The seventeenth century was the period in which, in both England and the Netherlands, decisions were made regarding the liturgy and government of the church that would remain influential for centuries. In the Netherlands, this occurred particularly at the beginning of the seventeenth century, when the Synod of Dort established a church order. As early as the second half of the sixteenth century, Dutch synods had already been tasked with addressing matters of liturgy and church government. They had also made decisions on these matters, but the entire process only truly reached its conclusion with the Synod of Dort. This book has already clarified how history unfolded in England regarding these matters.

The close ecclesiastical and religious ties between the two countries make a comparison worthwhile. It should be noted, however, that this comparison is based on the decisions of the Dutch church councils on the one hand and the Synod of Westminster on the other. This means that no account is taken of whether these decisions were implemented and, if so, how. In England, the changed political situation after the conclusion of the Synod meant that, especially as far as the governance of the church was concerned, much of what Westminster had envisioned could not be achieved.

The Church⤒🔗

A first notable difference between the church orders of the Dutch Reformed churches and that of the Synod of Westminster is the relationship between the local church and the universal church. The Church Order of Westminster begins with “the one universal church, which is visible and described in the New Testament.” Only then does it speak of "the separate visible churches, which are members of the catholic (universal) church." The Dutch church orders, however, take their starting point with the local churches, which unite into a whole in the form of a federation. Consequently, the English church has a more hierarchical structure than the Dutch. The Directory for Church Government therefore states that it is a proper thing that there is “subordination of the local, classical, provincial, and national church assembly.” This difference has everything to do with the ecclesiastical and national history of both countries. In England, a reformation is being brought about from above. In the Netherlands, there is opposition to a reformation from above, so that reformatory forces have no choice but to organize themselves locally or regionally. For example, in England, there is first the national church and then the local church; in the Netherlands the local church comes first, and then the national church.

Limitations←⤒🔗

When discussing the differences in church orders, attention should also be paid to what is included in one church order and what is missing in another. In this regard it is striking that the Westminster church order is much more limited in terms of subjects. The Dutch church orders actually cover five subjects: the offices, church assemblies, doctrine, the sacraments, and church discipline. The English church order, on the other hand, primarily concerns office-bearers and church assemblies. No further provisions are included regarding doctrine and the sacraments. What is striking, however, is the relatively large amount of attention paid to the examination and ordination of ministers. Interesting in this context is the stipulation that the minister’s personal gifts must be compatible with the congregation to which he will be affiliated. To determine whether the two are truly compatible, the minister must first preach and speak to the congregation for three days. This allows the congregation to get to know him better, both personally and spiritually. What must happen next is clear:

On the last day of these three days appointed for the evaluation of his gifts of preaching, the consistory will send a public notice to the congregation. This notice must be read publicly to the congregation and then posted on the church door. It must state that a date has been appointed on which a significant number of members of the congregation—designated by the congregation itself—will appear before the consistory. They will come to give their consent and approval for this man to become their minister, or else, with Christian discretion and gentleness, to make clear their objections to him. If there is no legitimate objection to him on that appointed day, and the members are pleased with him, the consistory will proceed with ordination.

This provision in particular clearly demonstrates how Westminster sought an ecclesiastical structure and order in which Presbyterians and Congregationalists could find common ground.

Gifts←⤒🔗

A second striking difference is the attention the Westminster church order gives to the various gifts within the congregation. This is made very concrete when it comes to ministers. The Lord of the Church has given various gifts regarding the ministry of the Word. Now, it is possible for one minister to possess all these gifts. However, if there are multiple ministers in a congregation, each can focus on working with their own specific gifts. For example, some ministers are better at teaching, others at comforting. One minister is primarily gifted at explaining Scripture, while another is skilled at refuting errors.

In contrast, Dutch church orders tend to assume one minister per congregation, without further elaborating on each minister’s specific gifts. Given this difference, the Westminster church order feels quite “modern” because of its attention to the diversity of these gifts.

Liturgy←⤒🔗

More striking and significant are the liturgical differences between the English and Dutch churches. Regarding the order of service, it should first be noted that the order of the service is quite precisely defined. For example, it stipulates that, in addition to the text to be preached, a passage from Scripture must be read in each service. If possible, this will be a chapter from the Old Testament and a chapter from the New Testament. The regulations are also detailed on other points. The liturgical freedom with regard to the order of service, so characteristic of Dutch churches, is hardly present in the English order. As described in a previous chapter, this strict liturgical order is related to the desire for uniformity on the one hand and the strong influence of high church thinking on the other. A few examples will clarify that these are primarily external differences with the Netherlands, because in both countries, the main focus is on proclaiming and hearing the Word of God.

The sermon←⤒🔗

The order of worship contains what amounts to a concise homiletic. It describes in detail how the minister should prepare and deliver his sermon. His knowledge of the biblical languages ​​of Greek and Hebrew obliges him to read the text in the original language and to prepare the sermon based on this. During the service, the preacher must then briefly introduce and explain the sermon text. The sermon needs to have divisions, as this makes it easier for the listeners to follow. However, the preacher must ensure that there are not too many subdivisions, as this may hinder the memory. If doctrines are addressed in the sermon, this can only be done because they are addressed from the biblical text. This must be clearly demonstrated. Moreover, these doctrines may only be addressed if they serve the upbuilding of the faith of the congregation. This means, in concrete terms, that these doctrines need to be applicable.

Whatever the preacher’s method of proclamation, his ministry in this regard must meet certain requirements. The Order of the Liturgy lists seven of these requirements and states that the minister must perform his work as follows: conscientiously, clearly, faithfully, wisely, seriously, lovingly, and as taught by God.

Reverence←⤒🔗

"When the congregation gathers for public worship, all members should come and participate, having prepared their hearts for it. They should not stay away from public gatherings out of indifference or under the pretext that they are meeting at home.

“Everyone should take care not to enter the assembly irreverently, but in a serious and proper manner, taking their places without worshipping anything in the church or bowing in any particular direction. When the congregation has gathered, the minister begins with a prayer, after calling on the congregation to glorify the great Name of God....

“When the public worship has begun in this way, the entire congregation ought to be involved. It is forbidden to read anything other than what the minister reads or quotes. One should refrain from whispering, conversing with others, greeting others, or paying attention to those already present or still arriving. One should also avoid all staring, sleeping, or other improper behaviour that would disturb the minister or the congregation, or hinders oneself or others in serving God.”

Sacrament and Sabbath←⤒🔗

It has already been noted that the church order of Westminster has no provisions regarding baptism. These can be found, however, in the Order for Worship. This order contains provisions not only about the manner of administering baptism, but also on the church order aspects of who may be baptized and who may administer baptism. For the rest, the rules for baptism and the Lord’s Supper are virtually identical to those in the Netherlands.

This does not apply to the celebration of the Sunday. While the Dutch Church Order stipulates that the Lord’s Day must be observed and that the congregation must gather on that day, the Westminster Order for Worship has a much more detailed description of how to spend the Sunday. All worldly activities must be ended in a timely manner so that they do not interfere with the proper observance of the Sunday. The entire day must be sanctified, so that one abstains not only from work, sports, and other forms of recreation, but also from all worldly thoughts and words. Meals should be prepared in such a way that servants are not forced to work unnecessarily, nor are others hindered in their observance of the Sabbath day.

Everyone is expected to pray and ask God for help, either individually or as a family, especially for the minister. In the time before or after the church service, one should engage in reading, meditating, or listening to sermons together as a family. Furthermore, one should engage in teaching, prayer, singing psalms, visiting the sick, helping the poor, and other works of piety and charity.

Visiting the Sick←⤒🔗

Another point of dissimilarity concerns the visiting of the sick as performed by the minister. In the 1645 edition, there are even four pages devoted to this topic. Times of illness and adversity are particularly good opportunities for God to place in the hands of the pastor to reach people with the Word. In such situations, people are more preoccupied with eternal concerns, but are also more vulnerable to temptation and opposition from Satan. How the minister should serve the Word in these specific situations is then outlined in the order of worship. First, he needs to make it clear that illness and adversity come from God’s hand, and that God will therefore always use these setbacks for good. Next, the pastor is to encourage self-examination, so that the church member in question gains an awareness of sin and guilt. If repentance then arises, or if it becomes clear that the sick person was indeed walking in the Lord’s way and yet still suffered, the pastor must proceed to comfort with the gospel. This comfort should also come from the emphatic message that those who are in Christ need not fear death. The pastor must also seize the opportunity to remind those around the sick person of their mortality and encourage them to repent and turn to Christ.

Psalms←⤒🔗

It is the duty of christians to publicly praise God by singing psalms together in the congregation and individually in the family. When singing the psalms, the voice should be melodious and earnest. The main thing, however, should be to sing clearly and with gratitude in the heart. In order that the entire congregation is able to participate, everyone who can read should have a psalm book, and all others, except those who cannot because of their age, should be encouraged to learn to read.

However, since many in the congregation are still unable to read, it is good that the minister –or someone else qualified and appointed by him and the other ruling elders– reads the psalm line by line before it is sung.

Fasting←⤒🔗

Another notable difference concerns what Westminster decided on fasting. The Dutch churches had regulations regarding fasting and prayer days, but on this topic too, the rules of the English churches are much more detailed. In times of distress, when the country and people are struck by God’s judgments, a public and solemn fast should be observed. This means “total abstinence, not only from food, but from all worldly labour, conversation, and thoughts, and from all bodily pleasures (that is, pleasures that are otherwise permissible), luxurious clothing, adornments, and the like.” In this fast, the congregation and family should gather together for Word and prayer. Ministers should choose texts that are most suitable to bring people to repentance and conversion. The order of service then provides an overview of how such a gathering of the congregation should proceed. Moreover, on this day, everyone should seek the face of God and pray for his grace to restrain his judgments. It is quite possible that individual congregations would also observe such days in addition to the general fast days if there were reason to do so.

Conclusion←⤒🔗

We have only touched upon the differences between the Netherlands and England. This might give the impression that there are indeed significant disparities. However, the reason they are discussed separately here is simply that the similarities predominate. This certainly applies to the principles of church order and liturgy. In both the Netherlands and England, the kingship of Christ is the foundation of order in the churches, and the encounter between the Lord and his church forms the heart of the liturgy. Based on these principles, the churches in both countries align themselves with the Reformation and are therefore Reformed in the true sense of the word.