By John Johnson, Redeemer Reformed Church Plant, Reno metropolitan area, Nevada

If you've looked into Reformed churches, you've probably seen the phrase "Three Forms of Unity." It sounds formal, maybe even a little intimidating. It's actually simple: three documents, written between 1561 and 1619, that summarize what the Bible teaches. Churches that hold them agree to believe and teach the same faith. That's the "unity."

Redeemer Reformed Church Plant holds all three, and so do the United Reformed Churches in North America (URCNA), the federation Redeemer is waiting to join as a mission church plant. Here is a short introduction to each.

The Belgic Confession (1561)

Guido de Brès wrote the Belgic Confession. He was a Reformed pastor in the Low Countries (today's Belgium and the Netherlands), and he wrote it while Protestants there were being persecuted under the Spanish crown. In 1562 the confession was sent to King Philip II of Spain to show that Reformed Christians held to the historic Christian faith taught in Scripture. De Brès was put to death for his faith in 1567.

Its 37 articles move through the whole Christian faith: how we know God, Scripture, the Trinity, creation, sin, Christ and salvation, the church and sacraments, civil government, and Christ's return.

The Heidelberg Catechism (1563)

Frederick III, ruler of the Palatinate in Germany, commissioned the Heidelberg Catechism, and Zacharias Ursinus is regarded as its main author. Its 129 questions and answers are grouped into 52 "Lord's Days," one for each Sunday of the year. They follow three parts: our sin and misery, how we are delivered, and how we thank God for that deliverance.

It opens with one of the best-loved questions in church history: "What is your only comfort in life and in death?"

The Canons of Dort (1618–1619)

In the early 1600s, followers of the theologian Jacobus Arminius set out their views in the Five Articles of Remonstrance (1610). The Synod of Dort met in Dordrecht in 1618–1619, with delegates from the Netherlands and from Reformed churches in other countries. Its answer, the Canons of Dort, confesses that salvation is God's work of grace from beginning to end.

Why three documents together?

The Synod of Dort adopted the Canons alongside the Belgic Confession and the Heidelberg Catechism, which the Dutch churches already used. Since then, the three have been held together as one confession of faith. Each plays a different part:

• The Belgic Confession states the faith.
• The Heidelberg Catechism teaches the faith, warmly and personally.
• The Canons of Dort defend the faith where it was challenged.

Why it matters to you

These aren't museum pieces. Christopher J. Gordon, senior minister of Escondido United Reformed Church, writes:

"The Reformed confessions greatly aid the kind of vitality in the Christian life that people often seek everywhere else."

Over the coming weeks, we'll take each document in turn. If you'd like to talk about any of this in person, we'd love to hear from you. Contact us

Want to go deeper?

• R. Scott Clark, "A Synopsis of the Three Forms of Unity," Heidelblog
• Kim Riddlebarger's reading list, "What Should I Read to Learn About the Three Forms?"
• URCNA, Creeds and Confessions (paperback), which has all three documents plus the ecumenical creeds in one volume

Sources

• Christopher J. Gordon, "Confessions and Piety," Tabletalk Magazine

Next in this series: The Belgic Confession: A Faith Worth Dying For