Heidelberg Conference on Reformed Theology
Dr. Jason Van Vliet and I cohosted a tour group of forty people through the Netherlands and Germany. Here is the fourth and final part of my summary of our tour.
On Thursday afternoon, July 18, the Heidelberg Conference on Reformed Theology, “Our Only Comfort: the Heidelberg Catechism at 450 Years,” began in a beautiful venue situated above the Heidelberg Castle. Rev. Sebastian Heck, pastor of the only solidly Reformed, confessional church in Germany, was our gracious host. There were one hundred participants (a quarter of which were from our tour group) who hailed from twelve countries. Dr. Lyle Bierma gave the first address on the history of the catechism, focusing on its original title and Frederick’s original preface. I then spoke on the catechism as a confession of faith. That evening, Rev. Elshout and I spoke with some men who traveled from the Netherlands to speak with us about their hopes and dreams for a ministry that might reach out to Germany and the needy continent of Europe with the gospel.
On Friday, Dr. Michael Horton spoke on the Christian life in the Catechism, Dr. Jason Van Vliet addressed the three-fold office of Christ and the believer (focusing on Lord’s Day 12), and I spoke on assurance of faith in the catechism. We then toured the Heidelberg Catechism exhibit in the Heidelberg Castle, as well as another catechism exhibit in the heart of Heidelberg. Mary, Lydia, and I then had dinner together; while mother and daughter shopped, I continued editing a book on the Holy Spirit.
On Saturday, Rev. Jon Payne spoke on the means of grace in the catechism, Dr. Horton spoke on the church in the catechism, and Dr. Victor d’Assonville, professor in Hannover, Germany, spoke on Scripture as the Living Word of God in the catechism. All the messages of this conference were helpful.
Melanchthon’s Handwriting
A cousin of Rev. Elshout, Hans-Markus, then drove us to Bretten to see the Melanchthon House, which is situated on the very site where Philipp Melanchthon (1497–1560), Luther’s right hand man and theologian, was born. The house contained old painted murals of important scenes of Melanchthon’s life, large statues of numerous Reformers with whom Melanchthon developed good relationships, and an amazing library of old books and scarce historic documents in four rooms. These rooms included the cities, theologians, princes, and humanists most directly related to Melanchthon’s far- reaching reformation efforts. The entire home was packed full of treasures—a very special place indeed.
From there, Hans-Markus drove us to the beautiful city of Karlsruhe, where he lives. We took a cable car up a high hill, and climbed a tower at its top to get a good view of the entire area. After having dinner with Hans-Markus and his wife, Angelina, at their home which overlooks public gardens, Hans-Markus drove back to Heidelberg down one of Germany’s famous autobahns where there are no speed limits. We cruised along at 120 to 130 miles per hour, and cars were still passing us!
Preaching in Heidelberg Castle
On Sunday, our tour group, together with Rev. Heck’s church folk, gathered in the Heidelberg Castle to worship God and preach from the catechism on the very spot where it was first read and accepted. I preached in the morning on Lord’s Day 1 and Dr. Jason VanVliet preached in the afternoon on Lord’s Day 52. Dr. Jon Payne and Rev. Heck led the liturgy. Despite unusually warm weather, it was very moving to worship God in this special place and served as a fitting apex and conclusion to the conference.
On Monday morning, we took our bus to the Frankfurt airport, from where most of the tour group was flying back to North America. We said goodbye to many new friends. It is amazing how much the group bonded together in ten days. Mary and Lydia took a train to Paris, where they will spend several days before moving on to Athens, Greece. Meanwhile, I will be doing conferences in Cardiff, Wales and London, England, before returning to Amsterdam for a meeting. We hope to fly home together from Amsterdam on July 31.
Part of the Heidelberg Castle
