No man may vow to do any thing forbidden in the Word of God, or what would hinder any duty therein commanded, or which is not in his own power, and for the performance whereof he has no promise of ability from God. In which respects, popish monastical vows of perpetual single life, professed poverty, and regular obedience, are so far from being degrees of higher perfection, that they are superstitious and sinful snares, in which no Christian may entangle himself.
A vow may not be taken to commit a sin. God does not honor a pledge to rebel against him and his word. Nor is it lawful to vow to do anything that would stand in the way of legitimate obedience to God.
The Confession here takes on the specific case of monastic vows--those vows of celibacy, poverty, and obedience that were routinely required of all entering the monastic life, whether a life of contemplation or a life of service. According to the Westminster divines, such vows were based on the mistaken idea that one could attain a higher degree of sanctification through such pursuits. Instead, these vows are "superstitious and sinful snares," wrong-headed obligations that no Christian should undertake. Of course, it doesn't help that such vows were taken in the context of a theology that the divines believed to be anti-scriptural.
Tomorrow: Oaths and vows wrapped up.
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