I was thrilled to receive this in the mail today from our good friends at The Banner of Truth Trust. It is Dr. Chad Van Dixhoorn’s new commentary on the Westminster Confession of Faith. Chad teaches Church History at Reformed Theological Seminary in Washington, DC.
Chad is arguably the world’s leading expert on the work of the Westminster Assembly. His massive five-volume work The Minutes and Papers of the Westminster Assembly, 1643-1653 (Oxford University Press) is the most important historical exploration of the Assembly since the nineteenth century and surpasses everything that precedes it (including Mitchell and Struthers, Warfield, and Carruthers).
Chad is also a pastor-professor in the Presbyterian and Reformed tradition who knows and appreciates the theology of the Assembly and its products. It is therefore something to be welcomed and celebrated that he has produced a commentary on the Westminster Confession of Faith. His historical insights on the doctrinal formulations of the Assembly will help all who are interested in understanding the Confession’s theology better.
We live in a day and time that likes to chart its own paths when it comes to articulating its beliefs, and that shows little patience with the once-venerated confessional formulations of the past. “We want to think outside the box” is the spirit of the age. Well, Dave Grusin, the heralded jazz and classical, composer, arranger and pianist, once said, “In my career, I’ve found that ‘thinking outside the box’ works better if I know what’s inside the box.” Yes it does. And Chad knows what is “inside the box” of the Westminster Confession, and will help you know too. This commentary will now occupy an honored spot alongside Shaw, Hodge, Morris, Ward, and others. I commend CONFESSING THE FAITH: A reader’s guide to the Westminster Confession of Faith to you enthusiastically.