Historical Introductions to the Symbolical Books of the Evangelical Lutheran Church

by F. Bente

With great emphasis Luther advocated diligent Catechism instruction in his Deutsche Messe (German Mass, i.e., German Service or German Order of Worship), which he completed toward the end of 1525 and published in 1526. Luther issued this Service "because German masses and services are everywhere insisted upon." The demand was made especially in the interest of the unlearned and the children, for whose benefit, according to Luther, all such measures were adopted. "For," says he, "we do not at all establish such orders for those who are already [advanced] Christians. … But we are in need of such orders for the sake of those who are still to become Christians or to grow stronger. Just as a Christian does not need Baptism, the Word, and Sacrament as a Christian, since he already has everything, but as a sinner. Chiefly, however, this is done for the sake of the unlearned and the young people, who should and must be exercised daily and brought up in the Scriptures, the Word of God, that they may become accustomed to the Scripture, skilled, fluent, and at home in it, in order that they may be able to defend their faith, and in time teach others and help to increase the kingdom of Christ. For their sake one must read, sing, preach, write, and compose. And if it would help and promote this aim, I would have all bells rung, all organs played, and everything that is capable of giving sound to sound forth. For the Catholic services are so damnable because they [the Papists] made laws, works, and merits of them, thereby smothering faith, and did not adapt them to the young and unlearned, to exercise them in the Scriptures, in the Word of God, but themselves clung to them [as works], regarding them as beneficial and necessary for salvation to themselves, that is the devil."

While Luther, in his German Worship, as well as in other places, favors also Latin masses, yet he demands that "for the sake of the unlearned laity" German services be introduced. And since the unlearned could be truly served only by instruction in the fundamental truths of Christianity, the Catechism, according to Luther, was to constitute a chief part in these services. "Very well," says he, "in God's name! First of all a clear, simple plain, good Catechism is needed in the German service. Catechism, however, is an instruction whereby heathen who desire to become Christians are taught and instructed in what they must believe, do, not do, and know concerning Christianity. Pupils who were accepted for such instruction and learned the faith before being baptized were therefore called catechumens. Nor do I know how to present this instruction, or teaching, in a form more simple than it already has been presented since the beginning of Christianity, and hitherto retained, to wit, the three parts: the Ten Commandments, the Creed, and the Lord's Prayer. These three parts contain in simple and brief form everything that a Christian must know. And since as yet we have no special congregation (weil man noch keine sonderliche Gemeinde hat), this instruction must proceed in the following manner, by preaching from the pulpit at various times or daily, as necessity demands, and by repeating and reading it to the children and servants at home in the houses morning and evening (if one would make Christians of them). Yet not only so that they memorize the words or recite them, as was done hitherto, but by questioning them part for part, and having them state in their answer what each part means and how they understand it. If all parts cannot be asked at one time, take one, the next day another. For if the parents or guardians are unwilling to take such pains with the young, either personally or through others the Catechism will never be established." (19, 76.) German Catechism in German services—such, then, was the slogan which Luther now sounded forth with ever-increasing emphasis.

92. Luther Illustrating Method of Procedure.

According to Luther's German Worship, pastors were to preach the Catechism on Mondays and Tuesdays. To insure the desired results (memorizing and understanding the text), the children should be questioned, especially at home by the parents. Exemplifying such catechization, Luther writes: "For so shall they be asked: 'What do you pray?' Answer: 'The Lord's Prayer,' What do you mean by saying: 'Our Father who art in heaven?' Answer: 'That God is not an earthly, but a heavenly Father, who would make us rich and blessed in heaven,' 'What does "Hallowed be Thy name" mean?' Answer: 'That we should honor God's name and not use it in vain, lest it be profaned,' 'How, then, is it profaned and desecrated?' Answer: 'When we who are regarded as His children lead wicked lives, teach and believe what is wrong,' And so forth, what God's kingdom means; how it comes; what God's will is, what daily bread, etc. Likewise also of the Creed: 'What do you believe?' Answer: 'I believe in God the Father,' etc. Thereupon part for part, as leisure permits, one or two at a time. Thus: 'What does it mean to believe in God the Father Almighty?' Answer: 'It means that the heart trusts Him entirely, and confidently looks to Him for all grace, favor, help, and comfort, here and hereafter,' 'What does it mean to believe in Jesus Christ, His Son?' Answer: 'It means that the heart believes we should all be lost eternally if Christ had not died for us,' etc. In like manner one must also question on the Ten Commandments, what the first, the second, the third and other commandments mean. Such questions you may take from our Prayer-Booklet, where the three parts are briefly explained, or you may formulate others yourself, until they comprehend with their hearts the entire sum of Christian knowledge in two parts, as in two sacks, which are faith and love. Let faith's sack have two pockets; into the one pocket put the part according to which we believe that we are altogether corrupted by Adam's sin, are sinners and condemned, Rom. 5, 12 and Ps. 51, 7. Into the other pocket put the part telling us that by Jesus Christ we have all been redeemed from such corrupt, sinful, condemned condition, Rom. 5, 18 and John 3, 16. Let love's sack also have two pockets. Into the one put this part, that we should serve, and do good to, every one, even as Christ did unto us, Rom. 13. Into the other put the part that we should gladly suffer and endure all manner of evil." (19, 76.)

In like manner passages of Scripture were also to be made the child's property, as it were; for it was not Luther's idea that instruction should cease at the lowest indispensably necessary goal (the understanding of the text of the chief parts). In his German Order of Worship he goes on to say: "When the child begins to comprehend this [the text of the Catechism], accustom it to carry home passages of Scripture from the sermons and to recite them to the parents at the table, at meal-time, as it was formerly customary to recite Latin, and thereupon to store the passages into the sacks and pockets, as one puts pfennige, and groschen, or gulden into his pocket. Let the sack of faith be, as it were, the gulden sack. Into the first pocket let this passage be put, Rom. 5: 'By one man's disobedience many were made sinners': and Ps. 51: 'Behold, I was shapen in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me,' Those are two Rheinish gulden in the pocket. The other pocket is for the Hungarian gulden, such as this passage, Rom. 5: 'Christ was delivered for our offenses, and was raised again for our justification:' again, John 1: 'Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world,' That would be two good Hungarian gulden in the pocket. Let love's sack be the silver sack. Into the first pocket belong the passages of well-doing, such as Gal. 5: 'By love serve one another'; Matt. 25: 'Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these My brethren, ye have done it unto Me.' That would be two silver groschen in the pocket. Into the other pocket this passage belongs, Matt. 5: 'Blessed are ye when men shall persecute you for My sake;' Heb. 12: 'For whom the Lord loveth He chasteneth: He scourgeth every son whom He receiveth.' Those are two Schreckenbergers

Believing that understanding, not mere mechanical memorizing, of the Catechism is of paramount import, Luther insisted that the instruction must be popular throughout. Preachers and fathers are urged to come down to the level of the children and to prattle with them, in order to bring the Christian fundamentals home even to the weakest and simplest. In his German Mass Luther concludes the chapter on instruction as follows: "And let no one consider himself too wise and despise such child's play. When Christ desired to train men He had to become a man. If we are to train children, we also must become children with them. Would to God that such child's play were carried on well; then we should in a short time see a great wealth of Christian people, and souls growing rich in the Scriptures and the knowledge of God until they themselves would give more heed to these pockets as locos communes and comprehend in them the entire Scriptures; otherwise they come daily to hear the preaching and leave again as they came. For they believe that the object is merely to spend the time in hearing, no one intending to learn or retain anything. Thus many a man will hear preaching for three, four years and still not learn enough to be able to give account of his faith in one particular, as I indeed experience every day. Enough has been written in books. True, but not all of it has been impressed on the hearts." (19, 78.)

93. Value Placed on Memorizing.

Modern pedagogs have contended that Luther's method of teaching the Catechism unduly multiplies the material to be memorized, and does not sufficiently stress the understanding. Both charges, however, are without any foundation. As to the first, it is true that Luther did not put a low estimate on the memorizing of the Catechism. In the Large Catechism he says: "Therefore we must have the young learn the parts which belong to the Catechism or instruction for children well, and fluently and diligently exercise themselves in them and keep them occupied with them. Hence it is the duty of every father of a family to question and examine his children and servants at least once a week, and to ascertain what they know of it, or are learning, and, if they do not know it, to keep them faithfully at it." (575, 3f.) Again: "These are the most necessary parts which one should first learn to repeat word for word, and which our children should be accustomed to recite daily when they arise in the morning, when they sit down to their meals, and when they retire at night; and until they repeat them, they should be given neither food nor drink." (577, 15.)

According to the Preface to the Small Catechism, the teacher is to abide with rigid exactness by the text which he has once chosen and have the children learn it verbatim. "In the first place," says Luther, "let the preacher above all be careful to avoid many kinds of or various texts and forms of the Ten Commandments, the Lord's Prayer, the Creed, the Sacraments, etc., but choose one form to which he adheres, and which he inculcates all the time, year after year. For young and simple people must be taught by uniform, settled texts and forms, otherwise they easily become confused when the teacher to-day teaches them thus, and in a year some other way, as if he wished to make improvements, and thus all effort and labor will be lost. Also our blessed fathers understood this well; for they all used the same form of the Lord's Prayer, the Creed, and the Ten Commandments. Therefore we, too, should teach the young and simple people these parts in such a way as not to change a syllable, or set them forth and repeat them one year differently than in another. Hence, choose whatever form you please, and adhere to it forever. But when you preach in the presence of learned and intelligent men, you may exhibit your skill and may present these parts in as varied and intricate ways and give them as masterly turns as you are able. But with the young people stick to one fixed, permanent form and manner, and teach them, first of all, these parts, namely, the Ten Commandments, the Creed, the Lord's Prayer, etc., according to the text, word for word, so that they, too, can repeat it in the same manner after you and commit it to memory." (533, 7ff.) Thus Luther indeed placed a high value on exact memorizing of the Catechism.

As to the quantity of memorizing, however, Luther did not demand more than even the least gifted were well able to render. He was satisfied if they knew, as a minimum, the text of the first three chief parts and the words of institution of Baptism and the Lord's Supper. (579, 22. 25.) That was certainly not overburdening even a weak memory. Luther was right when he declared in his Short Form of the Ten Commandments, of 1520: In the three chief parts everything "is summed up with such brevity and simplicity that no one can complain or offer the excuse that it is too much or too hard for him to remember what he must know for his salvation." (W. 7, 204.)