Office Bearers

GS 1965 ARTICLE 180: Subscription Form Professors

The Synod then adopts a FORM OF SUBSCRIPTION FOR DOCENTS AT THE THEOLOGICAL COLLEGE OF THE CANADIAN REFORMED CHURCHES.[1]

  • “We, the undersigned, docents at the Theological College of the Canadian Reformed Churches, do hereby, sincerely, and in good conscience be fore the Lord, declare by this our subscription that we heartily believe and are persuaded that all the articles and points of doctrine, contained in the doctrinal standards of the Canadian Reformed Churches: the Belgic Confession, The Heidelberg Catechism, and the Canons of Dort, do fully agree with the Word of God.
  • We therefore diligently promise to ‘teach and faithfully to defend the aforesaid doctrine, without either directly or indirectly contradicting the same, by our public teaching or writing. We declare, moreover, that we not only reject all errors that militate against this doctrine, but that we are disposed to refute and contradict these and to exert ourselves in keeping the Church free from such errors. And if hereafter any difficulties or different sentiments respecting the aforesaid doctrine should arise in our minds, we promise that we will neither publicly nor privately propose, teach, or defend ‘the same, either by teaching or writing, until we have first revealed such sentiments to the Governors, that the same may be examined by them, being ready always cheerfully to submit to their judgment under the penalty in case of refusal to be, by that very fact, suspended from our office.
  • And further, if at any time the Governors, upon sufficient grounds of suspicion and to preserve the uniformity and purity of doctrine, may deem It proper to require of us a further explanation of our sentiments respecting any particular article of the above mentioned doctrinal standards, we do hereby promise to be always willing and ready to comply with such requisition, under the penalty above mentioned, reserving for ourselves, how ever, the right of appeal in case we should believe ourselves aggrieved by the sentence of the Governors, and until a decision is made upon such an appeal, we will acquiesce in the determination and judgment already passed.”

[1] Translator: The text that follows was inserted in English into the Dutch acts, and thus has been left unedited. The term “docent” would have been more accurately rendered “professor”.