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A catechism (; from , "to teach orally") is a summary or exposition of doctrine and serves as a learning introduction to the Sacraments traditionally used in catechesis, or Christian religious teaching of children and adult converts. Katecheo – Strong's Concordance Catechisms are doctrinal manuals – often in the form of questions followed by answers to be memorised – a format that has been used in non-religious or secular contexts as well.
The term catechumen refers to the designated recipient of the catechetical work or instruction. In the Catholic Church, catechumens are those who are preparing to receive the Sacrament of Baptism. Traditionally, they would be placed separately during Holy Mass from those who had been baptized, and would be dismissed from the liturgical assembly before the Profession of Faith (Nicene Creed) and General Intercessions (Prayers of the Faithful).
Catechisms are characteristic of Western Christianity but are also present in Eastern Christianity. In 1973, The Common Catechism, the first joint catechism of Catholics and Protestants, was published by theologians of the major Western Christian traditions, as a result of extensive ecumenical dialogue.
There were also more comprehensive documents that outlined the theology of the Christian faith, such as the Catechetical Lectures of St. Cyril of Jerusalem, "The Morals" of St. Basil of Caesarea, and the Enchiridion on Faith, Hope and Love by St. Augustine of Hippo. The earliest known catechism is the Didache, which was written between 60 and 85 AD. The word "catechism" for a manual for this instruction appeared in the Late Middle Ages.
The question-and-answer format calls upon two parties to participate, a master and a student (traditionally termed a "scholar"), or a parent and a child. The Westminster Shorter Catechism (1647) is an example:
Q. What is the chief end of man?
A. To glorify God and enjoy Him forever!
Q. What rule hath God given to direct us how we may glorify and enjoy Him?
A. The word of God which is contained in the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments is Sola scriptura.
Only two "universal" catechisms have been promulgated by the popes of the Catholic Church: The Catechism of the Council of Trent (1566), written chiefly for priests, and the Catechism of the Catholic Church (1992), written chiefly for bishops . These remain among the most widespread among Catholics today, although the latter has been met with some controversy since its first appearance.
For Catholics, all the canonical books of the Bible (including the Deuterocanonical books), the Sacred tradition and the interpretation of these by the living Magisterium (which may be accomplished in a catechism or other mode of teaching) constitute the entire means whereby God's revelation to mankind may be accessed. Catholics believe that sacred scripture and sacred tradition preserved and interpreted by the Magisterium are both necessary for attaining to the fullest understanding of all of God's revelation.
The term catechist is most frequently used in Catholicism, often to describe a lay catechist, a layperson with catechetical training who engages in such teaching and evangelization. This can be in both parish church and missionary contexts.
| Constitutions of Peckham | c.1281 | John Peckham, Archbishop of Canterbury | Latin. Priests were to instruct their flock four times a year on "the Creed, the ten commandments, the two precepts of the Gospel, viz. love to God and man, the seven works of mercy, the seven deadly sins, the seven cardinal virtues, and the seven sacraments of grace." So no priest could claim ignorance, Peckham wrote a catechism aimed at priests. |
| The Lay Folk's Catechism | c.1357 | John de Gaitrik (or de Taystek) (Subsequent revision perhaps by John Wycliffe) | Middle English, versions in several Northern and Southern dialects for laity. Latin version for parish priests. Presented as blank verse, not Q&A format. |
| L'ABC des simples gens | c.1401 | Jean Gerson | "ABC for simple folk": the common prayers, creed, commandments, etc. to be memorized as part of catechesis. Medieval French (langue d'oïl) |
| Small Catechism | 1529 | Martin Luther | Conventional key elements of Christian doctrine such as those found in the Decalogue, the Lord's Prayer, and the Apostles' Creed. Each topic was broken up into small sections, with the question "What does this mean?" following each portion. |
| Explanation of the Apostles' Creed | 1530 | Erasmus | A Catholic response to Luther's catechisms of the previous year. Anglicanized English version 1533 A Playne and Godly Exposition or Declaration of the Commune Crede |
| Summa Doctrinae Christianae | 1555 | Peter Canisius | For clergy, children, and adolescents respectively |
| Catechismus minimus | 1556 | ||
| Parvus Catechismus catholicorum | 1559 | ||
| An Honest Godlye Instruction | 1556 | Edmund Bonner | Reprinted in 2020 within Tradivox, Vol. I. |
| Roman Catechism (or the Catechism of the Council of Trent) | 1566 | Various | Commissioned by the Council of Trent and was not intended for common use by the laity, but as a general use reference book for priests and bishops. There are two English translations. One by Theodore Buckley and the other by . |
| A Catechisme of Christian Doctrine | 1567 | Laurence Vaux | First published in Leuven, six further editions in rapid succession, emanating from Antwerp and Liège, testified to its widespread popularity and effectiveness. The 1583 Liège issue was reprinted with biographical introduction for the Chetham Society by Thomas Graves Law in 1885. This edition contains also Vaux's paper "The Use and Meaning of Ceremonies," and a few further pages of instruction added by the Liège publisher. The catechism is practically formed on the same lines as its successor of today, explaining in sequence the Apostles' Creed, the Lord's Prayer and Hail Mary (excluding the second half beginning at "Holy Mary…"), the Ten Commandments (at considerable length), the Sacraments and the offices of Christian justice. The treatise on the ceremonies discusses the use of holy water, candles, incense, vestments and so forth. According to the 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia, Laurence Vaux's Catechism was the first Reformation era Catholic Catechism in English when it was published in 1567. Reprints followed in 1574, 1583, 1599 and 1605. |
| The Christian Doctrine | 1573 | Fr. Diego de Ledesma | Reprinted in 2020 within Tradivox, Vol. I. |
| Catecismo de Ripalda | 1591 | Jerónimo de Ripalda | Doctrina cristiana, con una exposición breve de Jerónimo de Ripalda, SJ. |
| Astete | 1599 | Gaspar Astete | Doctrina cristiana y documentos de crianza. |
| A Shorte Catechisme | 1614 | Robert Bellarmine | Reprinted in 2020 within Tradivox, Vol. II. |
| Douay Catechism | 1649 | Rev Henry Tuberville, DD | Written at the English College of Douay in Flanders & is based on the Roman Catechism of the Council of Trent. It was similarly written with the purpose of teaching Christian doctrine during the tumultuous English Reformation. It is a testament to Rev. Tuberville and his colleagues at Douay that it remains one of the clearest and most direct compendiums of Catholic teaching in the English language. The Douay Catechism |
| Luz de verdades católicas | 1691 | Juan Martínez de la Parra | Luz de verdades catholicas y explicación de la doctrina christiana. |
| Einheitskatechismus | 1777 | Maria Theresa | Unified catechism for Habsburg monarchy. |
| Catéchisme impérial | 1806 | Napoleon | Unified catechism for France under Napoleon rule, the catechism emphasizes loyalty to the emperor. |
| El catecismo de la doctrina cristiana explicado | 1837 | Santiago José García Mazo | El catecismo de la doctrina cristiana explicado, ó, Explicaciones del Astete que convienen también al Ripalda. |
| 1847 | Joseph Deharbe | A popular German catechism, written by the Theologian Joseph Deharbe, which "possesses theological correctness, brevity of sentences, preciseness of expression, clearness, and good order... It is to Deharbe's credit that in his catechism he preserved catechetical tradition, but abandoned the Canisian division, arranging the text-matter under chapters on Faith, Commandments, and Means of Grace." | |
| Baltimore Catechism | 1885 | Fr. Januarius De Concilio | Various editions of the Baltimore Catechism were the de facto standard Catholic school text in America from 1885 to the late 1960s. It was often taught by rote. The most common edition has a series of questions with their answers, which are followed by explanations in more depth. These are often accompanied by biblical quotes. There is a test at the end of every chapter. |
| Explicación del catecismo católico | 1900 | Ángel María de Arcos | Explicación del catecismo católico breve y sencilla por el R. P. Ángel María de Arcos. |
| Catechism of Saint Pius X | 1908 | Pope Pius X | It was issued by Pope Pius X at the beginning of the 20th century in Italian, with the intention that all Catholics could easily understand their faith. |
| Dutch Catechism | 1966 | Edward Schillebeeckx & Piet Schoonenberg, S.J. | The first comprehensive post-Vatican II Catholic catechism. It was commissioned and authorised by the Catholic hierarchy of the Netherlands, and in its foreword declares as its intention: "to make the message of Jesus Christ sound as new as it is." The catechism, a bestseller, was alleged to contain a number of problematic formulations. These were reviewed by a commission of cardinals, who alleged several significant shortcomings in the new catechism's presentation of Catholic doctrine. They were able, nonetheless, to "leave untouched by far the greatest part of the New Catechism," while offering their support for "the laudable purpose of the authors of the Catechism, namely, to present the eternal good tidings of Christ in a way adapted to the understanding and the thinking of the present day man." |
| Catechism of the Catholic Church | 1992 | Various | The first universal catechism issued since the Council of Trent in 1566. It contains articles on the classical topics of the official teaching of the Catholic Church on all matters of faith and morals. Since the official language of the Catholic Church is Latin, official teaching documents distributed in Latin are unlikely to change in perceived meaning over time. The Latin language version of the catechism, published 8 September 1997, is the editio typica—the normative and definitive text. The principal source materials for this work are the Sacred Scriptures, the Church Fathers, the liturgy, and the Magisterium. This catechism is intended to serve "as a point of reference for the catechisms or compendia that are composed in the various countries." – Extraordinary Synod of Bishops 1985, Final Report II B a, 4. Fidei depositum is an Apostolic Constitution which states that the catechism of the Catholic Church is for the laity in its address to all the people of God. |
| Katechizm Płocki | 2004 | Stanisław Wielgus | Katechizm Płocki: Wyznanie wiary, Celebracja misterium chrześcijańskiego, Życie w Chrystusie, Modlitwa chrześcijańska. |
| Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church | 2005 | USCCB | It originated with a request of Pope John Paul II in February 2003 and was issued by his successor Pope Benedict XVI 28 June 2005. The English version was printed at Libreria Editrice Vaticana in 2006. Unlike the larger catechism, the Compendium is similar in format to the Baltimore Catechism with 598 questions and answers, providing an easier format with only the "essential" contents of the Catechism of the Catholic Church as the title suggests. |
| United States Catholic Catechism for Adults | 2006 | USCCB | The 1992 Vatican catechism had several aims, among them to be an "authentic reference text for teaching Catholic doctrine and particularly for preparing local catechisms". American bishops responded with the 2006 United States Catholic Catechism for Adults (USCCB, 2006) – similar in format to a college textbook, targeting adults, contain seven elements that bring more depth to the material than the 'Compendium', providing more flexibility for diverse groups of people to study its contents. Each section or chapter contains the following: story or lesson of faith, foundation and application, sidebars, relationship to culture, discussion questions, doctrinal statements, and meditation and prayer. The lessons of faith stories are about individuals from the United States and allow the American reader to better relate to these individuals. This version of the catechism is available on audio CD-ROM as well. |
| Youcat | 2011 | Christoph Schönborn | Youcat, short for Youth Catechism of the Catholic Church, is a publication that aims to be an aid for youth to better understand the Catechism of the Catholic Church. |
| Christ – Our Pascha | 2012 | Synod of the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church | An Eastern Catholic catechism, created by the Ukrainian Greek Church & used by some of the other Eastern Catholic churches as well, as it provides a more Eastern perspective on the universal doctrines and practices of the Catholic Church, as well as delving into Eastern Christian practices and beliefs typically not emphasized in Latin Church. An English translation appeared in 2016. |
Catechism by Alcuin contains questions and answers. The question is asked by a student and the teacher answers him.
Weißenburger Katechismus
Written at the end of 8th century, intended for priests in Old High German. Created in Weissenburg Abbey in Alsace. The book contains: Lord's Prayer, form of confession, seven deadly sins, Apostles' Creed, Athanasian Creed and Gloria in excelsis Deo hymn. This catechism was created in the wake of canons prescribed by Admonitio generalis.
Encyclopedic work about medieval Christian theology, originally written in the late 11th century by Honorius Augustodunensis. It was intended as a handbook for the lower and less educated clergy.
De quinque septenis seu septenariis by Hugh of Saint Victor
Work about seven deadly sins, seven petitions of the Lord's Prayer, seven gifts of the Holy Ghost, seven virtues, and Beatitudes.
It also emphasised the Seven Virtues, the Seven Deadly Sins, the Seven Sacraments, and the Seven Works of Mercy.
A 1357 translation into English is often called the Lay-Folk's Catechism. The Lay Folks' Catechism or the English and Latin Versions of Archbishop Thoresby's Instructions for the People (London: Published for the Early English Text Society, by Kegan Paul, Trench, Trübner & Co., 1901).
The Doctrina Cristiana "Lessing J. Rosenwald Collection" Library of Congress. World Digital Library. Retrieved 10 November 2010. was written in Tagalog (both in a hispanised Latin script and the then-common indigenous Baybayin script), as well as Spanish. Amongst the contents of the Doctrina are the Spanish alphabet and phonics, basic prayers shown in both languages – in the case of the Tagalog, using archaic words and Digraphia – and a brief catechism in question-and-answer format.
The Archbishop of Baltimore Cardinal James Gibbons is quoted in earlier versions of the Enchiridion, that every theologian should have always two books at hand, the Holy Bible and this Enchiridion.
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Most Orthodox would refer back to the original writings of the Church Fathers, including the Catechetical Lectures of St. Cyril of Jerusalem and The Ladder of Divine Ascent. New catechumens would generally be encouraged to read "The Orthodox Church" by Kallistos Ware to get an overview of the Christian faith from an Orthodox perspective before being given more advanced readings.
In recent times, perhaps under influence from the West, a number of catechisms have emerged in the Eastern Orthodox Church such as the Philaret Drozdov Catechism, which is entitled, "The Longer Catechism of The Orthodox, Catholic, Eastern Church," by Rev. George Mastrantonis, and the more modern "The Orthodox Faith" by Protopresbyter Thomas Hopko. However, presently such catechisms are not widely used.
The Oriental Orthodox Churches rely heavily on the Didascalia Apostolorum. The Ethiopic version is known as the "Ethiopic Didascalia." It is included in the Orthodox Tewahedo biblical canon, and is read from on Sundays. The faith of the Coptic Orthodox Church has historically been evidenced in the lives and sayings of the early desert monks, which was recorded in "The paradise of the holy fathers," and . Recently the Coptic church has used Fr. Tadros Malaty's books, along with Pope Shenouda III of Alexandria's many books, to help lay people better understand their Coptic faith. However, like the Eastern Orthodox church, the faith is mostly expounded in the lives of the saints and the material recited during the services.
Among the first projects of the Reformation was the production of catechisms self-consciously modelled after the older traditions of Cyril of Jerusalem and Augustine. These catechisms showed special admiration for Chrysostom's view of the family as a "little church", and placed strong responsibility on every father to teach his children, to prevent them from coming to baptism or the Lord's table ignorant of the doctrine under which they are expected to live as Christians.
Catechist: What is your Name? Answer: N. or M.
Catechist: Who gave you this Name?
Answer: My Godfathers and Godmothers in my Baptism; wherein I was made a member of Christ, the child of God, and an inheritor of the kingdom of heaven.
The "N. or M." stands for the Latin, "nomen vel nomina", meaning "name or names". It is an accident of typography that "nomina" (nn.) came to be represented by "m".
The catechism was published in 1604 as a stand-alone document. It was later bound up with the 1662 Book of Common Prayer. This edition holds authority across the Anglican Communion.
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| 1769 (vol. I and vol. II) |
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| 1998 by Church in Wales. |
The Episcopal Church's 1979 prayer book includes a catechism newly written for the prayer book, intended as "an outline of instruction" and "a brief summary of the Church's teaching".
"To Be A Christian: An Anglican Catechism" was published in 2020 by Anglican House Media Ministries, the publishing house of the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA).
Luther adds:
Luther's Small Catechism, in contrast, is written to accommodate the understanding of a child or an uneducated person. It begins:
The scandal of diverse instruction is that it produces diverse baptisms and diverse communions, and diverse faith. However, forms may vary without introducing substantial differences, according to the Reformed view of doctrine.
When Frederick III, Elector Palatine, came into power in 1559 he put his authority behind the Calvinistic view on the Lord's Supper, which denied the local presence of the body of Jesus Christ in the elements of the sacrament. He turned Sapienz College into a school of divinity, and in 1562 he placed over it a pupil and friend of Luther's colleague, Philipp Melanchthon, named Zacharias Ursinus. In an attempt to resolve the religious disputes in his domain, Frederick called upon Ursinus and his colleague Caspar Olevianus (preacher to Frederick's court) to produce a catechism. The two collaborators referred to existing catechetical literature, and especially relied on the catechisms of Calvin and of John Lasco. To prepare the catechism, they adopted the method of sketching drafts independently, and then bringing together the work to combine their efforts. "The final preparation was the work of both theologians, with the constant co-operation of Frederick III. Ursinus has always been regarded as the principal author, as he was afterwards the chief defender and interpreter of the Catechism; still, it would appear that the nervous German style, the division into three parts (as distinguished from the five parts in the Catechism of Calvin and the previous draft of Ursinus), and the genial warmth and unction of the whole work, are chiefly due to Olevianus." (Schaff, in. Am. Presb. Rev. July 1863, p. 379). The structure of the Heidelberg Catechism is spelled out in the second question; and the three-part structure seen there is based on the belief that the single work of salvation brings forward the three persons of the Trinity in turn, to make God fully and intimately known by his work of salvation, referring to the Apostles' Creed as an epitome of Christian faith. Assurance of salvation is the unifying theme throughout this catechism: assurance obtained by the work of Christ, applied through the sacraments, and resulting in grateful obedience to the commandments and persistence in prayer.
The Heidelberg Catechism is the most widely used of the Catechisms of the Reformed churches.
Spiritual Milk for Boston Babes, written by the Puritan minister John Cotton and published in 1656, was the first known children's book published in the United States.
Besides the manuals of instruction that were published by the Christians for use in their families and churches, there were other works produced by heretical sectarian groups intended as a compact refutation of Christian orthodoxy.
For example, Socinianism in Poland published the Racovian Catechism in 1605, using the question and answer format of a catechism for the orderly presentation of their arguments against the Trinity and the doctrine of Hell, as these were understood by the Reformed churches from which they were forced to separate.
Islam teaches children and new the matters of faith, worship, and ethics in the form of a concise manual. They are popular in Turkish language as (from the Arabic Ilm ul-Hal, Situation Science). It is also advised for every Muslim to have a basic knowledge of such matters of religion. The first chapter is the book of cleanliness and first to be taught are subjects such as: which are clean, what is clean and what is not clean, what people need to be cleansed from, how they should clean, and which water should they use to clean. There is a well-known book of catechism that is studied in Pesantren called Safinatun Najah, which talks about of matters of faith, worship and Fiqh.
In the Pali Canon of Theravada Buddhism a small bit of catechism appears as the fourth section of the Khuddakapatha, as well as the forty-third and forty-fourth suttas of the Majjhima Nikaya. Henry Steel Olcott introduced his own form of Buddhist Catechism, appropriated from Christianity, to Ceylon when setting up his Buddhist education system during the late 19th century Buddhist revival on the island.
Epicurean catechesis may have originated from the practice of writing outlines of Epicurean doctrines for easy memorization. Epicurus' Letter to Herodotus is known as the "Little Epitome" which young students are instructed to memorize, and in antiquity they would move on to more advanced teachings with the "Large Epitome". The 40 Principal Doctrines also serve the role of a catechism. The philosopher Philodemus of Gadara instructed his students to keep an outline of the doctrines on wealth and economics, so that there are additional doctrines that advanced students may focus on.
Schools of esoteric learning have used a catechetical style of instruction, as this Zodiac catechism shows:
Q. "Where is the animal, O Lanoo? and where the Man?
A. Fused into one, O Master of my Life. The two are one. But both have disappeared and naught remains but the deep fire of my desire.
The term has also been used by atheist and non-Christian philosophers, such as:
Catechisms were also written to rehearse the basic knowledge of a non-religious subject. Examples include numerous political catechisms published from the 18th to the 20th century in Europe as well as in North and South America.Jean-Charles Buttier, Émilie Delivré (ed.)," Les catéchismes républicains ", La Révolution française, Institut d'Histoire de la Révolution Française, Paris, sept. 2009. See also the Catechism of the History of Newfoundland (c1856), the Coal Catechism (1898),William Jasper Nicolls, Coal Catechism, 1898, published by George W. Jacobs & Co, 1906. and A Catechism of the Steam Engine (1856).John Bourne, A Catechism of the Steam Engine, London, 1856 "Elementary catechism on the Constitution of the United States" Arthur J. Stansbury (1828), "Catechism of the Constitution of the United States" Lewis Cruger (1863) and "A Catechism of the Constitution of the United States of America" John V. Overall. Friedrich Engels' 1847 work Principles of Communism was written as a catechism: Engels subsequently decided that the format was not suited to the addition of historical material which he felt was necessary, and he and Karl Marx restructured the material and used it as the nucleus of The Communist Manifesto. Samuel Parkes, a British industrial chemist, wrote A Chemical Catechism (first edition 1806) as an introductory, popular text for general public.Samuel Parkes, A Chemical Catechism, London, 1806.
Some literary works have also taken the form of a catechism. The 17th episode of James Joyce's novel Ulysses, known as "Ithaca", is written in the form of a catechism, as is Ted Hughes' poem Examination at the Womb Door, from the collection Crow. In Henry IV, Part 1: Act V, Scene I, Line 141 Falstaff refers to his monologue as a catechism, explaining his view of the virtue of honor.
by John Bourne
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