NADERE Further in Reformed Piety
But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. Ephesians 2:13 (ESV)
Nadere (nah-de-re) means nearer, closer, or further in Dutch.
The term "Nadere" has helped Christians remember and champion the living, growing intimacy that marks union with Jesus Christ.
In the 17th century, as part of an effort to guard against dead orthodoxy and to continue guiding future generations in the doctrines of the Protestant Reformation, churches in the Netherlands raised the banner of Nadere Reformatie, or "Further Reformation."
Under this banner, today the ministry of Nadere seeks to strengthen the church in the contemplative, restful practices of retreat and spiritual direction, offerings to deepen reformed piety and nourish Gospel mission.
"The believer must make work of the fact that he is the possession of Christ.
We share in His “Sonship” through adoption, and in Him we the same Father.
We share in His satisfaction, and as a result we may approach God freely.
We share in His holiness, and in Him we are made perfect before God.
We are included in His intercession,
and we share in the inheritance of His glory.
Is it not your greatest glory to be engaged in fellowship with Jesus,
Him Who is yours?”
— Wilhelmus à Brakel, Redelyke Godsdient, Rotterdam 1773
Retreats
Prayer retreats are designed to create hospitable spaces for solitude and communion with God. These retreats include corporate singing and devotional instruction from Scripture, woven together with both personal and communal times of prayer.
“At the heart of historic Protestant spiritual formation is a triangulated relationship between
Scripture, meditation, and prayer.
Taken together, these three can be conceived of as a conversation between the believer and God.”
—Matthew Bingham,
A Heart Aflame for God:
A Reformed Approach
to Spiritual Formation
Spiritual Direction
Spiritual Direction is receiving assistance in becoming more attentive to God’s presence and activity. The practice involves a spiritual companion—often called a Spiritual Director—who provides support in prayerfully discerning where God is and what God might be doing in one’s life. Spiritual Direction may occur in person or on-line.
SELAH
Trinitarian, Contemplative, Biblical
Spirit-led… it is the Holy Spirit—the personally experienced presence with and in us of the Triune God as revealed in the Scriptures and understood through biblical, historical, global orthodoxy —who leads our prayerful conversation …
Evocative evoking that conversation within and amongst us
Loving in love, with love, as love, for love
Attentive as we attend, in body and mind and heart and soul, to his presence and words and ways
Hospitable with hospitable presence to our own true-selves-in-Christ, to each other, and to the Lord