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<mainpage-leftcolumn-start />This wiki focuses on the history of the Dutch Reformed tradition in the Netherlands, Canada, and the United States. In addition to church history, it includes biographies of significant individuals and historical profiles of some congregations. Most of this content was originally published on reformed.net, which is now defunct. This is definitely a work in progress at this point (Feb. 2013).


==Historical Overviews==
*[[Dutch Reformed Timeline]]
*[[The Dutch Reformed Presence in Canada]]
*[[A History of the True Dutch Reformed Church]]
*''[[Nadere Reformatie]]'' (in progress)

==Denominational Overviews==
===In the Netherlands===
We use the Dutch names for these denominations because the English translations would often create confusion with North American denominations.
*[[Nederlandse Hervormde Kerk]] (NHK)
*[[Christelijke Gereformeerde Kerk]] (CGKN)
*Gereformeerde Kerken (GKM)
*Gereformeerde Gemeenten (GG)
*Gereformeerde Kerken - Vrijgemaakt (GKN-v)

===In North America===
*[[Reformed Church in America]] (RCA)
*[[Reformed Church in the United States]] (RCUS)
*[[True Dutch Reformed Church]] (TDRC)
*[[Christian Reformed Church]] (CRC)
*[[Netherlands Reformed Congregations]] (NRC)
*[[Protestant Reformed Churches]] (PRC)
*[[Free Reformed Churches]] (FRC)
*[[Canadian and American Reformed Churches]] (CARC)
*[[Orthodox Protestant Reformed Churches]] (OPRC)
*[[United Reformed Churches]] (URC)
*Heritage Reformed Churches (HRC)

===In South Africa===
*[[Nederduitsch Hervormde Kerk van Afrika]] NHK
*[[Nederduitse Gereformeerde Kerk]] NGK
*[[Gereformeerde Kerke in Suid-Afrika]] GKSA
*[[Christelike Gereformeerde Kerk in Suid-Afrika]] CRCSA

==Biographies==
*[[Solomon Froeligh]], 1750-1827, key player in 1822 secession from Reformed Church in America (RCA) that created the [[True Dutch Reformed Church]] (TDRC)
*[[Hendrik de Cock]], 1801-1842, NHK pastor whose 1824 suspension started the ''Afscheiding''
*[[Hendrik Scholte]] , 1805-1868, ''Afscheiding'' pastor, founder of Pella, Iowa
*[[Albertus van Raalte]], 1811-1876, ''Afscheiding'' pastor, founder of Holland, Michigan
*[[Gijsbert Haan]], 1801-1874, leader of 1857 secession from RCA that created [[Christian Reformed Church]] (CRC)
*[[Cornelius Kloppenburg]], 1815-1876, first pastor of the Grand Rapids (MI) Netherlands Reformed congregtion
*[[Abraham Kuyper]], 1837-1920, leader of the ''Doleantie''
*[[Herman Hoeksema]], 1886-1965, leader of 1922 secession from CRC that created [[Protestant Reformed Churches]] (PRC)
*[[Klaas Schilder]], 1890-1952, leader of 1945 secession from GKN that created the GKN-v - and indirectly the [[Canadian and American Reformed Churches]] by post-World War II immigrants
*[[Hubert De Wolf]], 1912-1980, leader of 1953 secession from PRC that created the [[Orthodox Protestant Reformed Churches]] (OPRC), which later joined with the CRC

==Theology==
*[[Hopkinsianism]]
==Essays==

*[[Unfulfilled Expectations of Church Planting]], Dave Snapper
*[[Reflections on Unfulfilled Expectations of Church Planting]], Al Mulder
*[[Echo]], David Snapper's response to Al Mulder
*
*[[Statistical Survey of Grand Rapids Christian Reformed Congregations, 1970-1992]], Dan Knight
*[[Overview: Pleasant Street CRC, Whitinsville, MA]], Dan Knight
*[[Canadian Reformed and Protestant Reformed: Why Separate Denominations?]], Dan Knight
*[[A Brief History of the Protestant Reformed Churches]], Rev. Allen Brummel
*[http://www.swierenga.com/Africa_pap.html Burn the Wooden Shoes: Modernity and Division in the Christian Reformed Church in North America], Robert P. Swierenga (Presented to the University of Stellenbosch Conference (South Africa), International Society for the Study of Reformed Communities, June 2000.) 

==Congregational Profiles==
*[[Church Profiles, Grand Rapids, Michigan|Grand Rapids, Michigan]]
*[[Church Profiles, Grandville & Jenison, Michigan|Grandville &amp; Jenison, Michigan]]
*Kentwood, Michigan
*Wyoming, Michigan
*[[Whitinsville, Massachussetts Congregations|Whitinsville, Massachussetts]]

== Calvinist Educational Institutions in America ==

* [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Calvinist_educational_institutions_in_North_America Tertiary institutions and secondary schools]
This is a list for reference and a "diving board" for further inquiry, not an endorsement.

== My Background ==
I grew up Christian Reformed, the son of Dutch immigrants, and even though I am no longer a member of a Christian Reformed congregation, I still consider them "my people" - as well as Reformed Church in America people, as I've attended three RCA churches over the years. My goal is to help you better understand the history of your denomination and how it relates to other denominations in the Dutch Reformed tradition. I'll do my best to give everyone a fair shake: RCA, CRC, Protestant Reformed, Free Reformed, Netherlands Reformed, Canadian Reformed, Heritage Reformed, and the rest.

==My Hopes for This Wiki==
My dream is that this will become a place where others interested in Dutch Reformed denominations will choose to share their research so we can have an even better understanding of our shared traditions.

Addition by another user: We're committed to creating a space in which we are able to share research, discuss topics, and question what we know while keeping a critical eye on our present theological/church practices. 

==Latest activity==

26 Jan. 2024: Added First URC Oak Lawn (IL) to Classis Central;  added Robert P. Swierenga's "Burn the Wooden Shoes: Modernity and Division in the Christian Reformed Church in North America";  added Calvinist Educational Institutions in America (Wikipedia link because I can't create new pages);  added sentence promoting an inquisitive and critical reading of church history in "My Hopes" section

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[[File:John-calvin.jpg|thumb|330px|right|John Calvin, 1509-1564]]
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