Savoy Declaration

Definition and Meaning

The Savoy Declaration (Savoy Declaration of Faith and Order) is a confession of faith issued in 1658 by the Independents, that is, the Congregational wing of the English Puritans. It takes its name from the Savoy Palace in London, where the meeting was held. Its doctrinal sections largely follow the Westminster Confession of Faith, but it differs substantially on how the church is to be governed. Its authors revised the Westminster text to conform to the Congregational principle that each local church governs itself, and this is the most distinctive feature of the Savoy Declaration.

Biblical and Historical Background

At the Westminster Assembly in the 1640s, the Presbyterians and the Independents were divided over church government. Presbyterianism holds that churches are subject to the oversight of higher assemblies such as the presbytery and the general assembly. The Independents held that the authority to govern the church resides in the congregation of each local church. In support of this view, the Independents cite Matthew 18:15-20 and 1 Corinthians 5:4-5, arguing that both passages can be read as depicting the assembled congregation exercising church discipline.

In the autumn of 1658, representatives of the Independent churches gathered at the Savoy Palace. Oliver Cromwell had authorized the meeting but died shortly before it convened. John Owen, Thomas Goodwin, Philip Nye, and others are known to have taken part in drafting the document. The principal changes from the Westminster Confession of Faith are as follows:

• The chapters dealing with the authority of presbyteries and synods and with church censures were removed, and a separate "Platform of Church Polity" setting out Congregational church government was appended.
• A new chapter, "Of the Gospel, and of the Extent of the Grace Thereof," was added.
• The material on the extent of the civil magistrate's involvement in church affairs was reduced and revised.

English Baptists later drew heavily on the wording of the Savoy Declaration in composing the Second London Baptist Confession of Faith (written in 1677 and formally adopted in 1689), revising only the sections on baptism and the church to reflect the Baptist position. The Congregational churches of New England are also known to have adopted the Savoy Declaration, with slight modifications, at the Boston Synod of 1680.

Practice in the Korean Church

Almost no denominations in Korea stand in the Congregational tradition. Consequently, virtually no denomination has adopted the Savoy Declaration as its official doctrinal standard; it is treated mainly in seminary courses on church history and creedal studies.

• Presbyterian churches: These hold the Westminster Confession of Faith as their standard. They present the Savoy Declaration as a Reformed confession that shares the same doctrinal content and differs only in its church polity.
• Baptist churches: Some Reformed-leaning Baptist churches and theologians who use the Second London Baptist Confession of Faith also refer to the Savoy Declaration as one of that confession's roots. The Savoy Declaration is regarded as an intermediate document linking the Westminster Confession and the London Confession.