The Spirit of Labadism

Jean de Labadie (1610-1674), the French Jesuit-turned-Reformed theologian, exemplified a spirit that pervades even today. After leaving the Roman Catholic Church and embracing the doctrines found in John Calvin's Institutes, he protested against the corruptions found within the Dutch Reformed Church, issuing an appeal to Christians to separate themselves from her and to join his "house church." The appeal was tempting to such a prominent theologian as Wilhelmus à Brakel. In W. Fieret's biographical sketch of à Brakel, which highlights what he describes as "the Labadistic spirit of separatism," we learn more about the intersection these two men and what it meant for the Reformed Church.

The Struggle against the Labadists

During his tenure in Friesland, only one book authored by à Brakel was published; however, during his tenure in Rotterdam many would follow. A year and one half after his installation in Rotterdam, à Brakel “went to battle” against the Labadists. In two elaborate letters to a circle of friends in Harlingen he delineated his objections against this sect. It is probable that these friends had asked him for advice. In all honesty he wrote that during his tenure in Stavoren he had been sympathetic towards the Labadists and had seriously considered joining them. Yet he had wanted to know more of de Labadie and his views and therefore had traveled to Amsterdam where the Labadists had settled at that time.

He had various conversations with Anna Maria van Schurman, a very gifted woman who prior to her transfer to the Labadists had many contacts with the ministers of the Second Reformation—among others with [Gisbertus] Voetius. à Brakel also had extensive conversations with de Labadie himself. In spite of the attractive things he had heard, he was not convinced. De Labadie then gave him the advice to lay this matter before the Lord Himself and to pray for wisdom, doing so in the greatest possible solitude. à Brakel, according to this letter, had followed his advice. “Very early in the morning I went into my garden and remained there all day until late in the evening. I fasted, prayed, and supplicated to understand the will of God. I also read, and after considerable time had passed, the Lord showed me very clearly from His Word and gave a clear impression in my heart that I was in the right way, and that their way (that is, of the Labadists) was a departure from the truth.” Nevertheless, it so much appealed to à Brakel that he continually prayed, asking the Lord as it were for permission to join this group. The result was that the Lord showed him with increasing clarity the error of the Labadists while rebuking à Brakel at the same time. It was as if the Lord said: “Did I not reveal this to you? Why then do you persevere?” Subsequent to this à Brakel firmly resolved to remain in the Reformed Church. He continued to thank the Lord for having prevented him from taking a wrong step.

In what did the attraction of Jean de Labadie and his followers consist, so that even a staunch Reformed man as Wilhelmus à Brakel was strongly attracted by it? If he, as he said himself, vacillated to such a degree, people with much less education and experience must have had strife to a far greater degree. In his second letter à Brakel primarily addressed the regenerate and advised them in the strongest possible terms not to join the Labadists. It must indeed be evident that the conduct of Jean de Labadie and his followers caused much agitation in the church. However, à Brakel was not the only minister who felt attracted toward this revivalist.

Who was de Labadie and what did he teach? This Frenchman, who had been trained as a Jesuit, left the monastery in 1639; he was twenty-nine years old at that time and until 1650 traveled around as an itinerant preacher. In that year he joined the Reformed Church of Montauban, one of the Huguenot cities. He became the minister of this church and also taught at the Academy. From 1659 to 1666 Geneva was his residence. With great zeal he preached for hours about the great ideal that had to be transformed into reality: a pure church in which the Christian religion would be practiced as strictly as possible. This engendered the idea that only true believers, that is, only those who were partakers of the Spirit of Christ, constituted the pure church. Thus, within the confines of the visible church as institution, a church of the regenerate came into existence. De Labadie organized “conventicles” of true believers and thus attempted to lead the church back to the original manifestation of the Christian church in the first century—that is, as he perceived it to be.

The ideas which de Labadie proclaimed in a captivating and convincing manner—he could preach for four hours at a stretch without his hearers losing interest—met with both approbation and resistance. The proponents of these ideas were so convinced of their correctness that many could no longer be convinced to change their minds. Opponents, however, saw so much danger in these ideas that they opposed them with all their might. Therefore, there came unrest wherever de Labadie resided for some time. De Labadie‟s acceptance of a call to the French congregation in Middelburg signaled the termination of a period of great agitation for the Reformed Church in Geneva.

When he came to the Republic in 1666, he traveled on to Utrecht. The Friends of Utrecht—to which belonged, among others, Voetius and [Jodocus] van Lodenstein—gave him a friendly reception. After having been installed in Middelburg, Koelman from Sluis went to hear him. de Labadie had a tremendous reputation. The same matters which the representatives of the Second Reformation were pursuing were also his objectives. He warned strongly against the laxness of many Christians, the desecration of the Sabbath, the lack of spirituality and morality displayed by many ministers, the non-Reformed and often coarse lifestyle of many church members, etc. His calls to prayer and fasting had effect; and especially due to his many family visitations the results of his activity were noticeable everywhere. Nevertheless, there came discord also in Middelburg, and after many difficulties de Labadie, with a group of followers, moved to nearby Veere. Many supporters from Middelburg went to hear the deposed minister. The parliament of Zeeland intervened at last and expelled de Labadie. When the use of force was imminent, the exiled minister took refuge in Amsterdam.

In the meantime, sympathy for him among the Reformed had waned, for he had severed himself from the Reformed Church. He viewed the circle of his followers as a community of the regenerate who had left the worldly national church and had joined the new “house church” of de Labadie. Elsewhere in the Republic similar house churches came into existence as well. Amsterdam evidently was not the terminus for this group; they crossed the border into Germany, and, after roaming about, settled in Wiewerd, a village south of Leeuwarden. The influential Cornelis van Aerssen had made the castle “Walta Estate” available. De Labadie himself had died in the meantime. Peter Yvon, due to his organizational talent, had succeeded in giving the congregation a solid footing. Around 1680 his following in Wiewerd consisted of about three hundred people.

The Labadists were all dressed in the same handmade, modest clothing. As a community they farmed the soil surrounding the castle. Dairy farming was also a means whereby they supported themselves. During meals there was singing and prayer and one or more persons would speak a word. Worldly conversation was held to a minimum; they preferred to share their spiritual experiences. These experiences, according to the Labadists, could occur outside the context of the Word of God. Especially during and after communion services members of the congregation would come into a state of ecstasy, believing the Holy Spirit to be working in them. They would embrace each other, skip and dance, and mutually entertain themselves in spiritual Christian love.

After Voetius and [Jacobus] Koelman had recognized the dangers of Labadism, they warned the Reformed against this error. Koelman did this in his work Historisch verhaal der Labadisten [Historical Account of the Labadists]. At the end of this work he printed the two letters of à Brakel. Yvon reacted to the contents of these letters by way of a brochure. In this manner à Brakel also became involved in the battle against the Labadists. His best known work, in which these letters were included again, was Leer en Leydinge der Labadisten [Doctrine and Government of the Labadists].

Rev. à Brakel, with the Labadists, confessed the corruption (“de verdorvenheyt”) of the church; she was corrupt from the head to the sole of the foot. The field of the Lord was filled with weeds and His threshing floor was filled with chaff. The vineyard of the Lord had become a wilderness; thorns and thistles were growing in it. After having enumerated a variety of sins which were committed by members of the church, giving a description of the government as not manifesting itself as the guardian of the church, and deploring the fact that so many ministers proved to be unfaithful shepherds, à Brakel writes: “Who would not weep when he thinks upon Zion and perceives that the Lord is departing from her?” Yet, departure from a church which is that corrupt is not permitted! “May we say that she is no longer the church of Christ due to her corruption? Shall we despise her? Shall we walk away from her? No, that is foolishness. It is certain that a corrupt church is nevertheless a church and that from the beginning until the present God has always permitted His church to be filled with many corruptions. Therefore, he who despises a church for its corruption acts contrary to God‟s Word and all experience, thereby denying her to be a church.”

Using examples from the Bible, à Brakel demonstrated that sin, corruption, and a lack of spirituality were to be found in many congregations. Consider the confusion in the congregation of Corinth and the exhortations of John to the congregations in Asia Minor. How could someone have the courage to sever himself from her and thereby despise God and Christ Himself? Thus, à Brakel was strongly opposed to the Labadistic spirit of separatism (or schismatic spirit). 

In à Brakel's magnum opus, The Christian's Reasonable Service, he wrote a chapter entitled "The Duty to Join the Church and to Remain with Her" (vol. 2, chap. 25), in which he argues that "degeneracy within the church [is] not a reason to separate from the church." 

Criticizing the Labadists directly, à Brakel states:

...it is a dreadful sin to depart from the church for the purpose of establishing one which is better, for the church is one, being the body of Christ. To separate ourselves from the church is to separate from the people of Christ and thus from His body, thereby withdrawing from the confession of Christ and departing from the fellowship of the saints. If we indeed deem the church to be what she really is, we shall then cause schism in the body of Christ, grieve the godly, offend others, give cause for the blaspheming of God‟s Name, and cause the common church member to err. By maintaining that the church is no church, we thereby deny the church of Christ, and therefore are also guilty of the sins just mentioned. We thereby displease God, who will not leave this unavenged, regardless of how much we please and flatter ourselves. Such activity the apostle opposes when he refers to such individuals as being carnal in 1 Cor 3:1, 3. He warns against this when he writes, “Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you” (1 Cor 1:10); “I hear that there be divisions among you” (1 Cor 11:18).

Thirdly, the Reformed Church is the only true church, albeit that her purity varies with locality. The truth is still preached purely there, sins are rebuked and resisted, and there is both the teaching of and exhortation to godliness. Thousands of godly persons are to be found there who practice holiness in a much purer fashion than those who have separated themselves. Christ dwells and walks among them. The Holy Spirit is still active by means of the Word, still converts souls daily, comforts the converted, and causes them to grow. Discipline is still exercised towards those who err in doctrine and life. In some localities this is practiced more consistently than people may perceive and be aware of. What foolishness it is, therefore, to leave the church and to enter into a barren wilderness! (pp. 61-62)

The Utrecht Circle (as it was known) was composed of some notable followers of de Labadie, preeminently Anna Maria van Schurman, a polymath who was herself known as the "Star of Utrecht" and "The Tenth Muse," which is a reflection of the appeal that this charismatic leader brought to bear on the orthodox Dutch Reformed. Even after de Labadie's death in 1674, the movement continued and colonies were attempted in both Suriname and Maryland (the latter being the first communistic colony established in the New World, 1684-1722). Much like other groups that have claimed to be too pure to join the true Church, Labadism has a great deal in common with other separatistic movements throughout the ages, even those that exist on the periphery of today's Reformed Church. The testimony of à Brakel, along with that of Koelman and others, is most valuable because they shared the stated concerns of the Labadists regarding the holiness of the church, and yet counted even the very stones and dust of Zion to be most precious (Ps. 102.14) and her unity to be striven for in accord with the prayer of Christ (John 17). 

Father Brakel's Translation Anniversary

Today marks the 300th anniversary of the death of "Father Brakel," a giant among the Dutch Nadere Reformatie, who was translated to be with his Savior on October 30, 1711. Author of the classic devotional systematic theology and his magnum opus, The Christian's Reasonable Service, Wilhelmus à Brakel was born on January 2, 1635, in Leeuwarden, the Netherlands.

His father, Theodorus à Brakel, was himself a noted minister (whose pastoral career began in 1637), and his mother, Margaretha Homma ensured that Wilhelmus grew up in a pious home. All five of Wilhelmus sisters died in their youth, leaving him alone to survive his parents. Just as the prayers of Theodorus' grandmother made a deep impression upon Theodorus, so too did the prayers of Theodorus and Margaretha make an early and deep impression upon Wilhelmus. Before joining the Labadists, Anna Maria van Schurman was among those who visited the family home. Theodorus himself was known to spend a third of each day in private prayer and meditation. Theodorus published a devotional work under the title Het Geestelyken Leven; after his death, Wilhelmus would later publish a set of his father's spiritual manuscripts under the title De Trappen des Geestelyken Levens (The Steps of Grace in Spiritual Life), which includes a spiritual dialogue between father and son.

Wilhelmus followed in his father's footsteps and was ordained to the ministry in 1659, yet continued his studies in Utrecht under the mentorship of Gisbertus Voetius for several more years due a lack of pulpit vacancies. His pastoral career began at Exmorra, Friesland in 1662, where he married Sara Nevius. Eventually, he settled in Rotterdam where he finished his ministerial labors. He was involved in a few controversies over the years, including his notable defense of the church (and Jacobus Koelman, in particular) against the Erastian tendencies of the Dutch government, and the siren call of the Labadists, that is, Jean de Labadie and his followers, who sought, much like Harold Camping in our day, to draw believers away from the organized church in pursuit of a "pure" church. As concerned as à Brakel was about the spiritual health of the Dutch Reformed Church in his day (particularly in regards to the issue of Sabbath-keeping), he wisely resisted the temptation to remove himself from the means of grace established by Christ in the ordinances and ecclesiastical institutions of the church, and ably responded to Labadist arguments in Leer en Leydinge der Labadisten (Doctrine and Government of the Labadists), later also affirming the duty to join the church as espoused in Article 28 of the Belgic Confession. It was at Rotterdam that he wrote his magnum opus, De Redelijke Godsdienst (1700, 3 volumes; the definitive third edition of 1707 contained 2,350 pages; the English translation by Bartel Elshout under the title The Christian's Reasonable Service was published in 4 volumes, 1992-1995). (The English translation remains incomplete, since a decision was made not to translate the final section of this work consisting of à Brakel's exposition of the Book of Revelation, see here for my earlier plea for this to be translated.) This work, contemporaneous with the publication of Matthew Henry's Commentary in England, represents, in my view, the high-water mark of Dutch Puritan orthodoxy and spiritual piety. It is his greatest legacy to the church, and in large measure the reason why he came to be known endearingly as Father Brakel when, during the 18th century, readings from this beloved devotional work were so often a part of Dutch family worship that it went through 20 editions in that century alone.

More can be learned about the life of this Puritan giant of the faith at Dr. Elshout's website here as well as here; and The Christian's Reasonable Service may be read online or downloaded here. If you have not previously been acquainted with the life and works of Wilhelmus à Brakel, this anniversary of his passing provides a good opportunity to learn more and, I trust, be greatly edified. It is good to remember the saints who have gone before us, and it may be truly said of such a man as Father Brakel that "the righteous shall be in everlasting remembrance" (Ps. 112.6).

Children Sing Psalms

1650 Scottish Metrical Psalter, Psalm 148:

11 Kings of the earth, all nations,
princes, earth's judges all:
12 Both young men, yea, and maidens too,
old men, and children small.
13 Let them God's name praise; for his name
alone is excellent:
His glory reacheth far above
the earth and firmament.

One of the special blessings of Biblical psalmody is that it is intended for all -- the whole family, as well as the whole congregation. Children too may and ought to sing the songs of Zion, that is, Word of God.

Joel R. Beeke, "Psalm Singing in Calvin and the Puritans," in Joel R. Beeke and Anthony T. Selvaggio, eds., Sing A New Song: Rediscovering Psalm Singing for the Twenty-First Century, pp. 22-23:

Calvin felt so strongly about psalm singing that early on he introduced it into his Geneva school. Students were required at the Academy of Geneva to "exercise themselves in singing psalms" every day after the noon meal.30 Calvin's goal was to enable children to sing psalms at school, church, and home so that they could help their parents learn to sing them also.31 Calvin wrote, "If some children, whom someone has practiced beforehand in some modest church song, sing in a loud and distinct voice, the people listening with complete attention and following in their hearts what is sung by mouth, little by little each one will become accustomed to sing with the others."32

30. Theodore Gerold, Les plus anciennes melodies de l'Eglise protestante de Strasbourg et leurs auteurs (Paris: Librairie Felix Alcan, 1928), 15.
31. [Michael] Lefebvre, Singing the Songs of Jesus, 13 [actually the reference is to p. 22]
32. CO 10:12

Jacobus Koelman, The Duties of Parents, p. 59:

63. Children must also sing psalms. In this connection, it is useful for them to know enough about music to sing the psalm tunes without assistance....Convey to them in all sincerity, from heart to heart, what the psalmist is telling us in the psalms that they are memorizing and what he teaches us, so they may also understand what they have committed to memory and what they sing. Bring up the words of those psalms on various occasions, and show your children how they can make use of them. They ought to know the following psalms: 1, 2, 6, 8, 15, 16, 19, 23, 25, 32, 45, 51, 72, 84, 90, 91, 100, 103, 111, 116, 130, 139, 145, 146, 148, 149, 150.

Joel Beeke, Family Worship:

Sing simple psalms, if you have young children. In choosing Psalms to sing, look for songs that children can easily master, and songs of particular importance for them to know. Choose songs that express the spiritual needs of your children for repentance, faith, and renewal of heart and life; songs that reveal God’s love for His people, and the love of Christ for the lambs of His flock; or that remind them of their covenant privileges and duty. The words should be simple and plain, and the tune easy to sing. For example, in The Psalter see No. 53, “The Lord’s My Shepherd, I’ll Not Want.” The text is simple enough for any child who has learned to talk; there are only three words of more than two syllables (righteousness, overflows, forevermore). Words such as righteousness, goodness, and mercy should be pointed out and explained before hand. Don’t forget to begin by telling the children that a shepherd is someone who takes care of the sheep he owns and loves! It is unwise to assume that such things are plain enough in themselves.

W.W. Lawrence, "The Psalms and the Young," in John McNaugher, ed., The Psalms in Worship, pp. 363, 367-368:

Give the Psalter songs a chance, and God's way will be vindicated....The young appreciate the songs of God....As the Saviour took the little ones in His arms, saying, "Suffer the little children to come unto Me, and forbid them not, for of such is the Kingdom of heaven," so the Psalter hymns gather young men and maidens, and children small, into the song of praise, sweeping their voices and hearts into the anthem, saying, Suffer the young to voice His inspired word, for of such is the kingdom of praise.

Promises of God

In Richard Baxter's The Life of Faith, found The Practical Works of Richard Baxter, Vol. 3, he speaks of the value of taking to heart the promises of God. After giving this direction ('Direct. 34. Lay up in your memory, particular, pertinent, and clear promises, for every particular use of faith') he proceeds to list particular scripture promises grouped topically in a list of 27 topics (pp. 657-664). Likewise, Samuel Clark devoted a whole book to compiling particular Scripture Promises topically for the edification and comfort of the saints. How precious are God's promises, and the benefit of keeping them in mind and thereby strengthening our faith ought not to be underestimated.

Jacobus Koelman, The Duties of Parents, p. 94:

159. Because the promises of God are special grounds for use in prayer, you must also have them read and memorize according to their ability certain special promises that God has given us in his Word concerning various matters.We must make these the content of our prayers. It would take too much space to sum them up here. There is a little book by Nicholas Byfield titled The Promises; or a Treatise Showing How a Godly Christian May Support His Heart (London, 1618) in which a large number of these promises have been included.

Nicholas Byfield, The Promises; Or, a Treatise shewing how a godly Christian may support his heart with comfort, Against all the distresses which by reason of any afflictions or temptations can befall him in this life. Containing all the most comfortable places through the whole Bible, orderly digested:

It will be profitable for us to consider briefly the worth of the promises; they are called the unsearchable riches of Christ (Eph. 3:6, 8), to assure us that he is a very rich man that hath his heart stored with the promises of God well applied. The Apostle Peter saith (2 Pet. 1:3) that they are great and precious promises, which God hath given to us. Promises in our hearts are better than pearls or precious stones in our chests. They are the inheritance God gives to his people in this life, and therefore they are called the heirs of promise (Rom. 4); a greater portion than any king on earth can give to his child. The very keeping of the records of these promises was a great prerogative to the Jewish nation (Rom. 9), and it is accounted a singular happiness for the Gentiles that they may now partake of those promises (Eph. 3:6). Little do we know what wrong we do to our souls, when we keep them ignorant of the promises; and it is one of the greatest offices under the sun to dispense these promises to man (2 Tim. 1:1; Titus 1:1-3).

North Sea Cross-Pollination

James Gilfillan, writing in The Sabbath Viewed in the Light of Reason, Revelation, and History with Sketches of its Literature (1862), pp. 114-117, notes a fascinating connection between the Sabbatarian views of Scottish Presbyterians and those of the Dutch Nadere Reformatie. He points out that some of the largest and unrefuted treatises on the Sabbath originated on both sides of the North Sea.

First, the massive treatise of John Brown of Wamphray (c. 1610-1679), De Causa Dei contra Anti-Sabbatarios Tractatus, or Treatise in the Cause of God against the Anti-Sabbatarians (Rotterdam, 1674-1676). Brown was a Scottish Covenanter who fled his motherland due to persecution, and ended in spending his last days in Holland, residing in Rotterdam and Utrecht. Gilfillan writes that this treatise was his "principal, though least popular work, and we should suppose, the largest ever published on the subject." James Walker writes that Brown's magnum opus is "larger than all the published works of Dr. [William] Cunningham put together" and this treatise of "our Scottish doctrine of the Sabbath...belongs, among books, to the order of the mighties: it is great in length, great in learning, great in patient sifting of the subject and in meeting of assertions and marshalling of arguments," The Theology and Theologians of Scotland: Chiefly of the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries, p. 25). Written in Latin, much of it remains untranslated into English today, although, thankfully, a select portion of this work representing representing perhaps the earliest Scottish Covenanter defense of exclusive psalmody has been translated in two parts appearing in The Confessional Presbyterian Journal (part one translated by N.E. Barry Hofstetter in 2007, and part two by my pastor, Dr. Steven Dilday, in 2009). This translation effort is most valuable, and it is to be hoped that the remainder of this worthy translation project will be taken up sooner rather than later.

Second, the compilation of two works on the Sabbath published in 1685 by Jacobus Koelman (1632-1695), the Dutch Puritan divine, entitled Het dispuit, en de historie, mitsgaders de praktijke van den sabbath, en's Heeren-dag (The Argument, History, and Practice of the Sabbath and the Lord's Day). Gilfillan describes it thus: "The work is second in magnitude only to that of Brown, and, like it, is a complete thesaurus on its subject. The arrangement of topics, which is indicated by the title, is happy, and each of them receives its distinct and proportionate attention. It has a novel feature of peculiar interest in the historical account which it supplies of opinions on the Sabbath, and of Sabbatic controversies in England and the Netherlands." Koelman and Brown were close friends, and in fact, Koelman translated certain works by Brown into Dutch.

Finally, Matthew Crawford (c. 1640-1700), a Scottish Presbyterian minister, wrote Exercitatio Apologetica, pro doctrina (de perpetua obligatione quarti precepti de Sabbato) ab Ecclesus Reformatis Communites recepta, adversus Socinianos, Anabaptistas, Libertinos, Pontificiodo quosdam Lutheranos, Enthusiastas, & quosdum Viros Doctos in Ecclesiis Reformatis (Utrecht, 1669) and dedicated it to Gisbertus Voetius. He was drawn to the Continent "having been captivated with the writings of the Belgic divines, on account of their signal erudition, and complete agreement in doctrine with his own Church and the Westminster Assembly." His grief at seeing the profanation of the Lord's Day there led to the eventual publication of this treatise, which Jacobus Koelman said in 1685 had never been answered.

These powerful works upholding the Christian Lord's Day reflect the "cross-pollination" that occurred between the the Puritans and Covenanters of the British isles and the Nadere Reformatie of the Netherlands. Though they represent perhaps the high-watermark of Puritan Sabbatarianism in the seventeenth century, it would be consistent with the aims of those divines on both sides of the North Sea, and desirable for us, to have each of these Latin and Dutch works fully available in the English and Dutch languages in the twenty-first century. It is my hope and prayer that, in the Lord's providence, this will come to pass.

Nadere Reformatie Contra Christmas

While the Dutch Reformed Church expressed opposition early on to the keeping of extra-Biblical religious holidays, gradually the practice became acceptable and commended. However, the Dutch Further Reformation (Nadere Reformatie) is noted for returning to the earlier Reformers' position on the lawfulness of celebrating religious holidays without warrant from Scripture.

David D. Demarest traces this history from the 1574 Synod of Dordt to the 1618-1619 Synod of Dordt, History and Characteristics of the Reformed Protestant Dutch Church (1856), pp. 173-175:

The churches in the Netherlands, and also for a long time in this country, observed the feasts of Christmas, Easter and Whitsunday, commemorative of the birth and resurrection of the Saviour, and of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost. In addition to these, the circumcision and ascension of Christ were commemorated in many churches, and it was. customary to celebrate the sacrament of the Lord's Supper on Christmas day and Easter Sunday. But the action of the various synods clearly shows that these days were not regarded as of Divine institution, but that since they were commonly observed by the people, it was thought best to turn them to edification, and make them promotive of good instead of evil. Thus the first Synod held at Dordrecht, in 1574, decreed (article 53), "concerning the feast-days on which, beside the Sunday, it has been customary to abstain from labor, and assemble in the church, it is resolved that we must be satisfied with the Sunday alone. However, the usual subjects on the birth of Christ may be handled in the churches on the Sunday before Christmas, and the people be admonished of the abolition of the feast-days. The same subjects may also be handled on Christmas, when it fells on a preaching-day. It is also left to the discretion of the ministers to preach on the subjects of the Resurrection of Christ, and the Sending of the Spirit on Easter and Whitsunday."

The Synod held at Middleburg, 1581, decreed (article 50), "The congregations shall petition their magistrates, that the feast-days, excepting Sunday, Christmas, and Ascension, may be abolished. But in places where by order of the magistracy, more feast days shall continue to be observed, the ministers shall endeavor by preaching, to change unprofitable and hurtful idleness into holy and edifying exercise."

The Synod held at the Hague, 1586, decreed (article 60), " The congregations shall, beside the Sunday, observe Christmas, Easter, and Whitsunday, and in places where most of the feastdays, in commemoration of the benefits of Christ (as the Circumcision and Ascension), are by order of the magistrates observed, the ministers shall endeavor by preaching to change the idleness of the people into holy and edifying exercise."

The Synod of Dort (1618), decreed (article 67), "The congregations shall besides Sunday observe Christmas, Easter, Whitsunday, and the day following; and since in most of the towns and provinces of the Netherlands, the feasts of Circumcision and Ascension are also observed, the ministers in all places, where this is not customary, shall labor with the magistrates for the establishment of conformity with the others."

We have quoted these successive decrees in order to show the history of ecclesiastical action on this subject. At first it was clearly the intention to abolish these days entirely. Then it was deemed better (as the people continued to take them for holidays), to turn them to a good account by the holding of religious services, and finally their observance was enjoined, doubtless on the ground of edification. Probably the magistrates, who are continually referred to as having authority in the matter, did not, for reasons springing out of the circumstances of the times, and the genius and habits of the people, deem it expedient to abolish, them. While they continued by authority, the Church, rightly aimed to make them promotive of piety. She brought them to this country as parts of her institutions, and the memory of many, now in middle life, can easily go back to the days in which they were wont on Christmas to accompany their parents to the house of God, and when on Easter and Whitsunday the subjects appropriate to those days were always handled by the preacher.

The conclusion that the toleration and promotion of the man-made ecclesiastical calendar (including even Saint Nicholas Day) is good for piety was not shared, however, by the Nadere Reformatie, which sought to limit the observation of such holidays to that alone which had warrant from Scripture -- the Lord's Day, and occasional extraordinary days of fasting and thanksgiving -- as will be seen by these quotes from leading representatives of the movement.

Willem Teelinck, The Path of True Godliness, p. 101:

[Rules that help distinguish between truth and lies, walking in divine truth promotes godliness] For example when debating whether to maintain Lenten Eve (Fat Tuesday), Epiphany (when the wiseman saw Christ), and other Roman Catholic holidays or to radically abolish them, some people may say yes and others no. However, the godly immediately know the right way, for they understand that Roman Catholic holidays have no basis in Holy Scripture and that regular observance of them offers occasion for much sin. The celebrations cause great disorder in the places or homes where they are observed and become a stumbling block to real holiness as they strengthen the old man. The godly swiftly conclude that Reformed Christians who would gladly abolish or ignore the feast days have the truth on their side.

Jacobus Koelman (who, it is reported, coined the term 'Nadere Reformatie'), The Duties of Parents, p. 73:

100. Do not allow your children to celebrate the days on which unbelief and superstition are being catered to. They are admittedly inclined to want this because they see that the children of Roman Catholic parents observe those days. Do not let them attend carnivals, observe Shrove Tuesday (Mardi Gras), see Santa Claus, or observe Twelfth Night, because they are all remnants of an idolatrous papacy. You must not keep your children out of school or from work on those days nor let them play outside or join in the amusement. The Lord has said, "After the doings of the land of Egypt, where you lived, shall ye not do: and after the doings of the land of Canaan, where I bring you, you shall not do: neither shall you walk in their ordinances" (Lev. 18:3). The Lord will punish the Reformed on account of the days of Baal (Hosea 2:12-13), and he also observes what the children do on the occasion of such idolatry (Jer. 17:18). Therefore, do not let your children receive presents on Santa Claus day, nor let them draw tickets in a raffle and such things. Pick other days on which to give them the things that amuse them, and because the days of Christmas, Easter, and Pentecost have the same character, Reformed people must keep their children away from these so-called holy days and feast days.

Wilhelmus à Brakel, The Christian's Reasonable Service, Vol. I, pp. 38-39:

Objection #4:

The Jewish church also instituted various practices passing them on to subsequent generations which nevertheless were not commanded, such as fasting in the fourth, fifth, seventh, and tenth month (Zec. 7:5 and 8:19); the days of Purim (Est. 9:21-26); the feast of the dedication (John 10:22). In similar fashion the Reformed Church also has her traditions, which implies that also now we may and must uphold tradition.

Answer:

The practice of fasting was commanded by God; the determination of necessity, time, and circumstances was left to the church (Joel 2). Special days of thanksgiving are also commanded, the occurrence and frequency of which are to be determined by the church. There is no basis in the Word, however, upon which the church may legislate the observation of such days for subsequent generations. Such practices should be denounced and the church should not observe them. This is true also for our so-called feast days which ought to be eliminated. Regarding feast days consult Res Judicata by [Jacobus] Koelman, as well as his other scholarly and devotional writings. Other external religious ordinances and circumstances are principally commanded in the Word of God, the stipulations of which are left to each individual church, and consequently are alterable according to time and place. In doing so, however, all superstition must be avoided and such practices must not have an adverse effect upon doctrine and practice. Thus, the perfection of the rule of Scripture will not be violated, nor will the use of unwritten traditions be advocated.

St. Catherine Cathedral

Known as Sint-Catharinakathedraal and Catharijnekerk, the St. Catherine Cathedral in Utrecht, The Netherlands, was once Roman Catholic, then Protestant, and is now Catholic again, serving as the seat of the Archbishopric of Utrecht since 1853. Yet during the Protestant phase, which lasted from 1580-1815, when the Roman Catholic Church regained control of the church, it became the final resting for at least two notable painters of the Dutch Golden Age, particularly of the Dutch Caravaggisti, as well as four major Protestant theologians, all of the Voetian school. Of the latter group, it may be said that their remains are surrounded by Popish trappings, even as their literary corpus and spiritual legacy continue to testify against the present-day guardians of the cathedral.

Painters buried at St. Catherine Cathedral

Abraham Bloemaert (1566-1651)
Gerard (Gerrit) van Honthorst (1592-1656)

Theologians buried at St. Catherine Cathedral

Gisbertus Voetius (1589-1676)
Petrus Van Mastricht (1630-1706)
Jacobus Koelman (1632-1695)
Gerard De Vries (1648-1705)

Wonder Years

NOTE: This blog post is NOT about the TV series The Wonder Years. :)

Throughout human history, some years have been so noted for their calamities or providences or wonders that a whole year is designated a wonder year (Queen Elizabeth II famously described 1992 as Annus Horribilis). I will highlight three "wonder years" in Protestant church history as examples.

The Place: Holland. The Year: Spring 1566 to Spring 1567. To the Dutch, 1566 was known as Wonderjaar (Wonder Year) ['Hunger Year' to some because of the major harvest failure of 1565]. At this time, the Spanish ruled the Netherlands with a Roman Catholic iron fist. But in February 1566, the Geuzen ("Beggars"), as they came to be known, entered into a confederacy of opposition to tyrannical Spanish rule, called the Compromise of Breda. On April 5, 1566, they presented their Request (petition of grievances) to the regent, Margaret, Duchess of Parma, which led to the abolition of the Inquisition in Holland and other measures aimed at the supression of Protestant 'heretics.' As the popular Calvinistic resistance to Spanish rule gathered steam, open-air preaching in the modern arrondissement of Dunkirk in French Flanders led to the summer of 'Beeldenstorm,' iconoclastic riots in the summer of 1566 which targeted Catholic icons. (Public preaching of the gospel by Calvinists in Holland was legalized for the first time by Margaret of Parma on August 23, 1566.) These actions constituted a Dutch Revolt, which inaugurated, two years later, the Eighty Years' War, and led to the 1581 Dutch Declaration of Independence.

The Place: London, England. Year: 1665-1666. In England, 1665 was the year of the Great Fire of London, followed by the 1666 Great Plague. These occurences rank among the worst calamities ever to hit London. Among the Puritans it was noted that they followed the Restoration (1660), and the imposition of the persecuting Sedition Act (1661), Act of Uniformity and Black St. Bartholomew's Day (1662), the Conventicle Act (1664) and the Five Mile Act (1665) and so perceived as God's judgment upon a nation that had broken its engagements to the Solemn League & Covenant. The Second Anglo-Dutch War was ongoing and there were notable events that caused wonder in both years: the Battle of Lowestoft on June 13, 1665 was a great victory for the British and remains the Netherlands' worst naval defeat; the Four Days Battle in June 1666 was one of the longest naval engagements in military history and, in part due to a providentially unseasonable fog bank, resulted in a Dutch victory; and the St. James Battle a month later, which was a significant English victory (although it was the Dutch who won the Second Anglo-Dutch War in 1667). John Dryden took a different perspective on the vicissitudes of war and providential calamities, ie., that it could be worse and that God had miraculously saved England in his famous poem, Annus Mirabilis: The Year of Wonders, 1666. An Historical Poem. Thus, a year (1666) that included such notable events was designated, for the first time in literature, Annus Mirablis. It was also a year that included the famous numeral "666" and, in Roman numerals, every number was included, from the largest to the smallest, in descending order: MDCLXVI.

The Place: Holland. The Year: 1672. - While sometimes referred to as Wonderjaar (Wonder Year) or Annus Mirabilis (Year of Miracles), the Dutch often described 1672 as Rampjaar (Disaster Year). Holland was invaded by four foreign powers (England, France and two German Electors) which opened the Third Anglo-Dutch War. Nevertheless, despite overwhelming opposing forces and much grief inflicted, the Dutch were providentially saved.

Jacobus Koleman alludes to the Rampjaar in The Duties of Children (trans. John Vriend, ed. M. Eugene Osterhaven, pp. 55-56):

56. Talk with [your children] about the history of our country, about the oppression of our ancestors by the anti-Christian Spanish Inquisition. Tell them how marvelously the Lord saved and delivered us and granted us freedom and how he blessed our struggle against Spain, although we had but little power and were in great danger. Make clear to them how God preserved this country and supported the Dutch Reformed Church when Arminianism entered the land.

Tell them how God visited this country with severe judgments, plague, and war against various kings and especially how God brought us into the greatest danger and plunged us into numerous oppressions in 1672[6] and the years following, how ungrateful this country and people have been to the Lord and how, despite all of this, God always helped and saved us. In this connection, it would be useful for you to read the book written by that zealous servant of God Abraham Van de Velde, The Miracles of the Most High, and also to give it to your children to read, rather than the little book that is customarily used, The Spanish Tyranny.

Do all this conformably to Psalm 78:4-5: "We will not hide them from their children, shewing to the generation to come the praises of the LORD, and his strength, and his wonderful works that he hath done. For he established a testimony in Jacob, and appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded our fathers, that they should make them known to their children."

6. The year 1672 was a troubled period in the history of the Netherlands. After its second trade war with England, when the country was exhausted, the French army of Louis XIV invaded the Netherlands when France was expanding its borders. In the turmoil that followed, Jan De Witt, the most able statesman in Holland, was murdered by a frenzied mob, and dykes were broken to flood part of the country in order to stop the victorious advance of the hostile army.

To conclude, it is worth quoting chapter 50 almost in full from Van de Velde's book The Wonders of the Most High (A 125-Year History of the United Netherlands 1550-1675):

1672 The Year of Disasters

The last years have shown how the Lord not only saved us, but the greater the need, the more He showed among us the wonders of His mighty arm for our good. With emotion we think back to the sad year, 1672.

Two mighty kings, of France and England, together with some mighty German Princes declared war, and the armies of the enemy penetrated into he heart of the country. No rivers or strongholds could bring them to a standstill. In less then forty days they took forty cities, Utrecht, in the heart of the country among them.

We were much afraid. The wisest among us could see nothing but the end of the famous Republic. There seemed to be nothing that could be done, but submit to the triumphant enemy. Like our fathers in the worst of times attempted escape with wives and children in boats, so now many spoke of making a covenant with the enemy, and submit to their rule. What is more, this was not only heard from the common man, but even the great and mighty in the land saw no other way out. The learned Oomius relates that even the States of Holland and Zeeland wrote that they judged ambassadors should be sent to the King of France to negotiate. See Oomius, War Trumpet, page 33.

Notice that the States of Holland not only judged that they must negotiate with the King of France, but that it was urgent. They also urged other provinces to do the same. Could it be more serious? But what? Did the Lord forsake them? In no wise! When the ship of the Republic was sinking and it seemed to be nearly wrecked; when our freedom and our religion, and all glory seemed to turn into constant slavery; exactly then the Lord became our light, our strength and our salvation. After all His previous wonders He brought light into our darkness, and gave the provinces cause to sing with Israel of old, "He is my God and I will prepare Him an habitation; my Father's God and I will exalt Him" (Ex. 15: 2).

What were God's deeds other then a living declaration of His old faithfulness, and goodness shown to the Fathers? And why? To bind us to Himself by these new wonders and so turn the hearts of the fathers unto the children; to teach us to trust Him as the only Rock of our salvation, to praise His name.

The Lord gave us a clear sign when in one year (1673), our fleet fought three battles with two Royal fleets of England and France. They were on the seventh and fourteenth of June, and the twenty-first of August. It pleased the Lord to give us the victory. Admiral De Ruyter witnessed "that the Lord had been signally with them, in saving officers and sailors."

In the second battle not one officer went missing, and few others were lost. A Day of Thanksgiving and Prayer was called for at the fifth of July 1673, to praise and thank the Lord that He had so clearly sustained and supported us.

And like the Lord renewed His wonders at sea, so He aided ours in the war on land. We will only remember when the French attacked the little city of Aardenburg. They came with 6,000 men, and were not only thrown back by a handful of ours, but in such a way that they left behind 400 prisoners, 500 killed, and retreated taking 20 wagon loads of wounded with them. See "The Netherlands in Distress", page 312. The French did not think there would be any resistance, they were certain of victory as was said in a letter, July 24, from Middelburg.

The author of this letter from Middelburg says very well: If the great God had not armed the defenders with so remarkable courage, the city would have been lost to the enemy. It is difficult to describe the zeal of tender women and children. They kept on bringing gunpowder and led; they dried wet gunpowder between their hands; most women wore hats so they appeared as men to the enemy when they showed themselves on the ramparts. They loaded the muskets for the men; the artillery instead of using grape-shot and bullets, used cast iron pots which the women had hammered into pieces. See "The Netherlands in Distress", page 287. By delivering this city the Lord worked out His Counsel to aid the fatherland.

In another city there was at that time just one constable. He did not live in the city, and was there visiting friends, but did extraordinary work to aid the city. Before this we spoke of such wonders of the Most High, used in the outworking of His infallible counsel. All things are in His service, and with Him all things are possible.

It was August of 1672 that the English were attempting to intercept our merchant ships that were returning from the East Indies. The Lord kept ours in a wonderful way in that the enemy did not see ours, and when they were finally spotted by them, the Lord hindered them by storm winds and tides to attack them in such a way that they were forced to look for shelter in their own harbours. When the Duke of Luxembourg was told this, he is said to have remarked, "It is good to hear those pirates missed this time". It was said this was so remarkable at the time, for these skippers coming from the East-Indies did not know there was a war being fought.

What prevented the English to take De Briel in 1672, when their fleet was before the Meuse river? Nothing but a heavy fog. It is also said that the ebb tide continued a couple more hours than is usual. See the Holland Mercury of 1673. It seems to us that this too must be reckoned with the wonders. Truly remarkable matters. The Lord showed here that He can use several ways and means to work out His Counsel.

As the Lord helped us at sea, so He also showed His Providence against the enemy armies on land. For by His Providence the Lord hindered the French to enter Holland (province). When in the latter end of 1672 they pulled out of Utrecht with 14 or 15,000 men, and after they took Leyden and had plundered The Hague their joy was so great that they were certain all of Holland was in their power. It was winter and the rivers were frozen over, the Prince was with his army at Charleroi and they were sure to have gained their objective.

But little they remembered the ways and means the Lord used in the past to help and assist the United Netherlands. See what happened. While the enemy advanced, the Lord suddenly sent mild weather, and the French being afraid that the ice by which they gained entrance would not be able to carry them much longer, returned with great haste to the place whence they came. That their fear was grounded was seen when the Duke of Luxembourg fell with his horse through the ice, and could not be saved but by much difficulty, while he was also slightly wounded. Hereby was their attempt frustrated, and they were greatly disappointed. It was said that the French, because of their disappointment aimed their pistols at the heavens, blasphemed God, and behaved like impatient mad men. But when people rage in this manner, "The wrath of men shall praise Him"; and, "He is terrible to the Kings of the earth". Psalm 76.

As clearly as the Lord fought against the French with a sudden thaw, He assisted us with His winds against the armies of the Bishops of Munster. When they were minded to lay siege against Coevorden, they laid dams in the river Vecht. The water rose and was already running over the city moats. The dam built by the Bishop's men was well built. It was 90 feet wide at the bottom and 24 on top. He also planted 60 pieces of artillery on the dam. The garrison of the city could not think of attacking such a formidable bulwark. When the Bishop was certain of the victory, and his friends boasted that the city would come into his hands, the Lord sent such a terrible wind-storm on the 1st day of October 1673, that the dike gave way in three places. Hereby, the Lord our God frustrated the designs of the Bishop, and the work on which they had laboured all summer fell apart like cob webs. Two hundred farmers who were compelled to work on the dike, all drowned, along with 4 or 500 soldiers who were guarding the dike. Lieutenant-Colonel Hostmar who traveled with some ladies in a coach also drowned.

To their great joy, Coevorden was relieved, and they came from Groningen to help with all kinds of provisions. A History writer rightly remarks that it is only the Lord Who must receive the glory for such relief.

Ph. Doktor, in a Treatise concerning "Theological and Political Considerations" relates that among the Wonders of the Lord and the means of our deliverance was the elevation and promotion of the Prince of Orange at that time. Truly, if we take notice of any matter whereby the Lord worked our deliverance, and in which He dealt marvelously, this is it. We will first let the author speak, and then say our opinion. He writes:

"Our country was in great confusion and perplexity, and the three provinces, Gelderland, Overijsel and Utrecht were already overpowered, and the inhabitants like formerly Israel 2 Kings 19: 26, were afraid and trembling and there seemed to be no deliverer. But the Lord remembering His faithfulness and the blessings given this nation by the hands of the illustrious house of Orange Nassau in previous days, called upon the youthful sprout of that dynasty His Highness the Prince of Orange (William III), girded him with the courage of a lion, and with his small army gave us thus far the victory.

"When this heroic branch of the House of Orange was despised by gross ingratitude, the God of wonders did a great thing before our eyes in that He turned the hearts of the Regents in a moment to elevate this young hero to Captain General of army and navy, and also to Stadtholder of Holland and Western Friesland. He, the Master Builder of all things took that stone rejected by the builders of our country, and made him into a head of the corner." See also page 12 of the same Treatise.

Taking further note of what the Lord wrought, it is known that one wonder followed another. For the Lord did not only deliver us from our enemies, but with the prophet we can say, "the Lord has cast out our enemy" (Zeph.3: 15). After the Lord gave into the heart of our Prince to take Bonn, he put terror in the heart of the enemy that they fled the country with the same haste as they took possession of the same a little earlier. See the Holland Mercury of November 1673.

When we were down in deep distress, the Lord dealt with us as in days of yore. For as He gave us Prince William 1, Blest Memory, to deliver us when the waters rose above our heads, He also gave us this our noble Prince, by whose hand His Majesty gave us marvelously in His good will, relief and glorious deliverance. Our enemies who mockingly said, "That we had nothing but prayer and the Prince", came to experience to their shame, that they were conquered by both.

To come to a conclusion we have seen how the Lord was merciful to us in the hour of despair, and that in spite of the fact we provoked Him by our sins, He did not destroy us.

Education and Virtue

And though I have...all knowledge...and have not charity, I am nothing. (1 Cor. 13.2)

Knowledge is good, but knowledge with virtue is most greatly to be sought for our children.

C.S. Lewis once wrote: "Education without values, as useful as it is, seems rather to make man a more clever devil."

Martin Luther is likewise quoted as saying, "I am afraid that the schools will prove the very gates of hell, unless they diligently labor in explaining the Holy Scriptures and engraving them in the heart of the youth. I advise no one to place his child where the Scriptures do not reign paramount. Every institution in which men are not unceasingly occupied with the Word of God must become corrupt."

It is worthwhile to quote him in greater context from his 1520 Address to the Christian Nobility of the German Nation (§25):

But where the Holy Scriptures are not the rule, I advise no one to send his child. Everything must perish where God's word is not studied unceasingly; and so we see what manner of men there are now in the high schools, and all this is the fault of no one but of the Pope, the bishops, and the prelates, to whom the welfare of the young has been entrusted. For the high schools should only train men of good understanding in the Scriptures, who wish to become bishops and priests, and to stand at our head against heretics and the devil and all the world. But where do we find this? I greatly fear the high schools are nothing but great gates of hell, unless they diligently study the Holy Scriptures and teach them to the young people.

Jacobus Koelman includes a poem about this as well in his classic treatise The Duties of Children, p. 58:

The Child Studies

He who best sifts through what exists,
Possesses wisdom that persists.
A smart parent gives good education,
So his child master's life situation.
But unless he attends the highest school,
Where virtue is learned in the soul
And God's law is kept as a whole,
For all that he learns he'll live like a fool.

The Humble Catechist

Those who teach can always learn from others and this lesson is exemplified in the humble statements of two men who served the church of Christ notably as catechists.

Jacobus Koelman, The Duties of Parents, p. 31:

The catechisms composed by others have served me as aids and guides. The reason why in this process I do not follow so much the Heidelberg Catechism as I do the Westminster Shorter Catechism of England, Scotland, and Ireland is simply that the latter is in all respects superior. For why should we not honestly acknowledge such an obvious truth? It would be good if the church of The Netherlands would be willing to learn and take over a variety of things from the churches in England and Scotland, things which they formulated in their church order and other formularies more clearly in accordance with God's Word than our church has done.

C.H. Spurgeon, Speeches by C. H. Spurgeon at Home and Abroad, p. 12:

It strikes me that, here in England, we greatly need more Bible catechizing of the children of all classes. I was very much struck with the Scotch, how vastly superior their children are to our youngsters in the knowledge of the Scriptures. I sometimes take young men into my institution for the ministry whose education is very deficient, and I sometimes find these good, earnest young English brethren, though they have read the Scriptures, [they are] not thoroughly acquainted even with the historical parts and narratives, but often make sad blunders. Now, though I have dealt with many Scotchmen, I never met with one who was not thoroughly acquainted with the narrative and well-instructed in the doctrine. I attribute that to the use of catechisms, and I think that, if we could revive, more and more, the use of a good catechism, or the catechetical principle of bringing home, by question and answer, the doctrines and truths of Scripture to the lads of our villages, we should be doing a world of good. The way to secure the masses would be to secure them when young.

The Church's Book of Comfort

Willem Van 'T Spijker and his team of scholars, and translator Gerrit Bilkes (who also recently helped to translate Concise Dogmatics by J. van Genderen and W. H. Velema), as well as Reformation Heritage Books, have done the church a great service by producing a tribute to the Heidelberg Catechism in The Church's Book of Comfort (Dutch original 2005, English translation 2009).

The history and background, theology and structure, impact and legacy of the "book of comfort" are covered in a manner that will interest the scholar, pastor and lay reader. It is a balanced presentation, covering the strengths and weaknesses (Jacobus Koelman's critiques are worth noting) of catechism preaching, for instance. The background information on those who contributed to the making of the Catechism is also worth noting because it goes beyond the two men primarily credited with authorship, Zacharius Ursinus and Caspar Olevianus, and examines the role of collaborators from the theological faculty of the Heidelberg University, superintendents and consistory. Commentaries, sermons and expositions of the Catechism are explored as well. It is a gold mine of information for those who appreciate the value and "eternal youth" of this Catechism.

Petrus de Witte is quoted (p. 221) in praise of the Catechism:

Blessed be this godly work, blessed be the hearts that first conceived it, the mouths that articulated it, the hands and pens that recorded it and brought it to such a desirable conclusion. Through God's blessing, the churches have reaped the desired benefits of this. It has meant the deathblow to the souls of those who sought modernism.