Restored Reformed Church 2009 yearbook still without statistics

VEENENDAAL – It has been five years since a core orthodox group in the Netherlands Reformed Church (NHK) refrained from joining the merger of their denomination with the Reformed Churches in the Netherlands (GKNs) into the Protestant Church in the Netherlands (PKN). So far, the year books of the Restored Reformed Church (known by the Dutch acronym HHK) have not yet published membership statistics because there are still locations in the country where the preference of the members (PKN or HHK) has not yet been established officially. It has not stopped the annual’s editor from making an estimate of between 55,000 and 60,000 members, spread over 117 congregations. The HHK is being served by 59 ministers, also has 19 emeritus ministers and 18 candidates who may preach as well. The HHK’s Seminary at the Free University has an enrollment of 45 students. The yearbook also estimates a membership increase over 2008 of about one percent. The HHK has very much benefited from the NHK’s pre-merger decision to grant ‘provisions’ to those who would be staying behind, as many congregations where a split occurred have negotiated a financial and/or property settlement. Another twenty of the original 65 are still awaiting a final settlement.