Westminster Confession of Faith

A Reformed confession drafted by the Westminster Assembly in England during the 1640s. It sets out doctrines of Scripture, God, salvation, church, sacraments, and civil authority.

Reformed theology: A Protestant tradition emphasizing God's sovereignty, biblical authority, covenant, and salvation by grace. The confession codifies doctrines characteristic of this wider theological tradition.
Westminster Assembly: A synod of English and Scottish theologians and parliamentarians convened in London from 1643 to 1653. This body drafted and debated the confession's text.
Westminster Larger Catechism: A detailed catechism produced by the Westminster Assembly to explain Reformed doctrine. It expands many of the confession's doctrines into questions and answers.
Church of Scotland: The national Presbyterian church of Scotland, whose history includes periods of established status and religious independence. It adopted the confession in 1647 as a doctrinal standard.
Confessional subscription: A church officer's formal affirmation of adherence to a confession of faith, sometimes with stated exceptions. Churches differ over how fully ministers must affirm Westminster's statements.
Covenant theology: A framework interpreting God's relationship with humanity through covenants across biblical history. Its covenant framework shapes the confession's account of creation, fall, and redemption.
English Civil War: A series of armed conflicts in England from 1642 to 1651 between Parliamentarians and Royalists. The war created the political crisis in which Parliament called the assembly.
Westminster Shorter Catechism: A concise question-and-answer summary of Christian doctrine produced by the Westminster Assembly. It condenses the confession's teaching for instruction and memorization.
Presbyterian Church in the United States of America: A nineteenth-century American Presbyterian denomination formed in 1789 and reunited with the PCUSA in 1983. Its constitutional standards included the Westminster Confession.
Westminster Confession of Faith (American revisions): Revisions to the Westminster Confession adopted by American Presbyterian denominations, including changes on civil authority and religious liberty. These revisions illustrate how later churches reconsidered specific chapters.

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