Voorbereidingsvragen voor het avondmaal in de kerk van de Afscheiding

Abstract

In this article, the authors examine the nineteenth-century reception in the Netherlands of a set of questions intended for use in Lord’s Supper preparation services. By responding to these questions, churchgoers professed their faith  —  much as they did when seeking admission to the Lord’s Supper for the first time. In 1817, the synod of the Netherlands Reformed Church prescribed the use of these questions by local congregations. This requirement provoked resistance, particularly in regions where congregations were unfamiliar with this liturgical form and where objections arose to the new, Enlightenment-influenced phrasing that the synod had introduced. Among other consequences, opposition to this innovation contributed to the Secession (Afscheiding) of 1834. The authors not only trace these developments but also show how the questions continued to play a modest role for some time within the new denomination.