Adults. Raptism of make in their own persons the Christian profession of |faith and obedience, the demands are addressed to them. Godfathers and Godmothers are required to be present, but only as chosen witnesses of their profession,1 with the further duty of putting them in remembrance of their vow, and calling upon them to use all diligence to be rightly instructed in God's holy Word.' 2 The concluding Exhortation warns the newly-baptized, that as they are 'made the children of God and of the light 3 by faith in Jesus Christ,' it is their part and duty 'to walk answerably to their Christian calling, and as becometh the children of light.'4 2 1 1 Tim. vi. 12; Guericke, p. 227. Shortly before their admission to the rite itself, the competentes received all necessary instruction on the nature of Baptism and of the Lord's Supper; but a more detailed teaching on these subjects (such as has come down to us in St. Cyril's κατηχήσεις μυσταγωγικαί) was reserved until after their admission to Baptism and their first Communion:' Guericke, pp. 229 sq. See Cyril. Hierosol. Catech. XVIII. §§ 32, 33, pp. 224 sq. ed. Par. 1631. 3 pwτiolévτes, Justin Mart. Apol. c. 80. 4 The American Prayer Book adds the following rubrics : 'Whereas necessity may require the baptizing of Adults in private houses in consideration of extreme sickness; the same is hereby allowed in that case. And a convenient number of persons shall be 3 assembled in the house where the Sacrament is to be performed. And in the Exhortation, Well-beloved, &c., instead of these words, come hither desiring, shall be inserted this word, desirous.' If there be occasion for the Office of Infant Baptism and that of Adults at the same time, the Minister shall use the Exhortation and one of the Prayers next following in the Office for Adults; only in the Exhortation and Prayer, after the words, these Persons, and these thy servants, adding, and these Infants. Then the Minister shall proceed to the questions to be demanded in the cases respectively. After the Immersion, or the pouring of water, the prayer shall be as in this Service; only after the words, these Persons, shall be added, and these Infants. After which the remaining part of each Service shall be used; first that for Adults, and lastly that for Infants.' CHAPTER V. THE OCCASIONAL OFFICES. SECT. I.-The Catechism. PREVIOUSLY to 1661 the Catechism was inserted in' the Order of Confirmation. The title in the Prayer Books of Edward VI. and Elizabeth was, Confirmation, wherein is contained a Catechism for Children; and in 1604, The Order of Confirmation, or laying on of hands upon children baptized, and able to render an account of their faith, according to the Catechism following; with a further title to the Catechism itself, that is to say, An Instruction to be learned of every Child, before he be brought to be confirmed by the Bishop. The insertion in the Prayer Book of such an authorized exposition of the elements of the Christian faith and practice belongs to the Reformation.1 English versions and expositions of the Lord's Prayer and Creed had existed in early times.2 But, immediately before the Reformation, it appears that these elements were by no means generally known. The origin of our rubrics about catechising may be referred to the Injunctions issued in 1 The idea is probably due to Hermann's Consultation, where, after Baptism, follows (fol. 183), Of the Confirmation of children baptized: and solemn profession of their faith in Christ,, and of their obedience to be showed to Christ, and to His congre gation;' and a Catechism is inserted 2 See above, p. 14 The Catechism. Catechising fore the Re formation ordered be The Catechism. The Catechism placed in the First Prayer 1536 and 1538,1 which ordered the Curates to teach the people the Lord's Prayer, the Creed, and the Ten Commandments, sentence by sentence, on Sundays and Holydays, and to make all persons recite them when they came to Confession. And when the great hindrance to reformation was removed by the death of Henry, the instruction of the young and the ignorant was among the first particulars to which the advisers of Edward directed their efforts, in the Injunctions of 1547:3 and as soon as a Book of Service was prepared, a Catechism was placed in it, that the exposition of these Christian elements might not depend on the care or ability of the Curates. This manual still remains in our Prayer Book, with only a few verbal alterations, and the addition of an expla 1 Strype, Eccl. Mem. Hen. VIII. noster, in English, and hear them say the same particularly...' Cf. Can. LIX. (1604). 3 Cardwell, Doc. Ann. pp. 7, 25: Whether they have not diligently taught upon the Sundays and Holydays their parishioners, and specially the youth, their Paternoster, the Articles of our Faith, and the Ten Commandments in English, and whether they have expounded and declared the understanding of the same.' 4 The third answer was thus expressed :-'that I should forsake the devil, and all his works and pomps, the vanities of the wicked world...' The preface to the Commandments was added in 1552, and the Commandments were then given at length, which had before been in a very curtailed form, nearly as they had been in Henry's Primer (1545, ed. Burton, p. 460). In 1661 the words, 'the King and all that are put in authority under him,' were substituted for 'the King and his Ministers' (in the American Prayer Book it is,—the civil authority'): and in 1552 the word 'child' was substituted for 'son' in the address before the Lord's Prayer. nation of the Sacraments in 1604. The composition of this latter part is generally attributed to Bishop Overall,1 who was the Prolocutor of the Convocation, and at that time Dean of St. Paul's. It was added by royal authority, 'by way of explanation,' 2 in compliance with the wish which the Puritans had expressed at the Conference at Hampton Court;3 and with two emendations1 was afterwards confirmed by Convocation and Parliament in 1661. The Catechism. Catechism. An intention was formed, in the time of Edward and A larger Elizabeth, to have also another authorized Catechism, for the instruction of more advanced students, and especially those in public schools, touching the grounds of the Christian religion. The original of this work is ascribed to Poynet, 5 who was Bishop of Winchester during Poynet's Gardiner's deprivation. It was published in Latin and in English in 1553, and is supposed to have had the 1 His production has in some respects a very Latin air, suggesting the idea that he was either translating from a formulary in that language, or had made his own original draft in Latin. The definition of the word sacrament' will furnish illustrations of this remark. C. H. 2 See above, pp. 91 sq. 3 'Dr. Reinolds complained that the Catechism in the Common Prayer Book was too brief; for which one by Master Nowell late dean of Paul's was added, and that too long for young novices to learn by heart: requested therefore that one uniform Catechism might be made, which, and none other, might be generally received: it was demanded of him whether, if to the short Catechism in the Communion Book something were added for the doctrine of the sacrament, it would not serve? His Majesty thought the doctor's request very reasonable: but yet so, that he would have a Catechism in the fewest and plainest affirmative terms that may be : taxing withal the number of 4 What is the outward visible 5 Orig. Lett. (Park. Soc.) LXXI. Cheke to Bullinger, June 7, 1553; Nuper J. Wintoniensis episcopi Catechismum auctoritate sua scholis commendavit...' 6 Reprinted in Bp. Randolph's Enchiridion Theologicum. Both the Catechism. The Catechism. Nowell's approval both of Cranmer1 and also of the Convocation which sanctioned the Articles in 1552.2 It seems, however, that this was not considered quite satisfactory ; nor was it able to supplant the many similar compilations of the foreign Reformers,3 which were adopted by many teachers, and occasioned much complaint as to the want of a uniform system of religious instruction. Hence it was agreed by the Bishops in 1561 that, besides the Catechism for children which were to be confirmed, another somewhat longer should be devised for communicants, and a third, in Latin, for schools. It is probable that at this time Dean Nowell was employed upon such a Catechism, taking Poynet's as his ground English and Latin editions are re- 1 'When there was presented unto 2 It appears that a licence for printing the work was granted in September 1552: see Lathbury, Hist. of Convoc. p. 145. When it was published, in 1553, the Articles of the preceding year were appended to each edition; and also a few prayers at the end of the English edition. The title was :-'A short Catechism, or plain instruction, containing the sum of Christian learning, set forth by the King's Majesty's authority, for all Schoolmasters to teach. To this Catechism are adjoined the Articles agreed upon by the Bishops and other learned and godly men, in the last Convocation at London in the year of our Lord MDLII. for to root out the discord of opinions, and stablish the agreement of true religion: Likewise published by the King's Majesty's authority.' The Latin title was :-Catechismus brevis, Christianæ disciplinæ summam continens, &c.' It appears that this mention of the Convocation on the title-page, though belonging only to the Articles, led to the assertion of Weston, the Prolocutor of Queen Mary's Convocation, that this pestiferous and heretical Catechism, as he called it, was foisted fraudulently upon the Synod, never having been authorized by the Convocation. See Lathbury, p. 144, and Hardwick's Hist. of the Articles, pp. 108 sq. 3 The Catechism of Erasmus (1547), ordered to be used in Winchester College and elsewhere; the smaller and larger Catechisms of Calvin (1538 and 1545); that of Ecolampadius (1545), Leo Judas (1553), and more especially Bullinger (1559). Even in 1578, when the exclusive use of Nowell's Catechism had been enjoined in the canons of 1571, those of Calvin, Bullinger, and others were still ordered by statute to be used in the University of Oxford. See Cardwell, Doc. Ann. I. p. 300, note. 4 Cardwell, Doc. Ann. p. 299. |