Catechisms
Catechisms
Several catechisms were drafted during the Reformation as tools for instruction and education.
Hubmaier's Christian Catechism
Balthasar Hubmaier's Christian Catechism of 1526, the first Anabaptist catechism: written at Nikolsburg as instruction before baptism, its logic, its author's remarkable and troubling life, and an honest Reformed assessment.
Luther's Large Catechism
Luther's Large Catechism of 1529: born from thirty sermons preached in 1528, written for pastors and fathers, its five parts, its famous preface on daily study, and its place in the Book of Concord.
Luther's Small Catechism
Luther's Small Catechism of 1529: the Saxon visitation that provoked it, the six chief parts, the question 'What does this mean?', the household as a school of the church, and its influence on every catechism that followed.
Peter Canisius
The Jesuit “second apostle of Germany,” whose catechisms answered Luther’s for two centuries.
Primož Trubar
A short biography of Primož Trubar (1508–1586), reformer of Carniola and father of the Slovene written language.
The Baptist Catechism
Read and search the Baptist Catechism, commonly called Keach’s Catechism: all 114 questions and answers with their Scripture proofs, from the oldest surviving edition of 1695.
The Baptist Catechism (1693)
A brief introduction to the Baptist Catechism of 1693, commonly called Keach's Catechism, and to the smaller Baptist catechisms written between 1644 and 1689.
The Catechism of the Church of England
The Catechism of the Church of England, first printed in Cranmer's Book of Common Prayer of 1549: its place within the order of Confirmation, its four parts, the additions of 1552 and 1604, and an honest Reformed assessment.
The Geneva Catechism
Calvin's Geneva Catechism of 1541: why his first catechism failed, the decisive reordering of faith before law, the four parts, the famous first question, and its influence on the Heidelberg and Westminster catechisms.
The Heidelberg Catechism
The Heidelberg Catechism of 1563: why Frederick III commissioned it, who actually wrote it, its threefold shape of guilt, grace, and gratitude, the law placed under thanksgiving, Question 80, and its place among the Three Forms of Unity.
The Westminster Larger Catechism
The Westminster Larger Catechism of 1647: Anthony Tuckney's masterpiece, written before the Shorter, with the fullest exposition of the Ten Commandments in any confessional document and the classic treatment of preparing for the Lord's Table.
The Westminster Shorter Catechism
The Westminster Shorter Catechism of 1647: the Assembly that produced it, its two halves, and a close reading of the first question — eleven words that have shaped Reformed piety for four centuries.
