The Great Synod and the church order
This article traces the development and adoption of the Church Order at the Synod of Dort (1618-1619), examining how it built upon earlier ecclesiastical work from the 1586 synod in 's-Gravenhage and the 1568 Articles of Wesel. The author demonstrates how this Church Order served as a unifying instrument for Reformed church governance throughout the Dutch churches during a critical period of doctrinal and ecclesiastical consolidation.
One of the lesser known yet very important labors of the great Synod of Dordt was to adopt a Church Order to unite all the Dutch Reformed churches. This was done at one of the later sessions of the synod. It was not until the 137th sitting of the Synod, in early May 1619, that the Remonstrants were finally condemned as heretics and perturbateurs of the state and church. A list of preachers from the Remonstrant camp was drawn up, together with the Formula of Subscription to which every...
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