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| Reformed Church of France | |
|---|---|
 Logo of the Reformed Church of France, featuring theburning bush and theHuguenot cross. The script in the left side of the bush reads, "Exode III.2 Flagror Non Consumor" (Exodus 3:2 Burning, yet not consumed) | |
| Classification | Protestant |
| Orientation | Calvinist |
| Polity | Presbyterian |
| Associations | World Alliance of Reformed Churches, World Council of Churches, Protestant Federation of France |
| Origin | 1559; merged in 2013 with theEvangelical Lutheran Church in France to form theUnited Protestant Church of France |
| Separated from | Catholic Church |
| Members | 300,000 at the time of merger |
| Official website | https://www.eglise-protestante-unie.fr/ |
TheReformed Church of France (French:Église réformée de France,ERF) was the mainProtestantdenomination in France with aCalvinist orientation that could be traced back directly toJohn Calvin. In 2013, the Church merged with theEvangelical Lutheran Church in France to form theUnited Protestant Church of France.[1]
The church was a member of theProtestant Federation of France (Fédération protestante de France), theWorld Communion of Reformed Churches and theWorld Council of Churches.
The church had approximately 300,000 members at the time of merger, distributed in a somewhat unequal fashion throughout French metropolitan territory, with the exception ofAlsace-Moselle and thePays de Montbéliard, as theProtestant Reformed Church of Alsace and Lorraine brings together most of the localCalvinists there. The church consists of 400 parishes, organised in 50 presbyteries (consistoires) and eight administrative regions.
Emerging from theReformation in the 16th century, thereformed churches in France were organised independently and, by force of circumstance,clandestinely. The first national synod of the Reformed Churches was held in 1559; the first formal confession of faith, theConfession of La Rochelle, was composed in 1571. Recognised but restricted by theEdict of Nantes in 1598, the last official synod met in 1659; subsequently, the churches were suppressed in France by theEdict of Fontainebleau of 1685, which revoked the Edict of Nantes.
The revocation of the Edict of Nantes began a period of systematic state persecution known inFrench as theDésert (wilderness), an allusion to the sufferings of the Hebrews when theywandered in the wilderness following the flight from Egypt. This was associated with massemigration to other European countries, North America, and South Africa (les pays de Refuge). In 1787, theEdict of Versailles, issued byLouis XVI, ended most legal discrimination against non-Roman Catholics – including Huguenots. In 1802, the church was recognised in accordance with theOrganic Articles (les Articles organiques) which followedNapoleon Bonaparte'sconcordat with theRoman Catholic Church. This permitted a local and non-national organisation of the church, which did not reflect its traditional organisation (synods, participation of lay members in the pastoral organisation of the Church, etc.)
In the 19th century, the Awakening (le Réveil) and other religious movements influenced the French and European Reformed churches; this was also accompanied by division within French Protestantism. In 1871 the Reformed congregations in German-annexed Alsace and the newly formedBezirk Lothringen ofLorraine were separated from the Reformed Church in what remained of France. The consistorial districts of the conquered territories then formed the still-existingProtestant Reformed Church of Alsace and Lorraine (EPRAL). At the time of the promulgation of theSeparation of Church and State in 1905, which did away with theétablissements publics du culte (religiousstatutory corporations) leaving the status of areligious association, there were no less than four groupings of the Reformed Church: the Evangelical Reformed Churches (les Églises réformées évangéliques), the United Reformed Churches (les Églises réformées unies), the Free Reformed Churches (les Églises réformées libres), and the Methodist Church (l'Église méthodiste).
The horrors of theFirst World War, combined with new departures in theology (in particular the thought ofKarl Barth), allowed for a partial restoration of a national grouping: the Reformed Church of France (L’Église Réformée de France, ÉRF), established in 1938. However, some Reformed congregations preferred not to merge and formtheir separate union since. The ÉRF is the largest of the four French Protestant churches and is in full communion with the other three (which are also members of theWorld Council of Churches): the Evangelical Lutheran Church of France (l'Église évangélique luthérienne de France) and in Alsace-Moselle the EPRAL and the LutheranProtestant Church of Augsburg Confession of Alsace and Lorraine.
In June 2012, it was announced that the Reformed Church of France and the Evangelical Lutheran Church of France would unite to form theUnited Protestant Church of France (Eglise Protestante unie de France or EPUF).[2][3]
The 30th GeneralSynod held 1872-1873 was the first nationalsynod held in 213 years. The General Synod arrived at a new confession of faith, the main principles of which were rejected by a significant minority. The official practice of the Calvinist faith in France distanced itself from stricter interpretations. The current Reformed Church adopted liberal currents in Calvinist theology includingpietism,neo-Lutheranism,Methodism, social Christianity, etc. The opportunities, substance and limits of theological pluralism are set out in the 1936 Declaration of Faith (which is read at the opening of all synods, adherence to which is required of all pastors licensed to preach and the laity who express membership of the Calvinist church)
The church was organised according to aPresbyterian synodal system, with an annual nationalSynod, composed mainly of representatives from each of the eight administrative regions with equal numbers of clergy and laity in attendance. The president of the National Council (Conseil national) was elected every three years by the Synod.
The Reformed Church in France was involved in the work of other Protestant churches in France, through its membership of theProtestant Federation of France (Fédération protestante de France)
In 2005, Pope Benedict sent a message to the national synod of the Reformed Church of France, which thanked the Pontiff for this "gesture of consideration".
In common with other churches, the Reformed Church in France operated a missionary service (le Défap). The mission service supported reformed churches in Africa and Oceania, primarily those arising from the work of the now defunctParis Evangelical Missionary Society (Société des missions évangéliques de Paris)
Training for the ministry took place in the Institut Protestant de Théologie, which formed part of the Protestant theology faculties of the Universities of Paris and Montpellier.
The church also operated a distance education programme for lay members called Théovie.
Until recently, theHuguenot cross was not an official symbol of the Reformed Church of France. Rather it has served as a sign of popular recognition. The official logo of the former reformed churches was the "burning bush". A new logo of the Reformed Church of France was adopted, a stylised representation of the burning bush with the Huguenot cross as an insert and the Latin phraseFlagror Non Consumor (I am burned, I am not consumed) taken from Exodus 3:2,[4] "...and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed."
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