Westminster Confession

Advanced Level Certificate

Course Benefits:
The Advanced Level Westminster Confession of Faith track is designed to provide the student with a thorough knowledge of the theology of the Westminster Confession of Faith.

Course Description:
The Advanced Level track consists of thirty-one courses that can be completed in a three-year period. Although students may take longer to complete the courses if they wish, the courses are designed so that the student may earn the Certificate in three years.

After registration, the student will be assigned a tutor to answer questions that may arise from the required reading and who will evaluate the student's coursework. An online forum will also be provided. The forum will provide a place for students in the Advanced Level Westminster Confession of Faith track to submit questions to the tutor and to discuss course related issues with other students registered for the same track.

Course Requirements:
Each of the thirty-one courses in the Advanced Level Westminster Confession of Faith track requires a large amount of reading. In order to benefit from the reading, the student is required to keep a reading journal, which is to be submitted to the tutor after completing the final course. The reading journal must be typed. For each required text, the student is to include the following information:

1. State the author and title of the book.

2. In no less than 25 and no more than 50 words, state what the book is about. In other words, what is the subject matter of the book, and how does the author present the material?

3. In no less than 300 and no more than 350 words, summarize the author's major conclusions and the author's support for his conclusions.

4. In no less than 125 and no more than 150 words, state whether you agree or disagree with any of the author's conclusions and why.

5. In no less than 25 and no more than 50 words, state what difference reading this book has made in your life.

[NOTE: As part of the reading requirements for the Advanced Certificate in the theology of the Westminster Confession of Faith, the student will be required for each course to read sections from three standard commentaries on the Confession – by Shaw, Hodge, and Sproul. The reading journal should include one entry for each commentary as a whole. These final three entries should be written last, since these three books will not be completed until the final course. It is not necessary to write separate journal entries for each assigned chapter from the Shaw, Hodge, and Sproul commentaries].

In addition to the reading journal, the student is required to write and submit one research paper after completing the final course. The student may choose any subject covered in one or more of the required courses. The paper should be no less than 4,000 and no more than 5,000 words.

The research paper should adhere to the format outlined in Kate L. Turabian, A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations (7th edition).

Students may also find the following work useful in the preparation of the research paper:  Robert Hudson, ed. The Christian Writer's Manual of Style (updated and expanded edition).

Required Courses:
1. The Holy Scripture
2. God and the Holy Trinity
3. God's Eternal Decree
4. Creation
5. Providence
6. The Fall of Man, Sin, and the Punishment Thereof
7. God's Covenant With Man
8. Christ the Mediator
9. Free Will
10. Effectual Calling
11. Justification
12. Adoption
13. Sanctification
14. Saving Faith
15. Repentance Unto Life
16. Good Works
17. Perseverance of the Saints
18. Assurance of Grace and Salvation
19. The Law of God
20. Christian Liberty and Liberty of Conscience
21. Religious Worship and the Sabbath Day
22. Lawful Oaths and Vows
23. The Civil Magistrate
24. Marriage and Divorce
25. The Church
26. Communion of Saints
27. Sacraments
28. Baptism
29. The Lord's Supper
30. Church Censures
31. Synods and Councils
32. The State of Men After Death, and the Resurrection of the Dead
33. The Last Judgment

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