Covenanted Uniformity in Religion

by Wayne R. Spear

Publisher:

Reformation Heritage

, 2013

Overview

In Covenanted Uniformity in Religion, Wayne R. Spear reassesses the Westminster Assembly from the standpoint of the Scottish commissioners and their influence in the drawing up of the ‘Form of Church Government.’ Spear begins by placing the Assembly in its historical setting and giving an overview of how it conducted its business. Then, following the order of the ‘Form of Church Government,’ he traces each significant expression from its origin in a committee, through its debate and modification in the Assembly, to its final placement in the document. Finally, Spear evaluates the responses the document received in England and Scotland, showing that the Scots failed to achieve some of their most cherished goals in the Assembly debates and thus establishing it as a truly deliberative body.

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Key Features

• Provides the historical reasoning behind the Westminster Assembly’s adoption of the covenant
• Demonstrates that the Assembly truly and fairly deliberated the document
• Traces the positive reception of the document in both England and Scotland

Contents

• The Westminster Assembly in Its Historical Setting
• The Composition of the Westminster Assembly’s Form of Church Government

Praise for the Print Edition

Dr. Wayne Spear’s study of the discussion of church government at the Westminster Assembly has for decades remained hidden in the relative obscurity of scholarly libraries. It is a cause for rejoicing that it is now being made available to a wider public. Carefully researched and written with a gracious clarity, it is enormously helpful in walking us through the long and complex debates on church government in which the Westminster divines engaged. Dr. Spear brings out the role of the small group of unusually gifted teaching and ruling elders sent to the Assembly as commissioners from the Church of Scotland. The value of Covenanted Uniformity in Religion extends far beyond the world of academic study and discussion, where it will certainly be welcomed.

—Sinclair B. Ferguson, professor of systematic theology, Redeemer Theological Seminary, Dallas, TX

Product Details

• Title: Covenanted Uniformity in Religion: The Influence of the Scottish Commissioners upon the Ecclesiology of the Westminster Assembly
• Author: Wayne R. Spear
• Series: Studies on the Westminster Assembly
• Publisher: Reformation Heritage
• Publication Date: 2013
• Pages:248

About Wayne R. Spear

Dr. Spear has trained an entire generation of pastors in the field of systematic theology with great knowledge, humility, and clarity. He is one of the most influential mentors and examples in the faith of the Seminary’s denomination. Although officially retired, he continues to serve RPTS with the heart of a pastor: I have known my students personally and count them as friends. Dr. Spear has authored Talking to God: The Theology of Prayer; Faith of Our Fathers: A Commentary on the Westminster Confession of Faith; “The Westminster Confession of Faith and Holy Scripture,” in To Glorify and Enjoy God (Co-author); “Augustine’s Doctrine of Biblical Infallibility,” in Inerrancy and the Church; and, “The Westminster Assembly’s Directory for Church Government,” in Pressing Toward the Mark (Co-author). His representative articles include, Thirty-three Articles on the Westminster Confession in Covenanter Witness of Scotland and Ireland; “William Whitaker and the Westminster Doctrine of Scripture,” in Reformed Theological Journal; and, “The Westminster Assembly and Biblical Interpretation,” in Book of Books (Festschrift in honor of J. G. Vos).