Second Table Ministries
"The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself....'" Mark 12:31
What is the Belhar Confession?
Belhar is a small suburb of Cape Town, South Africa, that is witness to a great event. In 1982, the mixed-race mission church which had been excluded from its parent, the Dutch Reformed Church, in the mid-1880's, wrote a confession of faith about justice issues, including a special focus on racism, reconciliation, and unity. This document, adopted in Belhar in 1986, is now known as the "Belhar Confession."The Belhar Confession is accepted by a number of Reformed Christian churches in Africa and Europe as a confession, equal in authority to the Belgic Confession, the Canons of Dordt, and the Heidelberg Catechism. In June, 2009, in North America, the Synods of both the Reformed Church in America (RCA), and the Christian Reformed Church in North America (CRCNA) took major steps toward ultimate adoption of the Belhar Confession. The RCA vote to adopt must be ratified by 2/3 of its Classes by March, 2010 and the CRCNA vote to adopt must be ratified by its Synod in 2012. The Presbyterian Church USA will consider this issue in 2010.
The Belhar is relevant to all Christian churches today because it addresses critical issues that are emphasized in Scripture - unity among the people of God, reconciliation within the church and society, injustices of all kinds, and God's bias on behalf of those who have been wronged.
Resources Regarding the Belhar Confession
1. The Belhar Confession with Scripture texts, including the "Accompanying Letter"
and the "Statement of Introduction" by the CRCNA and the RCA, taken from the
Interchurch Relations Committee (IRC) Report to Synod, June 2009.
In October, 2007 FCRCS became the first assembly of Reformed believers in
North America to formally adopt the Belhar Confession as one of its doctrinal
standards. This is an explanation of that process.
to Synod, in June, 2009. In essence this report asks for a three-year study of the
Belhar by CRCNA churches and recommends adoption in 2012. The report
gives an excellent history of the development of this confession, reports on some
27 years of study of the Belhar by the denomination, and gives the grounds for its
recommendations.
Prepared by the FCRCS Belhar Implementation Team, this is a brief discussion
of the major issues that usually arise when Belhar adoption is under serious
consideration.
5. The 2009 overture from Classis Pacific Northwest to Synod endorsing the
recommendations of the IRC but providing additional grounds. This overture
emphasizes the role of confessions in the Reformed tradition, the importance of
church leadership in addressing the issues of our current society, and applies
the Belhar to our 21st century context.
6. RCA Theologians Address the Belhar Confession. Articles in the "Reformed
Review: A Theological Journal of Western Theological Seminary, Fall 2006."
Cynthia Holder Rich, Western Theological Seminary.
Boesak, October 2007.
9. Link to the RCA Belhar Study Center.
