7 comments

1. If one quarrels with “pagan” as a less than charitable description of Christmas, perhaps “superstitious” or “will worship” would be more to the point. There’s no question that neither the apostolic or the early church observed the day.

   For that matter, Dabney’s comments regarding musical instruments come to mind concerning those things which seem ever so appropriate and made by the best men and ministers with the very best of motives:

   “. . . (T)hat it was just thus every damnable corruption which has cursed the church took its beginning; in the addition to the modes of worship ordained by Christ for the New dispensation, of human devices, which seemed ever so pretty and appropriate, made by the best of men and women and ministers with the very best of motives, and borrowed mostly from the temple cultus of the Jews. Thus came vestments, pictures in churches, incense, the observances of the martyrs’ anniversary days in a word, that whole apparatus of will-worship and superstition which bloomed into popery and idolatry. “Why, all these pretty inventions were innocent. The very best of people used them. They were so appropriate, so aesthetic! Where could the harm be?” History answers the question: They disobeyed God and introduced popery, a result quite unforeseen by the good souls who began the mischief.”

   The Jews at least had the commandment of God for their special days, Rome and Protestantism after her, not so much.

   Cheers and Happy Holidays

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   • This position would be relevant if Christmas was a commanded holy day among the modern reformed. It is not, and there is no requirement to join any Christmas Eve service like that of the Lords Day

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     • Church Order of Dort (1618)
       Article 63: “The Lordly Supper shall be administered once every two months, wherever possible, and it will be edifying that it take place at Easter, Pentecost, and Christmas where the circumstances of the Church permit. However, in those places where the Church has not yet been instituted, first of all Elders and Deacons shall be provided.”

       Article 67: “The Churches shall observe, in addition to Sunday, also Christmas, Easter, and Pentecost, with the following day, and whereas in most of the cities and provinces of the Netherlands the day of Circumcision and of Ascension of Christ are also observed, Ministers in every place where this is not yet done shall take steps with the Government to have them conform with the others.”

       URCNA Church Order Article 37: Corporate Worship and Special Services

       “The Consistory shall call the congregation together for corporate worship twice on each Lord’s Day. Special services may be called in observance of Christmas Day, Good Friday, Ascension Day, a day of prayer, the national Thanksgiving Day, New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day, as well as in times of great distress or blessing. Attention should also be given to Easter and Pentecost on their respective Lord’s Days.”

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       • Thanks for sharing those quotes. Those are only relevant to the Dutch reformed however, (which is a minority of the worldwide reformed) and the URCNA order itself mentions that these services are not required, but rather maybe be called.

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         • Ben, I’m not disagreeing that the Dutch Reformed are a minority among confessional Calvinists, but you had said this: “This position would be relevant if Christmas was a commanded holy day among the modern reformed. It is not, and there is no requirement to join any Christmas Eve service like that of the Lords Day.”

           There are modern Reformed churches where Christmas is a commanded holy day. I disagree with that position, but it is the historic Dutch Reformed position dating back over four centuries.

           Furthermore, for better or for worse, after the collapse of the mainline denominations in North America and most of Europe in the late 1800s and early 1900s, for most of the 1900s, the Dutch Reformed were the major expression of conservative Calvinism. Some of that was simply because they were the “last man standing” — let’s be honest, the OPC was a really tiny group for much of its early history. But another factor is that due to their publishing houses and colleges and seminaries, the Dutch Reformed in the US, Canada, and Europe continued to have an outside influence far beyond their numbers, well into the late 1900s, even after groups like the PCA began.

           The theological collapse of the Christian Reformed Church and the rise of the PCA changed many things in the Reformed world, but I think many conservative Reformed people today are unaware of how important the Dutch Reformed were for most of the last century. That meant some of the historic Dutch distinctives, including the Christological holy days, became not just a tolerated minority position but the norm in much of the Reformed world.

     • To be clear, I’m not advocating for the holy days, or advocating the Dutch Reformed practice of observing the Christological holy days that commemorate events in the life of Christ but omitting the others.

       My point is that the Church Order of Dort DID require that they be observed and even encouraged special communion services on some of them.

       This isn’t ancient history. A few of the most conservative Dutch Reformed denominations still use the Church Order of Dort. The reason is that following the French Revolution, the Dutch government abolished the historic church order, turned the church into a de facto government department, and introduced a number of innovations including manmade hymns. Not only the Afscheiding churches (the first of two roots of the Christian Reformed Church in North America and Free Reformed Churches in North America/CGK in the Netherlands) but also the “Churches Under the Cross” or “Ledeboerian” churches (which eventually became the Netherlands Reformed/Gereformeerde Gemeenten) returned to the original Church Order of Dort. While the version in use by the CRC and URC and Canadian Reformed is significantly different from the original text of Dort, as far as I know, the Netherlands Reformed Congregations, Heritage Reformed Congregations, Gereformeerden Gemeenten, and Oud Gereformeerden still use the Dort Church Order. I’m not sure about the current church orders of the Free Reformed or the CGKN, but that was their historic position.

       Of course, there are parts of the Church Order of Dort that are effectively inoperative, such as government control of printing of religious materials, but for the more conservative Dutch Reformed bodies, the requirement for churches to observe Christmas remains in effect.

       If memory serves me correctly, the De Gier Church Order Commentary (the FRC/CGKN equivalent to the VanDellen-Monsma Church Order Commentary in the CRC) mentions that members cannot be compelled to attend special services, unlike the Lord’s Day, if absent as a matter of conscience, but the church order requires that they be held. I can’t quickly find a copy online to verify my memory, but presumably that was intended to recognize that conservative Presbyterians in the 1600s and 1700s might refuse to attend a Christmas Day or Ascension Day service if temporarily residing in the Netherlands.

       To repeat — I am NOT advocating for observing holy days other than the Lord’s Day, let alone mandating their observance. But there are Reformed denominations that do.

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       • Thank you for your replies. I appreciate the knowledge you share.

         I am curious however, if consistories would not discipline members for choosing not to attend holy days services, would this not mean they are not commanded holy days? Since any good consistory/session would discipline members for willful avoidance of worship, if it is true that consistories did not/would not discipline members for avoiding these services in my mind I see them as not “commanded”.

         I hope that makes sense, and would appreciate your wisdom and further thoughts on that distinction.

         Much thanks,
         Ben

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