In the early seventeenth century, the direction of the Reformed faith hung in the balance. A group called the Remonstrants, followers of Jacobus Arminius, argued for a version of the faith that watered down many of the biblical doctrines taught by John Calvin and others before him.

This controversy demanded a response, and in 1618–19, leaders of the Dutch Reformed Church gathered together and crafted their rebuttal: the Canons of Dort. This remarkable document answered the five errors of Arminianism—giving us the five points of Calvinism and preserving the theology of the Reformation.

In Saving the Reformation: The Pastoral Theology of the Canons of Dort, Dr. W. Robert Godfrey introduces the key players in the debate and provides a fresh translation of the canons from the original Latin for the synod’s four-hundredth anniversary. Dr. Godfrey’s pastoral commentary aims at helping a new generation of Christians understand and appreciate this important text for themselves. As he goes through the canons point by point, we find a powerful defense of the biblical gospel, a clear vision for the church, and a celebration of God’s grace in salvation.