Reformed Church

Definition and Meaning

The Reformed Church (Korean Gaehyeok Gyohoe, 改革敎會) is a Protestant tradition that carries on the theological legacy of Huldrych Zwingli and John Calvin. In the broad sense, the term refers to all churches that follow Calvinist theology, that is, Reformed theology, and it includes Presbyterianism. In the narrow sense, it refers to the churches that developed on the European continent under the name "Reformed Church," particularly those that confess the "Three Forms of Unity": the Belgic Confession (1561), the Heidelberg Catechism (1563), and the Canons of Dort. Such churches are especially numerous in Switzerland, the Netherlands, and South Africa.

Biblical and Historical Background

The reform movement led in the sixteenth century by Zwingli in Zurich and Calvin in Geneva is known as the "Reformed" movement. Lutheranism retained many older practices that Scripture does not forbid (adiaphora, "things indifferent"), and the Reformed distinguished themselves from Lutheranism on this point. The tradition took root as Presbyterianism in Scotland and England, where Calvin's disciple John Knox was active, and as the Reformed Church on the European continent.

The Reformed Church treats the covenant that God made with His people as the central concept for understanding Scripture. Zwingli held that, just as God made a covenant with Abraham (Genesis 17:7), baptism is likewise a sign of the covenant, and on this basis he defended infant baptism. In ecclesiology, the Reformed Church is described as emphasizing the principle that each local church is a complete church and that there is no hierarchy among church offices. The worldwide body of Reformed churches is the World Communion of Reformed Churches (WCRC), formed in 2010 through the merger of the World Alliance of Reformed Churches (WARC), organized in 1875, with the Reformed Ecumenical Council (REC).

Practice in the Korean Church

The Calvinist tradition in Korea has taken root mainly as Presbyterianism, and Presbyterian theologians commonly describe their theology as "Reformed." In the narrow, continental sense, the Independent Reformed Church (Dongnip Gaesin Gyohoe) is a known example. It originated in the Covenant Church (Seongyak Gyohoe), founded in 1964, and is described as the first church in Korea to use "Reformed Church" in its English name.

Relations with international bodies vary by denomination. The Presbyterian Church of Korea (Tonghap) and the Presbyterian Church in the Republic of Korea are members of the WCRC, and the Presbyterian Church of Korea (Baekseok) is also reported to have joined. Church media have reported a movement within some Presbyterian bodies to adopt the ecclesiology of the continental Reformed churches, and there is ongoing discussion of how Presbyterian and Reformed church polity differ. Meanwhile, denominations rooted in the Wesleyan theological tradition, such as the Methodist and Holiness churches, understand the question of predestination and free will differently from the Reformed Church.