Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Clarifying the meaning of certain terms used in the Reformation Party’s platform

In order to clarify the meaning of certain terms used in the Reformation Party’s platform, etc., the Council of the Party has issued this announcement:
 
a.       It is the understanding of the co-organizers of the Reformation Party, as well as its initially elected Council of Officers, that by the phrase "original Westminster Standards" is intended all of the principles and doctrines outlined in the documents of the Westminster Standards (Westminster Confession of Faith, Larger Catechism, Shorter Catechism, Form of Presbyterial Church-Government, and Directory for the Public Worship of God), understanding that in certain of those documents (namely, the Form of Presbyterial Church-Government and Directory for the Public Worship of God) some elements of what was adopted were intended for a certain geography and time (e.g., in the Directory for the Public Worship of God the provision of praying for the Queen of Bohemia).
 
b.      It is the understanding of the co-organizers of the Reformation Party, as well as its initially elected Council of Officers, that by the phrase "original Westminster Standards" is intended "the original Westminster Standards as adopted by the Church of Scotland in the 1640s and as understood by them then".
 
c.       Although not products of the Westminster Assembly itself, the following documents historically associated with the Westminster Standards are agreed to by the co-organizers of the Reformation Party, as well as its initially elected Council of Officers: the National Covenant, the Solemn League and Covenant, the Sum of Saving Knowledge, and the Directory for Family Worship.
 
d.      With respect to the National Covenant and the Solemn League and Covenant, it is the understanding of the co-organizers of the Reformation Party, as well as its initially elected Council of Officers, that there is a descending obligation of these to the posterity of all parties for which these Covenants were intended.