History

Confessions of faith

The great Protestant confessions — CA, Heidelberg, Westminster.

1530CA Augsburg

1563Heidelberg

1647Westminster

1561Belgique

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A confession of faith is a formal doctrinal document expressing the beliefs of a church or community. The great Protestant confessions of the 16th and 17th centuries form the doctrinal basis of the major denominations.

Confession	Date	Tradition	Key Points
Augsburg Confession (CA)	1530	Lutheran	2 marks of the Church (art. VII), justification, sacraments. Melanchthon.
Helvetic Confession I	1536	Swiss Reformed	First Swiss Reformed confession — basis for later Reformed confessions.
Gallican Confession	1559	French Reformed	Calvin's influence. Basis of the French Reformed Church.
Belgic Confession	1561	Dutch Reformed	Guido de Brès. TULIP, Reformed ecclesiology.
Heidelberg Catechism	1563	Reformed (Palatinate)	Q&A format. Comfort in life and death. Widely used worldwide.
Westminster Confession	1647	Presbyterian	Scottish/English Presbyterianism. TULIP + covenant theology.

📜 CA VII

What are the two marks of the true Church per CA VII?

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Pure preaching of the Gospel + correct administration of the sacraments. Unity of rites is NOT necessary. Augsburg, 1530.

📖 Heidelberg

What is the Heidelberg Catechism (1563)?

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Reformed confessional document in Q&A format from the Palatinate. Key question: "What is your only comfort in life and death?" — Answer: belonging to Christ.

🏛 Westminster

What is the Westminster Confession (1647)?

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Confession of Scottish/English Presbyterianism. TULIP + covenant theology. Basis of world Presbyterianism.

Q1Pourquoi des confessions de foi ?▾

Les Réformateurs ont rédigé des confessions pour définir la foi réformée contre le catholicisme (et les autres protestantismes), instruire les fidèles, et établir des bases doctrinales communes pour les Églises. Les confessions sont normatives mais secondaires — soumises à l'Écriture.

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Confessions of faith

1 questions

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Q1/1

Which confession defines the two marks of the true Church?

AHeidelberg Catechism

BAugsburg Confession CA VII

CWestminster Confession

DFormula of Concord

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CA VII (1530): pure preaching + correct sacraments.

Score

📚 Further reading

Key references

McGrath, Alister E. Christian Theology: An Introduction. 6th ed. Wiley-Blackwell, 2016. Standard academic introduction.

Pelikan, Jaroslav. The Christian Tradition: A History of the Development of Doctrine. 5 vols. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1971–1989. Major reference work on the history of Christian doctrine.

MacCulloch, Diarmaid. A History of Christianity: The First Three Thousand Years. London: Penguin, 2010. Accessible scholarly history.

📚 Key Theological Terms

Sola Scriptura

lat. — Scripture alone

Scripture is the supreme norm for doctrine and practice — self-sufficient and clear. Against the Catholic co-normativity of Scripture and Tradition.

Rm 15:4 ; 2 Tim 3:16

Justification

Gk. δικαίωσις

The act by which God declares the sinner righteous through faith in Christ. The theological heart of Protestantism. Forensic (Protestant) vs. transformative (Catholic).

Rm 3:28 ; Gal 2:16

Grace

lat. gratia

God's free favor toward sinners. Sola gratia: salvation is entirely God's gift, not human merit. Eph 2:8-9.

Eph 2:8-9 ; Rm 11:6

16th c.

Protestant Reformation — Luther, Zwingli, Calvin, Cranmer

17th c.

Confessional consolidation — Westminster, Dort, Formula of Concord

18th c.

Pietism, Enlightenment, Methodist revival

19th c.

Missionary movement, biblical criticism, liberal theology

20th c.

Barth, ecumenism (WCC Geneva 1948), Vatican II (1962-1965)

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