Second Christian Social Congress in the Netherlands: 100 Years Later

February 1992

By Bob Goudzwaard

UTRECHT, The Netherlands—Queen Beatrice attended. Protestants and Catholics from around the country joined together at the Jacobi Church here in mid-November. The occasion? A centennial celebration of two important events of 1891: (1) the first Christian social congress in the Netherlands, organized by political leader Abraham Kuyper, who had once been the pastor at the Jacobi Church; and (2) the release of Pope Leo XIII's encyclical Rerum Novarum.

This grand event brought to conclusion a week-long conference, held in the town of Doorn, that did much more than look backward. It stood by itself as an important convention at the end of one of Europe's most amazing years. The second Christian social congress stood out both in character and in results.

In character, the second congress was richer and broader than the first one. Protestants and Catholics gathered together this time, and they came from all the political movements in which Christians are involved. Members of labor unions, employers' councils, and associations of women attended. Young people and the elderly, stood together. Representatives of environmental groups and people from different ethnic and social minorities were among the 360 delegates.

The participants represented such diversity, in fact, that negative predictions about the meeting's outcome dominated pre-congress media coverage. Either the conference would explode in the fireworks of controversy, or it would produce a bland declaration lacking any real substance, the skeptics predicted.

The prognosticators were mistaken, however. The actual results were both substantial and generally harmonious. Four points about the outcome should be emphasized.

1. First, the congress gave very serious attention to contemporary social problems. Through both analysis and proposals for action the delegates addressed (a) the problem of world poverty; (b) the environmental crisis; (c) and the problems of unemployment and social instability in Western societies. Conferees agreed that the time has come to go to the root of these problems and no longer merely to try to treat symptoms. The root of these problems is the lack of justice and the failure of human beings to fulfill their personal and institutional responsibilities. In both the personal realm and the lopsided structures of society today we experience a dominating materialism that must be challenged.

2. The delegates also concurred that they are willing to accept a slower rise, or even a holding steady, in the European standard of living, if that is necessary to permit a real solution to growing poverty in the poorest countries or to stop the deterioration of the world's ecosystem.

3. A third constructive outcome of the congress was agreement that Western societies give too narrow and one-sided attention to the consequences of irresponsibility rather than to the deep causes of those problems. Modern societies concentrate on "after care" or "postcare." Financial compensation is provided after the harm has been done. That cycle of actions and reactions thus requires constant increase in the GNP to pay for multiplying negative consequences. Overlooked is the possibility of giving more attention to "pre-care"—to preventive reforms. With respect to social, ecological, and health problems, it should now be clear that pre-care—preventive action—is needed in the processes of production and consumption. Today we must develop explicit pre-care strategies.

4. A fourth important conclusion of the congress was that the international monetary system needs to be reformed to allow direct access of the poor countries to international finance. Monopoly control of international finance by the rich countries should end, and they should be willing to accept the consequences—for their own standards of living—of lower rates of money creation.

As one of the participants in the congress, I can only explain the substantial and harmonious outcome of the congress as the fruit of genuine Christian cooperation, Working together both in smaller groups and in plenary sessions, participants really listened to each other and showed deep concern for those in the world who are suffering.

Clearly, evangelicals, Catholics, and ecumenical Protestants need each other more than any of us might have realized. The congress reminded me of what the apostle Paul once wrote-—that only together with all athe saints can we begin "to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ" and to know this love that surpasses our separate understandings (Eph. 3:18-19). This is true with respect to the deep social problems of our time as well as with respect to every other area of human life.

[Dr. Goudzwaard is a professor of economics at the Free University of Amsterdam and one of the consulting organizers of the second Christian social congress.]