denomination established in 1881 by three congregations that separated from the white Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa to form the nucleus of a semiautonomous denomination for people of racially mixed parentage (Coloureds). The church parallels the mother church in structure, doctrine, and customs. Efforts to end its financial dependency on the white church and curtail the latter's influence mounted after the mid-20th century. At its Synod of 1962, the Dutch Reformed Mission Church declared its membership open to all races, including white opponents of apartheid. Headquarters are in Kakamas, Cape Province, S.Af.