Westminster Assembly

a famous convocation of divines summoned by the Long Parliament to advise "for the settling of the liturgy and the government of the Church of England." It met at Westminster July 1, 1643, and rose February 22, 1649. Most of the members were Presbyterians. The Assembly drew up a Directory of Public Worship, the Confession of Faith, and the Larger and Shorter Cathechisms. On the restoration of the Stuarts these manuals of faith and practice were rejected in England, but they were retained in Scotland. They are still the accredited standards of faith in the Presbyterian churches of that country, as well as in the Presbyterian churches abroad. See Catechism