Foreword

The Church of the Lord exists within the world of its time. For the Dutch Reformed Church (Nederduitse Gereformeerde Kerk), this meant that it had to fulfil its God-given calling during the time when apartheid in South Africa degenerated into an oppressive system.

There are currently many voices calling on the Dutch Reformed Church to testify on its role in the apartheid era. Although it was decided not to make a submission to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, there was great unanimity in the General Synodal Commission of the Dutch Reformed Church that the story of this church with regard to relations between peoples and races in South Africa since the establishment of the General Synod in 1962 should now be told. That story is presented here as a testimony and a confession. This means that the church's official decisions and actions, and what happened in relation to those decisions and actions over the past few decades, are judged. This chronicle sets out to account for the intentions and consequences of the church's actions, and it is therefore full of words such as: good and right, neighbourly love, abhorrence, thank, confess and apologise.

This document is offered to members, ministers, synods and all other interested parties for their information and study. The intention is that the message contained in it should be echoed in each individual environment, so that it contributes to contrition before the Lord, reconciliation in South Africa and new opportunities for religious life in the Dutch Reformed Church.

"If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men." (Rom 12:18)

FREEK SWANEPOEL

Chairman: General Synodal Commission of the Dutch Reformed Church

21 July 1997

Approved for distribution by the Executive of the General Synodal Commission:

Ds F Swanepoel (chairman)
Prof P C Potgieter (deputy chairman)
Prof P Coertzen (registrar)
Dr FM Gaum (secretary) - compiler of this document
Dr W J Bruwer
Ds P S Strümpfer
Ds LW Meyer
Dr M Botha (consulting)

Definitions

• General Synodal Commission (GSC): This commission is appointed by the General Synod of the Dutch Reformed Church. Among other duties it deals provisionally with urgent matters while the synod is not in session and accounts for its actions to the next General Synod. The GSC consists of the Moderamen of the General Synod, representatives of the various (regional) synods and four representatives from among the church elders. Representatives of the other commissions of the General Synod serve as advisers. The Executive of the GSC, comprising the Moderamen and another three members elected by the GSC, acts on the instructions of the GSC and reports to it.
• Extended Moderamen: The GSC replaced the Extended Moderamen in 1986. The Extended Moderamen had more or less the same brief as the GSC, but fewer members.
• Ecumenism: Liaison and co-operation among churches in order to promote the unity of the church of Christ.
• Church council: An ecclesiastical assembly, consisting of elders and deacons from a local congregation, which looks after the affairs of that congregation and takes decisions affecting it.
• Moderamen: The four office bearers whom the synod appoints with specific mandates: the moderator is chairman of the synod and, in the case of the General Synod, also of the General Synodal Commission; the assessor is the deputy chairman; the registrar gives guidance on matters relating to ecclesiastical ordinance; and the fourth member is the secretary ("skriba").
• Presbytery: The ecclesiastical assembly at which the representatives of church councils in a particular area meet to deal with matters in which they all have an interest, but which cannot be resolved at church council level.
• Synod: The ecclesiastical assembly at which the representatives of church councils of a particular denomination meet to deal with matters of common interest which cannot be resolved at church council or presbytery level. In the case of the General Synod, the constituent (regional) synods send delegates to the assembly, which normally meets every four years to deal with matters of general interest to the denomination which cannot be resolved at church council, presbytery or synod level.