Moet ons die Belydenis van belhar (1986) as 'n nuwe Belydenisskrif aanvaar?

Abstract

Can  we  accept  the  Confession  of Belhar  (1986)  as  a  new  doctrinal confession? The possibility exists that the Dutch Refonned Church  (DRC)  could stop the process of  church  unity  in  its  own family  due  to  its  refusal  to  accept The Confession 1986 (Confession of  Belhar) as afourth refonned confession.  In this  article  the  question  of  acceptance  is  examined from four perspectives and  it  is  concluded  that  it should be  accepted  if  the DRC wants  to  gain credibility.  First  the  nature,  characteristics  and  history  of confessions oblige the Church  in difficult situations  to adopt new confessions.  Secondly the history of  the DRC and its family makes  it  imperative  to  overcome  the gulf between  believers from  the  same  tradition  through  the  "language  of confession".  Thirdly  the main  contents of  the  confession  is biblically sound while absolutism  of  different kinds  is  avoided.  Lastly  it  is  argued  that  the confession  satisfies  the  requirement  for  both  contextual  relevance  and universal applicability.