# Remonstrants > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Remonstrants > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Remonstrants.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Remonstrants > Source revision: 1356934809 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) {{short description|Dutch Reformed Christian movement}} {{about|a Dutch Reformed movement|the Scottish political faction|Western Remonstrance|opposition to women's suffrage|Anti-suffragism}} {{infobox Christian denomination|main_classification = [Protestant](/source/Protestantism)|founded_date=early 17th century|separated_from=[Dutch Reformed Church](/source/Dutch_Reformed_Church)|theology=[Arminianism](/source/Arminianism)|founded_place=[Netherlands](/source/Netherlands)|website={{Official URL}}}} The '''Remonstrants''' (or the '''Remonstrant Brotherhood''') are a [Protestant](/source/Protestant) movement that split from the [Dutch Reformed Church](/source/Dutch_Reformed_Church) in the early 17th century. The early Remonstrants supported [Jacobus Arminius](/source/Jacobus_Arminius), and after his death, continued to maintain his original views, called [Arminianism](/source/Arminianism), against the proponents of [Calvinism](/source/Calvinism). Condemned by the [synod of Dort](/source/synod_of_Dort) (1618–1619), the Remonstrants remained a small minority in the [Netherlands](/source/Netherlands). In the middle of the 19th century, the Remonstrant Brotherhood was influenced by the liberal Dutch theological movement. ==History== [[File:Allegory of theological dispute-Abraham van der Eyk-MBA Lyon H1151-IMG 0428.jpg|thumb|400px|''Allegory of the theological dispute between the Arminianists and their opponents'' by [Abraham van der Eyk](/source/Abraham_van_der_Eyk), 1721. Remonstrants can be seen on the left, while their [Dutch Reformed](/source/Dutch_Reformed) opponents can be seen on the right. The scales shows the [Calvinist](/source/Calvinist) cause as heavier than the [Arminian](/source/Arminian) one, but it has a sword on it. The sword symbolizes [state support](/source/State_religion) granted the [Dutch Reformed Church](/source/Dutch_Reformed_Church) by the [Republic](/source/Dutch_Republic).]] {{see also|Five Articles of Remonstrance}} ===Foundation=== In formulating [Arminianism](/source/Arminianism), [Jacobus Arminius](/source/Jacobus_Arminius) disagreed with [Calvin](/source/John_Calvin), especially on [predestination](/source/predestination). He defended free examination as superior to the doctrines of established churches. In 1610, Arminius's followers presented to the [States of Holland and Friesland](/source/States_of_Holland_and_Friesland) the ''[Five Articles of Remonstrance](/source/Five_Articles_of_Remonstrance)'' formulating their points of disagreement with [Calvinism](/source/Calvinism) as adopted by the [Dutch Reformed Church](/source/Dutch_Reformed_Church).{{sfn|Chisholm|1911}} Supporters of Arminius were called "Remonstrants", but they were also called "Arminians".{{citation needed|date= February 2021}} Their adversaries, inspired by [Franciscus Gomarus](/source/Franciscus_Gomarus), became known as Gomarists or [Counter-Remonstrants](/source/Counter-Remonstrants).{{sfn|Chisholm|1911}} Although the [States General](/source/States_General_of_the_Netherlands) issued an edict tolerating both parties and forbidding further dispute, the conflict continued{{sfn|Chisholm|1911}} and became linked to [political conflicts](/source/Twelve_Years'_Truce) in the [Dutch Republic](/source/Dutch_Republic). The Remonstrants were assailed both by personal enemies and by the political weapons of [Maurice of Orange](/source/Maurice_of_Nassau).{{sfn|Chisholm|1911}} Their foremost ally, [Johan van Oldenbarnevelt](/source/Johan_van_Oldenbarnevelt), was executed, and other leaders were imprisoned. In Amsterdam, as in various other cities, the city government was purged of Oldenbarnevelt supporters; [Jacob Dircksz de Graeff](/source/Jacob_Dircksz_de_Graeff) and [Cornelis Hooft](/source/Cornelis_Hooft) fell victim to this action. In 1618–1619 the [Synod of Dordrecht](/source/Synod_of_Dordrecht), after expelling the thirteen [Arminian](/source/Arminianism) pastors headed by [Simon Episcopius](/source/Simon_Episcopius), established the victory of the Calvinist school.{{sfn|Chisholm|1911}} It drew up ninety-three canonical rules, and confirmed the authority of the [Belgic Confession](/source/Belgic_Confession) and the [Heidelberg Catechism](/source/Heidelberg_Catechism).{{sfn|Chisholm|1911}} The judgement of the synod was enforced through the deposition and in some cases banishment of Remonstrant ministers.{{sfn|Chisholm|1911}} In this context, owing to the lack of preachers, there originated in Warmond a movement in favor of the lay sermon, the adherents of which founded the Society of [Collegiants](/source/Collegiants).{{sfn|Schaff|Herzog|1953|loc=Chap. 2}} An exile community of Remonstrants was founded in [Antwerp](/source/Antwerp) in 1619. In 1621 they were allowed to settle in [Schleswig](/source/Schleswig), where they built the town of [Friedrichstadt](/source/Friedrichstadt).{{sfn|Chisholm|1911}} === Institutionalization === thumb|Remonstrant church of Friedrichstadt, Germany The doctrine of the Remonstrants was embodied in 1621 in a ''[Confession](/source/Remonstrant_Confession)''{{sfn|Episcopius|Ellis|2005}} written by Episcopius, their major theologian. This ''Confession'' serves as a base for the Remonstrant church since his return to the Netherlands in 1626. It confirms the opinion of the remonstrants already expressed in 1618.{{sfn|De Jong|1968|pp=220–|ps=. 1. that the divine decree of predestination is conditional, not absolute; 2. that the Atonement is in intention universal; 3. that man cannot of himself exercise a saving faith; 4. that though the grace of God is a necessary condition of human effort, it does not act irresistibly in man; and 5. that believers are able to resist sin but are not beyond the possibility of falling from grace.}} [Jan Uytenbogaert](/source/Joannes_Uytenbogardus) gave to the Remonstrants a [catechism](/source/catechism) and regulated their church order.{{sfn|Chisholm|1911}} Their seminary in [Amsterdam](/source/Amsterdam) had distinguished pupils, including [Curcellaeus](/source/Stephan_Curcellaeus), [Limborch](/source/Philipp_van_Limborch), [Wetstein](/source/Johann_Jakob_Wetstein), and [Le Clerc](/source/Jean_Leclerc_(theologian)). Their school of [theology](/source/theology), which grew more liberal and even rationalistic, forcefully debated the official [Dutch Reformed](/source/Dutch_Reformed_Church) state church and other Christian denominations.{{sfn|Chisholm|1911}} After the death of Maurice of Orange in 1625, some exiles returned. The government became convinced that they posed no danger to the state, and in 1630 they were formally allowed to reside again in all parts of the Republic.{{sfn|Chisholm|1911}} They were not, however, officially allowed to build churches until the establishment of the [Batavian Republic](/source/Batavian_Republic) in 1795. Until then they held their services in so-called [Schuilkerk](/source/Schuilkerk)en ([house church](/source/house_church)es).{{sfn|Benedict|2008|p=313}} === Liberalism === In the mid-19th century, the Remonstrant Brotherhood was influenced by liberalism,{{sfn|Zijpp|1959}}{{sfn|Olson|2012|ps=. I completely omit [as a reference for defining Arminianism] “Arminians of the head,” those Remonstrants and their heirs who veered off into rationalism, deism and liberalism. For the most part they stopped identifying as Arminians anyway.}} which in the Netherlands was embodied by [Petrus Hofstede de Groot](/source/Petrus_Hofstede_de_Groot) (1802–1886).{{Citation needed|date=November 2019}} His theology had a wide audience in Europe, which is characteristic of the romantic phase of [Christian humanism](/source/Christian_humanism); in the Netherlands, this line of thought has been represented by the "theologians of Groningen" since 1830. ===Early Remonstrants’ theological legacy=== {{see also|Arminianism#Current landscape}} Most of the early Remonstrants followed classical Arminianism.{{sfn|Olson|2012|loc=.}} However, they are not the only Protestants who can be considered Arminian or who are called Arminians. Arminianism is a minority within the [Reformed](/source/Calvinism) confession, but it really belongs to the larger, cross-denominational current of [synergism](/source/synergism), that is to say, historic, majority Christianity. As Arminianism, it made inroads into the [Church of England](/source/Arminianism_in_the_Church_of_England). As a broader synergism, it appears in [Methodism](/source/Methodism), the [General Baptists](/source/General_Baptists), the [Adventist Church](/source/Adventist_Church), the [Holiness movement](/source/Holiness_movement), [Pentecostalism](/source/Pentecostalism), the [Charismatic movement](/source/Charismatic_movement), and a number of other [Protestant](/source/Protestant) denominations. ==Modern Remonstrant Brotherhood== [[File:Remonstrantsekerk Groningen.jpg|thumb|200px|A Remonstrant church in [Groningen](/source/Groningen), Netherlands]] === The church === The Remonstrant Brotherhood continues as a church in the [Netherlands](/source/Netherlands). The Remonstrants first received official recognition in 1795. Their chief congregation has been in [Rotterdam](/source/Rotterdam).{{sfn|Schaff|Herzog|1953|loc=Chap. 3–4}} In 2016, the Remonstrant Brotherhood has about 5,000 members and "friends", in more than 40 congregations in the Netherlands,{{sfn|LBR|2016}} and one congregation in Friedrichstadt, in northern Germany (2008).{{sfn|LBR|2015}} The Remonstrant Brotherhood of [The Netherlands](/source/The_Netherlands) keeps fellowship with the European Liberal Protestant Network, and is a full, charter member of the [World Alliance of Reformed Churches](/source/World_Alliance_of_Reformed_Churches). It is also a member of the [Communion of Protestant Churches in Europe](/source/Communion_of_Protestant_Churches_in_Europe). Whereas the early twentieth-century professor of Remonstrant theology Herman Ysbrand Groenewegen was a vocal opponent of homosexual emancipation,{{Citation |last=Bos |first=David J. |title=Hellish Evil, Heavenly Love: A Long-Term History of Same-Sex Sexuality and Religion in the Netherlands |date=2020 |work=Public Discourses About Homosexuality and Religion in Europe and Beyond |pages=21–58 |editor-last=Derks |editor-first=Marco |url=http://link.springer.com/10.1007/978-3-030-56326-4_2 |access-date=2026-03-29 |place=Cham |publisher=Springer International Publishing |language=en |doi=10.1007/978-3-030-56326-4_2 |isbn=978-3-030-56325-7 |editor2-last=van den Berg |editor2-first=Mariecke|hdl=11245.1/534da567-b339-4ec5-9a7d-a7da1a9f9f60 |hdl-access=free }} by contrast, in 1986 the Brotherhood, becoming the first Christian denomination in Europe, officially allowed the blessing of [same-sex partnerships](/source/same-sex_partnerships), on an equal footing with heterosexual marriage. This decision was taken well before civil marriage was opened up to same-sex couples.Van der Burg, Wibren. “The Recognition of gay and Lesbian Relationships in the Remonstrant Church and in the Dutch Society.” Paper presented at the annual convention of European Forum of Gay and Lesbian Christian Groups: “Living in Commitments”, Heemskerk, NL, May 3, 2003{{Cite journal |last=Bos |first=David J. |date=2017-09-02 |title=“Equal rites before the law”: religious celebrations of same-sex relationships in the Netherlands, 1960s–1990s |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/13558358.2017.1351123 |journal=Theology & Sexuality |language=en |volume=23 |issue=3 |pages=188–208 |doi=10.1080/13558358.2017.1351123 |issn=1355-8358}}{{sfn|LBR|2019}} Moreover, Church weddings have no legal status in the Netherlands.{{sfn|nu.nl|2011}}{{sfn|Trouw.nl|2010}} Remonstrants emphasize personal faith and are not necessarily in agreement with one another on questions of faith and social issues. They consider that the message of the [Gospel](/source/Gospel) cannot be separated from true choices in the struggle to live together, on the road to a world with peace and justice.{{sfn|LBR|2015}} What binds them is the Statement of Principle:
''The Remonstrant Church is a community of faith which, rooted in the gospel of Jesus Christ, and true to its principle of freedom and tolerance, seeks to worship and serve God.''
===Confessions of faith=== {{main|Remonstrant Confession}} In addition to the Statement of Principle, most contemporary Remonstrants write their own declaration or profession of faith when they become a member of the community. The brotherhood did express at three times in their history the faith they share in a confessional statement, in 1621, 1940 and 2006. Remonstrants however, being a [non-creedal](/source/Creed) denomination, consider no confession to have indisputable authority.{{sfn|LBR|2019}} ==References== {{reflist}} ==Sources== *{{cite book |last=Benedict |first=Philip |title=Christ's Churches Purely Reformed: A Social History of Calvinism |date=2008 |publisher=Yale University Press |isbn=978-0300127225 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JKj_x3W01hoC}} *{{EB1911 |wstitle=Remonstrants |volume=23 |page=82}} *{{cite book |last=De Jong |first=Peter |author-link=Peter Y. De Jong |place=Grand Rapids |publisher=Reformed Fellowship |year=1968|chapter=The Opinions of the Remonstrants (1618) |url=http://evangelicalarminians.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/Opinions-of-the-Remonstrants-1618.pdf|title=Crisis in the Reformed Churches: Essays in Commemoration of the Great Synod of Dordt, 1618–1619}} *{{cite book |last1=Episcopius |first1=Simon |last2=Ellis |first2=Mark A. |title=The Arminian confession of 1621 |publisher=Pickwick Publications |place=Eugene |date=2005 |url=http://evangelicalarminians.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/Ellis.-ARMINIAN-CONFESSION-OF-1621.pdf}} *{{cite web |language=nl |last=nu.nl |title=Kerken komen uit de kast in boek |publisher=nu.nl |date=2011 |access-date=2019-09-22 |url=https://www.nu.nl/boek/2625370/kerken-komen-kast-in-boek.html}} *{{cite web |language=nl |last=LBR |title=Belijdenis |publisher=Landelijk Bureau Remonstranten |date=2019 |access-date=2019-08-15 |url=https://www.remonstranten.nl/wiki/geloof/belijdenis/}} *{{cite web |last=LBR |title=Remonstrant Church |publisher=Landelijk Bureau Remonstranten |date=2015 |access-date=2016-01-23 |url=https://www.remonstranten.nl/engels/}} *{{cite web |language=nl |last=LBR |title=Deel 2 Commissie tot de Zaken – Activiteiten |publisher=Landelijk Bureau Remonstranten |date=2016 |access-date=2019-09-15 |url=https://www.remonstranten.nl/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/Jaarverslag-2015-Commissie-tot-de-Zaken-Remonstrantse-Broederschap.pdf}} *{{cite web |last=Olson |first=Roger E. |title=Who Is (or Might Be) an Arminian? |website=Roger E. Olson: My evangelical, Arminian theological musings |publisher=Patheos |date=2012 |url=https://www.patheos.com/blogs/rogereolson/2012/02/who-is-or-might-be-an-arminian/ |access-date=2019-08-27}} *{{cite web |language=nl |last=Trouw.nl |title=Remonstranten en Boomsma krijgen homo-emancipatieprijs |publisher=Trouw.nl |date=2010 |access-date=2012-09-09 |url=http://www.trouw.nl/tr/nl/4324/nieuws/article/detail/1086030/2010/01/25/Remonstranten-en-Boomsma-krijgen-homo-emancipatieprijs.dhtml}} *{{cite encyclopedia |last1=Schaff |first1=Philip |last2=Herzog |first2=Jakob |title=Remonstrants |publisher=Baker |location=Grand Rapids |date=1953 |encyclopedia=The New Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia of Religious Knowledge |volume=9 |url=https://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/encyc09.html?term=Remonstrants}} *{{cite book |last=Zijpp |first=Nanne van der |title=Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online |chapter=Remonstrants |date=1959 |url=https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Remonstrants&oldid=146127}} ==External links== {{wikt|Remonstrant}} * {{Official website}} {{Christianity in the Netherlands}} {{CPCE}} {{Arminianism footer}} Category:Remonstrants Category:Arminian denominations Category:Christian terminology Category:Christian denominations in the Netherlands Category:History of Reformed Christianity in the Netherlands --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Remonstrants](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Remonstrants) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Remonstrants?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.