented to theStates of Holland and Friesland theFive Articles of Remonstrance formulating their points of disagreement withCalvinism as adopted by theDutch Reformed Church.[1] Supporters of Arminius were called "Remonstrants", but they were also called "Arminians".[citation needed]
Their adversaries, inspired byFranciscus Gomarus, became known as Gomarists orCounter-Remonstrants.[1] Although theStates General issued an edict tolerating both parties and forbidding further dispute, the conflict continued[1] and became linked topolitical conflicts in theDutch Republic. The Remonstrants were assailed both by personal enemies and by the political weapons ofMaurice of Orange.[1] Their foremost ally,Johan van Oldenbarnevelt, was executed, and other leaders were imprisoned. In Amsterdam, as in various other cities, the city government was purged of Oldenbarnevelt supporters;Jacob Dircksz de Graeff andCornelis Hooft fell victim to this action.
In 1618–1619 theSynod of Dordrecht, after expelling the thirteenArminian pastors headed bySimon Episcopius, established the victory of the Calvinist school.[1] It drew up ninety-three canonical rules, and confirmed the authority of theBelgic Confession and theHeidelberg Catechism.[1] The judgement of the synod was enforced through the deposition and in some cases banishment of Remonstrant ministers.[1] In this context, owing to the lack of preachers, there originated in Warmond a movement in favor of the lay sermon, the adherents of which founded the Society ofCollegiants.[2] An exile community of Remonstrants was founded inAntwerp in 1619. In 1621 they were allowed to settle inSchleswig, where they built the town ofFriedrichstadt.[1]
The doctrine of the Remonstrants was embodied in 1621 in aConfession[3] written by Episcopius, their major theologian. ThisConfession serves as a base for the Remonstrant church since his return to the Netherlands in 1626. It confirms the opinion of the remonstrants already expressed in 1618.[4]
Jan Uytenbogaert gave to the Remonstrants acatechism and regulated their church order.[1] Their seminary inAmsterdam had distinguished pupils, includingCurcellaeus,Limborch,Wetstein, andLe Clerc. Their school oftheology, which grew more liberal and even rationalistic, forcefully debated the officialDutch Reformed state church and other Christian denominations.[1]
After the death of Maurice of Orange in 1625, some exiles returned. The government became convinced that they posed no danger to the state, and in 1630 they were formally allowed to reside again in all parts of the Republic.[1] They were not, however, officially allowed to build churches until the establishment of theBatavian Republic in 1795. Until then they held their services in so-calledSchuilkerken (house churches).[5]
In the mid-19th century, the Remonstrant Brotherhood was influenced by liberalism,[6][7] which in the Netherlands was embodied byPetrus Hofstede de Groot (1802–1886).[citation needed] His theology had a wide audience in Europe, which is characteristic of the romantic phase ofChristian humanism; in the Netherlands, this line of thought has been represented by the "theologians of Groningen" since 1830.
Most of the early Remonstrants followed classical Arminianism.[8] However, they are not the only Protestants who can be considered Arminian or who are called Arminians. Arminianism is a minority within theReformed confession, but it really belongs to the larger, cross-denominational current ofsynergism, that is to say, historic, majority Christianity. As Arminianism, it made inroads into theChurch of England. As a broader synergism, it appears inMethodism, theGeneral Baptists, theAdventist Church, theHoliness movement,Pentecostalism, theCharismatic movement, and a number of otherProtestant denominations.
The Remonstrant Brotherhood continues as a church in theNetherlands. The Remonstrants first received official recognition in 1795. Their chief congregation has been inRotterdam.[9]
In 2016, the Remonstrant Brotherhood has about 5,000 members and "friends", in more than 40 congregations in the Netherlands,[10] and one congregation in Friedrichstadt, in northern Germany (2008).[11]
The Remonstrant Brotherhood ofThe Netherlands keeps fellowship with theEuropean Liberal Protestant Network, and is a full, charter member of theWorld Alliance of Reformed Churches. It is also a member of theCommunion of Protestant Churches in Europe.
In line with the progressive views on religion, Remonstrants have been blessingsame-sex partnerships on an equal footing as different sex weddings from 1986 onwards (church weddings have no legal status in the Netherlands, where legally acknowledged civil same-sex marriages became possible in 2001).[12][13] In this the Remonstrants were the first Christian church in the world to bless same-sex relationships similar to other relations.[14]
Remonstrants place big emphasis on personal faith and are not in agreement with one another on questions of faith and social issues. They consider that the message of theGospel can not be separated from true choices in the struggle to live together, on the road to a world with peace and justice.[11] What binds them is the Statement of Principle:
The Remonstrant Church is a community of faith which, rooted in the gospel of Jesus Christ, and true to its principle of freedom and tolerance, seeks to worship and serve God.
In addition to the Statement of Principle, most contemporary Remonstrants write their own declaration or profession of faith when they become a member of the community. The brotherhood did express at three times in their history the faith they share in a confessional statement, in 1621, 1940 and 2006. Remonstrants however, being anon-creedal denomination, consider no confession to have indisputable authority.[12]
This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Remonstrants".Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 23 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 82.
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