REFORMED CHURCH. 



333 



States. This school has received for buildings, endow- 

 ments, and other purposes, from the late Jaiues Suy- 

 daiu and Gardner A. Sage, of New York city, the suui 

 of $500,0<X>. The Reformed Dutch Cliuivh \vus 

 uriginally confined to the provinces of New York and 

 New Jersey, with the exception of a few churches in 

 Eastern Pennsylvania. While extension was for a 

 long time impracticable, the scattered pastorlcss 

 churches were well cared for. Some missionary work 

 was done quite early, however, and a few churches 

 were established in Canada which were after a time 

 abandoned. About 1835 churches began to be estab- 

 lished in the Western States, and soon a large colony 

 . emigrated from the Netherlands under the lead of the 

 Rev. Dr. A. C. Van Raalte, and settled at Holland, 

 Mich., and connected themselves with the Reformed 

 Dutch Church in America. Immigration has continued 

 and many churches using the Hollandish language 

 have been established. The church has made consid- 

 erable progress farther west, even as far as Dakota. 

 At Holland, Mich., Hope College and the Western 

 Theological Seminary have been established. The 

 Particular Synod of Chicago embraces 104 churches 

 and 78 ministers. 



DOCTRINAL STANDARDS. While this church 

 strongly insists that the word of God is the sole, 

 authoritative, and infallible rule of faith and practice, 

 yet symbols of doctrine have been adopted as expres- 

 sive of the views entertained of truth, and as bonds of 

 church fellowship. Subscription to these symbols is 

 required of all the ministers. They are 1. The Kelpie 

 Cuiifetiion, composed by Guido de Bres, the Belgian 

 martyr, consisting of 37 articles, adopted by the Synod 

 of Antwerp in 1566, and always retained in the Re- 

 formed Churches of both the Netherlands and Amer- 

 ica. 2. The Heidelberg Catechism, which was prepared 

 at Heidelberg by Olevianus and Ursinus in 1 563 by 

 the order of Frederick III. , elector of the Palatinate. 

 This catechism was at once received with great favor 

 by the reformed of every country in Europe, and was 

 translated into many languages. It is an experimental 

 and confessional rather than dogmatical catechism. 

 An abridgment of it, called "A Compendium of the 

 Christian Religion," was made by Rev. 11. Faukelius, 

 of Middleburg, Zecland, and was adopted by the 

 Synod of Dort as a manual for the instruction of can- 

 didates for the Lord's Supper. 3. The Canon* of the 

 Synod of Dordrecht. These were adopted in 1619, and 

 are explanatory of the statements of the confession of 

 faith and catechism, touching the five points in contro- 

 versy between the Remonstrants and Contra-Remon- 

 Ktrains, or Anninians and Calvinists. and are condem- 

 natory of the views of the former. The doctrinal system 

 of the Reformed Church in America may be desig- 

 nated as Calvinism of the moderate, iiifra-lapsarian 

 type of the Synod of Dordrecht. 



FORM op GOVERNMENT. This is Presbyterian, 

 that is, the government is in the hand." of presbyters 

 or elders who compose the ecclesiastical bodies of va- 

 rious grades. 1. The Consixtory is the governing bodv 

 in the local church. It is composed of the pastor (if 

 there be one) and elders and deacons chosen or ap- 

 proved by the communicants. Of this body the pastor 

 18 president tx officio, and he has all the rights of a 

 ruling elder. A church may appoint as many elders 

 and deacons as it may think expedient, and it is not 

 necessary that they should be equal in number. The 

 elders with the pastor have sole charge of all the 

 spiritual interests of the congregation,_ and are the 

 spiritual court answering to the session in the Presby- 

 terian Church. In the admission, dismission, and dis- 

 cipline of members, and in choosing delegates from 

 their own number to the classis or next higher court, 

 the elders only have a voice. To them belongs the 

 oversight of the flock ; they are to assist the pastor in 

 family visitations, and they are especially charged to 

 guard the flock against ministers who teach false doc- 

 trines or lead immoral lives. It belongs to the 



j deacons to care for the poor, and especially for tlio 

 poor members of the flock. They are to collect and 

 distribute the alms, and visit and comfort the needy 



I and the goffering. While these two offices are thus 

 distinct, yet the elders and deacons are joined together 

 in one board and as such ''have an equal voice in 

 whatever relates to the temporalities of the church, to 

 the calling or dismission of a minister, or the choice of 

 their own successors." Usually tint; body is the incor- 

 porated board of trustees for the holdiug and man- 

 agement of all the property of the c-hun-li. Elders 

 and deacons are elected ibr a term of two years, and 

 half of the places become vacant annually. A person 

 may be re-elected immediately and repeatedly. This 

 system of a limited term of office was adopted origi- 

 nally by all the Reformed churches of the Presbyterian 

 order in Europe. It is claimed that it has great and 

 manifest advantages, and many Presbyterian churches 

 in America and in increasing numbers have adopted 

 it. There are three modes of electing elders and dea- 

 cons, a. The consistory chooses and gives opportu- 

 nity to the members to object, b. The consistory 

 nominates a double number and the communicants 

 elect, c. The communicants both nominate and elect. 

 Elders and deacons who are out of active service form 

 an advising body called the Great Consistory, who 

 may be consulted when a minister is to be called, or 

 when other matters of peculiar importance occur re- 

 lating to the peace and welfare of the whole congre- 

 gation. 



'2. Tlie Cldssis is the next higher body and corre- 

 sponds to the Presbytery of the Presbyterian Church. 

 It is composed of the pastors of the churches in a 

 certain district, an elder delegated by each church, and 

 such ministers without charge as have been received 

 by the classis. The classis examines candidates ibr the 

 ministry, approves calls, ordains, dismisses, and de- 

 poses ministers, forms new congregations, and is a 

 court of appeal from sentences of the consistory. The 

 classis meets twice a year, and sends a report on the 

 state of religion to the Particular Synod. It has a 

 system of oversight of the churches, and annually 

 makes inquiry whether ministers and churches observe 

 certain constitutional requirements. 



3. The Particular Synod is composed of a certain 

 number of ministers ana elders delegated by the classes. 

 It has power to form new classes and to transfer a con- 

 gregation from one classis to another. It is a court of 

 appeal from decisions of the classes. It meets annu- 

 ally and reports to the General Synod. 



4. The General fiyntxl is the highest judicatory and 

 represents the whole church, meets annually, and is 

 composed of an equal number of ministers and elders 

 delegated to it. It is the final court of appeal from 

 decisions of the lower assemblies : it has supreme con- 

 trol of the theological schools ; it maintains corre- 

 spondence with the highest judicatories of other denom- 

 inations, and it exercises a general superintendence 

 over the spiritual interests and concerns of the whole 

 church. The powers of all these bodies are fully and 

 carefully defined by the constitution of the church. 



CULTUS. All the branches of the Reformed 

 Church in Europe possessed liturgies and used them. 

 The Reformed Church of the Netherlands has her 

 liturgy and used it, allowing, at the same time, con- 

 siderable liberty to the officiating minister. The church 

 in America, of course, possessed and used their liturgy, 

 which has in the course of time been somewhat modified, 

 particularly by the introduction of some new optional 

 forms. The forms of prayer for ordinary public wor- 

 ship are not used by tbe ministers except as models 

 for their guidance in composing their own prayers, 

 which work every one is expected to do to the oest of 

 his ability. The constitution, besides establishing an 

 order of worship, requires some forms to be used, and 

 their use, therefore, is universal, viz.: ]. For the bap- 

 tism of infants. 2. For the baptism of adults. 'J. 

 For the administration of the Lord's Supper. 4. For 



