Talk:Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa (NGK)

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I've started adding an outline of history to the stub, but I hope members of the NGK who know more about it can expand on it. SteveH 07:15, 7 August 2006 (UTC)

The current "Nederduitse Gereformeerde Kerk" (NG Kerk) can not lay claim to being the "oldest in South Africa". If one were to be really pedantic, it should be the Roman Catholic church, because the Portuguese arrived here first, but that was so brief that it may reasonably be disregarded. However, the NG Kerk is only one of the direct "descendants" of the church that the Dutch arrived at the Cape with. They arrived with the "Nederlandse Hervormde Kerk", which was later changed to the "Nederduitsch Hervormde Kerk" by the Trekkers, "hervormd" being the germanic (Dutch) word for "reformed". It was only after the Great Trek that the church in the Cape was renamed to "Nederduitse Gereformeerde Kerk", "gereformeerd" being the romantic (French, from the Latin) word for "reformed". The people who went away on the Great Trek kept the name as "Hervormde" and this denomination is, by rights, still the oldest one in South Africa, as it existed continuously from the arrival of Van Riebeeck until the present. As the NG Kerk is also still, despite the name change, a direct "descendant" of the "Nederlandse Hervormde Kerk" of Van Riebeeck, it could, however, lay claim to "jointly being the oldest denomination/church in South Africa". Please give your thoughts and amend the article if it seems necessary. Historical correctness on Wikipedia is quite important, don't you think? 196.211.98.155 (talk) 12:22, 11 January 2010 (UTC)


 * Your reasoning seems clear and well presented. All you need is some solid references. There is a book about the early history of the church available at ; that might be a good starting point --NJR_ZA (talk) 12:49, 11 January 2010 (UTC)

English translation?
What does its name mean in English? It looks like it more or less means "Dutch Reformed Church". Is that right? john k 15:06, 3 August 2007 (UTC)

I've edited the introduction to clarify this. Bertusb (talk) 10:42, 24 July 2008 (UTC)

Actually it's "Low German Reformed Church". "duits" meaning "German" and "neder" "low" as in "the low countries". In the Netherlands, the name was changed to "Nederlandse Gereformeerde Kerk", in South Africa, however, it is maintained. Check out the Afrikaans (and Dutch) article about nederduits and change to English: http://af.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nederduits

If nooone opposes it, I'll change the name to Low German. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 178.6.206.230 (talk) 19:14, 27 January 2012 (UTC)

Support of Apartheid
The page really ought to mention something about the church's support for the Apartheid regime in South Africa. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.180.224.222 (talk) 06:25, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

Yes, it's laughable how the current article jumps from 1910 to 2006 without so much as blinking. It might be a bit of a challenge to get this filled in though. It might be a good idea to present a section on church history in this interval, but also a section to specifically deal with the church's involvement in Apartheid which should integrate with Wikipedia entries on South African history. Hendvi (talk) 06:44, 25 September 2009 (UTC)


 * The missing time interval is sort of treated in Afrikaner nationalism. I'm not sure what this means, but I get the impression that the South African Dutch-Speaking Reformed Christianity have been riddled by internal split as well as external conflicts. Maybe it is not quite that easy to untangle the threads? Rursus dixit. ( m bork3 !) 11:11, 13 April 2010 (UTC)


 * For most of the time frame between 1910 and 1990, the NGK was more concerned with the political than with the spiritual. It might well take another decade to write an objective history of the NGK for that time frame. That concern had both its good points, and its bad points, for each population group in the country. The scriptural justification for supporting apartheid used by the NGK is the same as the scriptural justification used by Southern Churches to oppose integration. jonathon (talk) 20:01, 14 July 2010 (UTC)


 * I tend to disagree with jonathon and say the opposite: that between 1910 and 1990 the NG Church was not very concerned with the political, i.e. the church was satisfied with just accepting the policies of the government. -- leuce (talk) 07:26, 27 October 2015 (UTC)


 * I think the article is definitely incomplete without stating the theological reasons for the support of apartheid. I came to the page specifically to find this out but there is nothing. I think this article would be a good reference for a paragraph on the topic: 'The Dutch Reformed Church and Apartheid' by Susan Rennie Ritner, First Published October 1, 1967, Journal of Contemporary History, SAGE Journals. Unfortunately I don't have access to it.Strayan (talk) 05:34, 23 November 2019 (UTC)

I think it should also reflect the NGKs role in the official Nationalist government policy of Christian National Education, which included, amongst other things: the theology of Black subjugation; that women should play a subordinate role to men; and the teaching of creationism. I would add that the NGK was the de facto official church of the Apartheid governments, and had a considerable amount of influence in shaping social policy relative to other Christian churches and other religions. Sarahbasson61 (talk) 11:22, 10 February 2022 (UTC) Sarahbasson61

Article title should use English translation
It is my understanding that English Wikipedia's article titles should be in English. On the English website of the Nederduits Gereformeerde Kerk, the name is given as simply Dutch Reformed Church (DRC). However, as there is the older and no longer extant Dutch Reformed Church, which is this church's parent, the title would need a disambiguation. The article is already redirected from Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa. Would that be the correct way to disambiguate or would Dutch Reformed Church (South Africa) be correct? After a week without comment I will move the article to Dutch Reformed Church (South Africa) as based on the church's website it is officially known in English as the Dutch Reformed Church. However, as I am not familiar with this church I want to first seek the opinions of those more familiar. Ltwin (talk) 03:23, 8 July 2010 (UTC)
 * "Dutch Reformed Church (South Africa)" seems like a perfectly sensible title to me. - htonl (talk) 06:17, 8 July 2010 (UTC)


 * Thanks for commenting. I would have just went ahead with it but there was already a redirect with in South Africa and I didn't know if that was a name common for the church. Ltwin (talk) 15:20, 8 July 2010 (UTC)


 * There are at least four denominations in South Africa, whose name, when translated into Standard American English is "Dutch Reformed Church", of which the NGK and NHK are the two best known. For South Africans, Nederduits Gereformeerde Kerk is English, albeit NGK is the more common term in South African English.jonathon (talk) 13:59, 9 July 2010 (UTC)
 * What about Dutch Reformed Church (NGK)? şṗøʀĸ şṗøʀĸ:  τᴀʟĸ 04:30, 10 July 2010 (UTC)


 * First, thanks Pseudo daoist for commenting. I was not aware that there were other churches which when translated into English share the same name. This does seem to put Dutch Reformed Church (South Africa) as a title out of question. Carlaude's suggestion seems a good way to go.


 * Second, the information given by Pseudo daoist leaves me thinking that the Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa redirect to this page is misleading as this is not the only Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa. Should this redirect be turned into a page to list all of the South African churches that share this name? Ltwin (talk) 05:01, 10 July 2010 (UTC)


 * I'm not a fan of Dutch Reformed Church (NGK), but I can live with it. If one uses Carluade's suggestion, I can see at least two redirects being created for each organization that has a wikipedia article. Plus the usual dismbiguation page(s). NGK and NHK should have their own article. I don't know if the others are noteworthy enough to have their own article. Nor do I know if listing them on a disambig page, with a paragraph about them violates WP:Undue. (The redirects are for the Afrikaans name, the abreviation, and an English name.)jonathon (talk) 16:40, 12 July 2010 (UTC)


 * You say "The redirects are for the Afrikaans name, the abbreviation, and an English name," but if I understand you correctly, isn't the English translation of these all simply "Dutch Reformed Church". If so an English redirect without an abbreviation to distinguish it would be impossible as it would simply be "Dutch Reformed Church" because there is already an article there. To my mind that is the issue here. That there are a number of denominations which apparently all use the "Dutch Reformed Church" as their name in English.


 * When I mentioned the disambiguation page, I was not aware that this was the only South African Dutch Reformed Church which had an article. I guess the disambiguation page would only be necessary if there were articles on the other churches. But when an article on the NHK is written the Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa redirect should probably be disassociated from this page. Ltwin (talk) 18:56, 12 July 2010 (UTC)


 * I'm looking at a couple of different things here:
 * a) NGK and its offshoot creations: Dutch Reformed Mission Church, which was for non-whites, and Dutch Reformed Church in Africa, which was for native Africans. Those two churches have since united as Uniting Reformed Church in Southern Africa. Afrikaanse Protestantse Kerk (Afrikaans Protestant Church) is another offspring of the NGK, albeit for very different reasons than the first two;
 * b) NGK or Nederduits Gereformeerde Kerk or Dutch Reformed Church and NHK or Nederduitsch Hervormde Kerk or Dutch Reformed Church and GKSA or GK or 'Gereformeerde Kerke in Suid-Afrika or Reformed Church of South Africa. (Doing a quick Google Search, I'm not sure anybody ever translates Nederduitsch Hervormde Kerk.)(Now wondering where the NHK article in English Wikipedia is hiding.)(For those who noticed that NGK and NHK only share "Kerk" in common, and are wondering about the English translation, the former is Afrikaans, and the latter is Dutch.);
 * Note in passing: English Wikipedia typically uses the "original" name of the Afrikaans organization, which is usually Standard South African English, rather than a translation into Standard British English or Standard American English. jonathon (talk) 04:54, 13 July 2010 (UTC)


 * Ok I'm thinking this is one of those cases where we may just have to leave it the way it is. The intricacies of South African naming is just confusing for me. I'm ok with making a redirect from Dutch Reformed Church (NGK). That still leaves the question of the Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa. What would you suggest we do with that? I don't think it should stay here. Should we just delete this? Ltwin (talk) 21:42, 13 July 2010 (UTC)


 * At times I think that South African naming conventions are done purely to ensure that outsiders have no idea about where, and what is being referred to.jonathon (talk) 22:24, 14 July 2010 (UTC)


 * However, and maybe you can clear this up for me. The NGK is the oldest Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa and the largest. Does it and most South Africans see it as the direct successor to the Dutch Reformed Church tradition? If such then I could see that redirect remaining here. I'm guess what I'm trying to find out is the appropriateness of WP labeling this church as the Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa. Of course, if the church uses in South Africa itself then there's no problem. Ltwin (talk) 21:42, 13 July 2010 (UTC)


 * I'm not going to get into a debate about which (NGK, NHK,GK) is the oldest. The NGK is the largest. The NGK also claims the oldest church building in South Africa. All three can be considered direct successors of the NHK in The Netherlands. I'm with making it (Dutch reformed church church in south africa) a redirect to the south africa section on the DRC disambig page.  jonathon (talk) 19:04, 14 July 2010 (UTC)


 * Afrikaanse wiki has a stub for NHK, http://af.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nederduitsch_Hervormde_Kerk. I just translated it into English. http://af.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gereformeerde_Kerk and http://af.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nederduits_Gereformeerde_Kerk might have useful content to add to those respective articles in Englishjonathon (talk) 19:04, 14 July 2010 (UTC)


 * One more thing. Nederduits Gereformeerde Kerk is what language again (Dutch or Afrikaans)? And it means Dutch Reformed Church. Correct? I'm asking because the article needs to note what language whether Dutch or Afrikaans. Ltwin (talk) 21:42, 13 July 2010 (UTC)


 * Hervormede is Dutch. Geformeerde is Afrikaans.jonathon (talk) 19:04, 14 July 2010 (UTC)


 * Ok then I think that pretty much does it. Thanks Jonathon for putting up with my questions. It can all be quite confusing for an American :) Ltwin (talk) 22:02, 14 July 2010 (UTC)


 * I'll try to finish translating the Afrikaans article on the GK to English today. I didn't think of it earlier, but one could create a page Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa that contains the English translation of http://af.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drie_Susterkerke, and use it as the disambiguation page.jonathon (talk) 22:24, 14 July 2010 (UTC)


 * That sounds good to me. Thanks for the links. The "three sisters" term is helpful in describing the relationship between the churches. Ltwin (talk) 22:28, 14 July 2010 (UTC)


 * A disambig page Dutch Reformed Church (South Africa) would list the various organizations that split from them, joined them, or simply changed their name. Dutch Reformed Church (disambiguation)would work as well as a stand alone page, if a paragraph about each organization without a Wikipedia article is included. jonathon (talk) 16:40, 12 July 2010 (UTC)

How about just pointing it to Dutch Reformed Church (disambiguation) and fixing that page with a South Africa section. şṗøʀĸ şṗøʀĸ: τᴀʟĸ 21:13, 10 July 2010 (UTC)


 * That'll work. So if no one objects I will go ahead and make these changes. Ltwin (talk) 02:51, 11 July 2010 (UTC)


 * Pointing Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa to Dutch Reformed Church (disambiguation) and then to South Africa makes sense to me.jonathon (talk) 19:04, 14 July 2010 (UTC)

Requested moves

 * The following discussion is an archived discussion of a requested move. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section on the talk page. Editors desiring to contest the closing decision should consider a move review. No further edits should be made to this section. 

The result of the move request was: moved. Jenks24 (talk) 07:23, 8 July 2014 (UTC)

– Per WP:EN, we need to use English names for these pages. NGK and NHK both translate to "Dutch Reformed Church". In English they are usually distinguished by their Afrikaans acronyms. No disambiguation is required for Reformed Churches in South Africa, though there should be a hatnote back to Reformed Church in South Africa. JFH (talk) 18:08, 29 June 2014 (UTC)
 * Nederduitse Gereformeerde Kerk → Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa (NGK)
 * Nederduitsch Hervormde Kerk van Afrika → Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa (NHK)
 * Gereformeerde Kerke → Reformed Churches in South Africa
 * Afrikaanse Protestantse Kerk → Afrikaans Protestant Church
 * Volkskerk van Afrika → People's Church of Africa


 * Agreed. I tried to push for this several years ago, but one user objected saying that the Afrikaans names were standard English in South Africa. I still think your proposal is the best option. Ltwin (talk) 18:29, 29 June 2014 (UTC)


 * As an English South African I'd say that the abbreviations "NGK" and "NHK" (and forms like "NG Kerk" or "NG Church") are standard in South African English, but I don't think the full spelled-out Afrikaans names are commonly-used in English. - htonl (talk) 18:56, 29 June 2014 (UTC)


 * The above discussion is preserved as an archive of a requested move. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section on this talk page or in a move review. No further edits should be made to this section.

Need sections on (a) liberal theology debacle, (b) DRMC and (c) DRCA
The current text says "The revival also led to an interest in mission work which led to the establishment of the Dutch Reformed Mission Church for coloureds and the Dutch Reformed Church in Africa for blacks." which is incorrect. The interest in missions work started in 1824 already (not 1860), and the DRMC was not originally intended as a separate denomination, but instead as a missions church. Furthermore, the DRCA was only founded in 1951 (almost a century later), so that has nothing to do with the 1860 revival. -- leuce (talk) 07:42, 27 October 2015 (UTC)

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Why the Riaan Cruywagen image?
Lotje added a picture of Riaan Cruywagen (https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Dutch_Reformed_Church_in_South_Africa_(NGK)&diff=next&oldid=688574210) but I can't figure out why. Does anyone know? --leuce (talk) 23:11, 13 December 2016 (UTC)

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More info on the 1862 split
There is some useful information about the 1862 split here: https://kerkbode.christians.co.za/2019/06/18/wat-drie-hofsake-ons-leer/ Apparently, there was only one synod until that time, but during the liberal vs conservative controversy, the high court ruled that ministers from outside the Cape Colony were legally not allowed on the synod, and this lead to the creation of separate synods outside the Cape Colony. The author of this article believes that the reason for the establishment of a local seminary had nothing to do with a "revival" but rather to preserve conservatism (since the liberal views were mostly held by ministers who were trained in Europe). --leuce (talk) 08:47, 22 June 2019 (UTC)

Links to the Afrikaner Broederbond
--Sarahbasson61 (talk) 11:36, 10 February 2022 (UTC) The DRC was closely linked to and heavily influenced the Afrikaner Broederbond, a secret white male society that exercised great influence over the National Party and the nationalist Apartheid government, with members often placed in influential positions in both government and the private sector. The involvement of the DRC via the Afrikaner Boederbond is a further manifestation of the power of the DRC in influencing and propping up the Afrikaner Calvinist nature of the Apartheid governments.