When it comes to the Canons of Dort, most Reformed readers will be familiar with the basic setup where each chapter consists of articles that explain the faith, followed by a section called “rejection of errors.” What is not well known, however, is the way the five chapters are followed by a “Conclusion.”

What is striking in this conclusion is the way it indicates that the Reformed churches had become a victim of bad press through misinformation. There is a list of seven false accusations having to do with the doctrine of election. For example, the first accusation is that the “doctrine ... concerning predestination ... by its very character and tendency turns the hearts of man away from all godliness and religion.” The sixth accusation is, “In the same manner in which election is the source and cause of faith and good works, reprobation is the cause of unbelief and ungodliness.”

In response to these accusations, we read,

Therefore, this Synod of Dort adjures, in the Name of the Lord, all who piously call upon our Saviour Jesus Christ not to judge the faith of the Reformed churches from the slander gathered from here and there. Neither are they to judge from personal statements of some ancient or modern teachers, often quoted in bad faith, or taken out of context and explained contrary to their meaning. But one ought to judge the faith of the Reformed churches from the public confessions of these churches themselves and from the present explanation of the orthodox doctrine, confirmed by the unanimous consent of the members of the entire Synod, one and all.

Note the exhortation to “judge the faith of the Reformed churches from the public confessions of these churches...” This exhortation was necessary because of slanderous statements going around. It was also necessary because “personal statements” were “often quoted in bad faith or taken out of context and explained contrary to their meaning” and used to paint the Reformed churches in a very negative light. Here we have an important principle: judge a church by its confessions, not by the statements of some individual. We hear this same message in Article 29 of the Belgic Confession, which deals with the marks of the true and false church. Before it lists the marks, it states,

We believe that we ought to discern diligently and very carefully from the Word of God what is the true church, for all sects which are in the world today claim for themselves the name of church. We are not speaking here of the hypocrites, who are mixed in the church along with the good and yet are not part of the church, although they are outwardly in it. We are speaking of the body and the communion (emphasis mine) of the true church which must be distinguished from all sects that call themselves the church.

As important it is to judge a church by its confessions, it is also important to judge whether a church lives up to its confessions. A church may have solid confessions but these may function as no more than historical documents. It is not hard to determine this by looking that the general state of the church, especially as it shows up in the issues that come to the broader assemblies and the decisions of those assemblies.

The principle of “Judge a Church by its Confessions” of course cuts two ways. If as Reformed churches we wish to be judged that way, we should also judge others that way. This is not something to be brushed off lightly. We are not immune to stereotyping. Further, we are not immune to using the statements of certain individuals and painting a whole group by those statements. We are not even immune to taking statements out of context. We are as prone to this in ecclesiastical relations as we are prone to do this in our personal relations.

At the same time, this principle serves as a sober reminder that we must be careful because what we say may be used to cast a negative light on the gospel and the church. Again we can learn from the conclusion of the Canons. The immediate context has to do with teaching concerning the doctrine of election, but the exhortation rings true in general, namely to “refrain from all those expressions which exceed the prescribed limits of the true meaning of the Holy Scriptures and which may provide shameless sophists with a good opportunity to scoff at the doctrine of the Reformed churches, or even to slander it.” This exhortation was first for the ministers of the gospel, but it is just as true for the members of the congregation. There is a need to express ourselves carefully lest people scoff at the Reformed faith. We can add to this that there is a need to live carefully, lest we undermine the gospel by godless living. To think back to the first accusation, this would only confirm people in that opinion.

This principle, in effect, is linked to the ninth commandment where the Lord tells us not to bear false witness against our neighbour. The Catechism elaborates on this by saying that we must “twist no one’s words, not gossip or slander, nor condemn or join in condemning anyone rashly and unheard” (LD 43).

The Reformed churches have endured much suffering because of false accusations concerning its doctrine. At the same time, as we plead, “Judge us by our confessions,” we should treat others the same way. In this way we will not only be able to easily distinguish the true church from the false church but we will also avoid condemning others rashly and unheard and hurting the cause of Christ.