I recently purchased a copy of Reformed Standards of Unity, published by Westminster Seminary Press and edited by Peter A. Lillback (President of Westminster Theological Seminary) and Bernard Aubert.
This well-made volume gathers the Reformed confessions cherished by Presbyterian and Reformed Christians, including the ancient Ecumenical Creeds, the Westminster Standards, and the Three Forms of Unity.
This edition is particularly notable for the inclusion of the Second Helvetic Confession, the foundational Reformed confession from the Swiss Reformation in Zurich, an uncommon inclusion in modern Reformed compendiums.
For those unfamiliar with it, the Second Helvetic Confession was written by Heinrich Bullinger in 1566. Bullinger was Zwingli’s successor in Zurich, and his confession became one of the most widely received Reformed confessions in Europe. It reads broader and warmer than the later Westminster Confession, and it predates both Westminster and the Canons of Dort. Having it bound alongside the documents we already know puts the deeper Reformed tradition back within reach.
The hardcover is cleanly formatted, with large, easy-to-read fonts and the use of both black and red ink to aid navigation. A sewn-in ribbon bookmark rounds out the package.
It belongs in any Reformed library, offering extensive biblical proof texts with each doctrinal point, which makes it a strong tool for studying and defending Reformed theology.
The editors have clearly distinguished which Scripture references were original to the confessions and which were added more recently, providing helpful historical and theological context.
While the volume is well-made and carefully edited, I did notice a few minor typographical errors and occasional word omissions in the book and within the confessional texts themselves. These don’t affect the overall value or doctrinal clarity of the work but are worth noting for those using it for close confessional study. Hopefully future printings will refine these issues.
Westminster Seminary Press has also developed a Reformational Confessional Database to support ongoing confessional study.
It was originally published for Westminster seminarians, but this book is a worthy resource for any Reformed Christian who prizes biblical fidelity.
It’s lightweight and easy to carry to church or the local coffee shop for devotional reading. I’d recommend it without hesitation; four-and-a-half stars.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
It’s available for purchase at Amazon and Reformation Heritage Books.
