Catechism
What does this mean?
This little booklet is filled with words. Some of those words are easy to understand. Others you will need help with. The word “Catechism” is where we must start though.
It comes an old word which means “To Teach”. The Bible itself is God’s Word faithfully handed down to us from generaEons past. It is a large set of books which takes a long Eme to read. You also should have a lot of help and a good set of companions to understand it well. A guide is also a good thing.
A good catechism can be that needed guide.
This catechism contains a couple of different tools. First is “The Ancient Catechism”. This simply contains the Ten Commandments as a summary of God’s law. The Apostles’ Creed as a summary of God’s work in the world. And finally the Lord’s Prayer. Since the early days of the church these three things have been very important tools for welcoming new Christians into the Faith and Church. Along with that it was expected that knowing this “Ancient Catechism” would help believers to read and hear God’s word well. It was the first tool of interpretation put into the hands of believers.
The second section contains “A Baptist Version of Luther’s Small Catechism”. But why? Read through and hear his simple, memorable, and prayerful explanations of that Ancient Catechism and you will see why.
The third secEon contain “An Orthodox Catechism for Anchored Baptist Church”. This is an adaptation of the “An Orthodox Catechism” by Hercules Collins. This document studies with greater depth the teachings of Anchored Baptist Church and how doctrine is handled and spoken about.
And lastly you have the other two creeds confessed by The Church around the world; The Nicene and the The Athanasian Creeds.
These tools are helpful for the heads of household to teach those whom they are responsible for and are helpful for all Christians eager to learn more about what they believe.