“The Church Reformed, Always Reforming”

By Rev. Freddy Fritz

From the October 2020 Trumpet

October 31 is the day on which Protestants celebrate the start of the Reformation. That is the day in 1517 when Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses on the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany. What was intended for debate among scholars became fuel that triggered the Reformation. Today one sometimes hears the phrase, “The church reformed, always reforming” (or, in Latin, ecclesia reformata, semper reformanda). This motto, or slogan, is often used to support all kinds of theological innovations and practices. But that was not the original intention for the motto. According to church historian W. Robert Godfrey, the slogan most likely originated in a devotional book written by a Dutch minister named Jodocus van Lodenstein in 1674. Pastor van Lodenstein served as a pastor in Utrecht from 1653 until his death in 1677. By the time of Pastor van Lodenstein’s pastoral ministry, the great doctrines of the Reformation were settled. The Belgic Confession was formulated in 1561, the Heidelberg Catechism in 1563, and the Canons of Dort in 1619. Even the English Westminster Confession of Faith was completed by 1647. The Reformed Churches were committed to a Calvinistic understanding regarding doctrine, worship, and church government.

Last updated Friday, October 2, 2020

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