Abstract:
The view exists that the term denomination is especially evident of the nineteenth century Netherlands at the time when an attempt was made to accomplish change in the Nederlandse Hervormde Kerk. The decay in the Church at the time can mainly be ascribed to the influence of the authorities on the church, material welfare, as well as the climate of thought which originated in the Aufklärung. During this period two theologians were prominent, namely P J Hoedemaker and A Kuyper. The latter protested against the synodic structure of the existing Church and proposed an alternative locally free church in its place, consisting of chosen, reborn members of the church who become part of the church by confession. At the time denomination had a prominent function in the integration of all local churches into a single denomination with the confession being the common source of fellowship.
