Introducing the Westminster Standards: Streams of Influence
In short, the Westminster Standards––the Westminster Confession of Faith, the Westminster Larger Catechism, and the Westminster Shorter Catechism––derive from many influential sources to “reform the Reformation” in England during a period of political upheaval and civil war. Several streams of influence flow into the Westminster Standards, establishing them as the final trumpet blast of the Reformation period. This brief introduction will identify these influences.
As Chad Van Dixhoorn has reminded us, in his Confessing the Faith, the Westminster Standards were produced to “reform the Reformation” by the gathering of the Westminster Assembly. The Westminster Assembly consciously connected to the Reformation period and its theological emphases. In fact, if John Wycliffe (d. 1384) and Jan Hus (d. 1415) were the early signs of the Reformation to come––officially beginning in 1517 with Martin Luther’s nailing of his ninety-five theses to the door at Wittenberg––the Westminster Assembly (1643-1653) and its Standards are arguably the swan song of the Reformation.
The Assembly’s theological outlook is deeply reformational and elements within its texts can easily find their origin in earlier Reformation documents. One such influence is John Calvin (1509-1564), the great French theologian and Reformer mostly working in Geneva, Switzerland. His pastor’s academy and written work shaped (and continue to shape) several generations of protestant theologians after him, throughout Europe and beyond. It is noticed that the Genevan Confession of 1536, for example, crafted by both William Farel and Calvin for the city of Geneva, shows remarkable influence on the logical structure of the Westminster Confession of Faith.
Many of John Calvin’s students scoured Europe as missionaries and church planters, including the Scottish minister, John Knox. His ministry in Scotland, after his return from the continent, set in motion Presbyterianism in Scotland. He was the primary author of the Scottish Confession of 1560, which utilizes the narrative tone and basic structure of the Apostles’ Creed. This Confession would influence the Westminster Standards in part by several non-voting Scottish commissioners who wielded a great deal of influence at the Assembly. Notably, the Scot’s Confession would stand as the Scottish Kirk’s official confession until it was replaced by the more robust Westminster Confession of Faith in 1647.
Certainly, other influences existed. Some language, for example, is derived from the Three Forms of Unity, reformed documents from the continent. The Confession’s uncharacteristic use of a term like “misery” to describe our sin-sick state in §6.6 is earlier developed by continental Reformers schooled in Geneva. This language comes to great prominence in the Heidelberg Catechism in its second question, which frames out the entire catechism. Beyond this, James Ussher’s Irish Articles of Religion (1615) influence the structure and language of the Westminster Confession of Faith.
One need not forget the influence of the English Civil War (1642–1651), occurring contemporaneously to the work of the Assembly. In fact, it was the Parliament, opposed to the King, who gathered theologians at Westminster Abbey to construct a new theological statement and system for England. King Charles I was beheaded not too far from and at the same time as the Assembly’s work in January 1649. At this time, political reform also entailed religious reform. One reason the Westminster Standards are not the standard for the Church of England today is that the monarchy was eventually reestablished after the Civil War and Puritans were persecuted. The Twenty-Nine Articles were restored as the Church of England’s confessional standard.
Likewise, the Westminster Standards were, in part, responding to contemporary culture. In 1618, King James I issued the Book of Sports. In this edict, the King directs his subjects on what sports are allowable to perform on Sundays, against the Sabbatarian view of the Puritans. When the Puritans rise to prominence and hold the majority at the Westminster Assembly several decades later, they address this issue in §21.8 of the Westminster Confession of Faith stating that “recreations” are not at all to be performed on Sundays.
It is the Word of God, summarized so faithfully in the documents of these Standards, that serves as the ultimate influencer. As the original and updated scripture-proofs show, the Westminster Standards are faithful to God’s Word. For instance, the shortest chapter of the Confession, chapter 12 “On Adoption,” compares quite favorably with scripture, especially some language in Galatians 4:1–7. The chapter utilizes key phrases, like “Abba Father,” from the text of scripture to express the beautiful truth of the doctrine of adoption. Likewise, the Confession’s own view of scripture as necessary (§1.1, §1.6), authoritative (§1.4, §1.10), perfect (§1.5), understandable (§1.7), inspired (§1.8), and infallible (§1.9), expresses its Biblical priority.
The Westminster Standards did not appear from thin air but developed from key sources in a historical context. These factors help us understand the formation of these important documents, which so faithfully summarize God’s Word and instruct the church in right belief.
For Further Study:
The Westminster Assembly Project
Confessing the Faith: A Reader’s Guide to the Westminster Confession of Faith by Chad Van Dixhoorn
The Context of the Westminster Standards by Greg Salazar (Tabletalk, Jan. 2021)
Reformed Confessions: Scottish Confession of Faith (1560) by John R. Muether (Ordained Servant, May 2017)
The Genevan Confession of 1536
