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 [a coin made of silver
mined
from Schreckenberg] in the pocket." (19, 77f.)
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.)
Self-evidently,
it was not Luther's opinion that instruction or
memorizing
should end here. In the Preface to the Small Catechism he
says:
"In the third place, after you have thus taught them this Short
Catechism,
then take up the Large Catechism, and give them also a richer
and
fuller knowledge. Here explain at length every commandment,
petition,
and part with its various works, uses, benefits, dangers, and
injuries
as you find these abundantly stated in many books written about
these
matters." (535, 17.) Then, as Luther often repeats, Bible-verses,
hymns,
and Psalms were also to be memorized and explained. Nor did he
exclude
the explanation of the Small Catechism from the material for
memorizing.
For this very reason he had written the Small Catechism in
questions
and answers, because he wished to have it learned, questioned,
and
recited from memory. "However," says Luther in the Large Catechism
"for
the common people we are satisfied with the three parts, which have
remained
in Christendom from of old." (575, 5.) As far, then, as the
material
for memorizing is concerned, Luther certainly did not demand
more than
even the least gifted were well able to render.
94.
Memorizing to Serve Understanding.
The
second charge, that Luther attached no special importance to the
understanding
of what was memorized, is still more unfounded. The fact
is that
everywhere he was satisfied with nothing less than correct
understanding.
Luther was a man of thought, not of mere sacred formulas
and
words. To him instruction did not mean mere mechanical memorizing,
but
conscious, personal, enduring, and applicable spiritual
appropriation.
Says he: "However, it is not enough for them to
comprehend
and recite these parts according to the words only, but the
young
people should also be made to attend the preaching, especially
during
the time which is devoted to the Catechism, that they may hear it
explained,
and may learn to understand what every part contains, so as
to be
able to recite it as they have heard it, and, when asked, may give
a correct
answer, so that the preaching may not be without profit and
fruit."
(579, 26.) In the Preface to the Small Catechism, Luther
instructs
the preachers: "After they [the children] have well learned
the text
then teach them the sense also, so that they know what it
means."
(535, 14.) Correct understanding was everything to Luther.
Sermons
in the churches and catechizations at home were all to serve
this purpose.
In the
same interest, _viz._, to enrich the brief text of the Catechism
and, as
it were, quicken it with concrete perceptions, Luther urged the
use of
Bible-stories as illustrations. For the same reason he added
pictures
to both of his Catechisms. His _Prayer-Booklet_ contained as
its most
important part the text and explanation of the Catechism and,
in
addition, the passional booklet, a sort of Bible History. To this
Luther
remarks: "I considered it wise to add the ancient passional
booklet
[augmented by Luther] to the Prayer-Booklet, chiefly for the
sake of
the children and the unlearned, who are more apt to remember the
divine
histories if pictures and parables are added, than by mere words
and
teaching, as St. Mark testifies, that for the sake of the simple
Christ,
too, preached to them only in parables." (W. 10, 2, 458.)
Indeed,
Luther left no stone unturned to have his instruction
understood.
On words and formulas, merely memorized, but not
appropriated
intellectually, he placed but little value.
Memorizing,
too, was regarded by Luther not as an end in itself, but as
a means
to an end. It was to serve the explanation and understanding.
And its
importance in this respect was realized by Luther much more
clearly
than by his modern critics. For when the text is safely
embedded,
as it were, in the memory, its explanation is facilitated, and
the
process of mental assimilation may proceed all the more readily. In
this
point, too, the strictures of modern pedagogs on Luther's Catechism
are
therefore unwarranted. Where Luther's instructions are followed, the
memory is
not overtaxed, and the understanding not neglected.
The
instruction advocated by Luther differed fundamentally from the
mechanical
methods of the Middle Ages. He insisted on a thorough mental
elaboration,
by means of sermons, explanations, questions and answers,
of the
material memorized, in order to elevate it to the plane of
knowledge.
With Luther we meet the questions: "What does this mean? What
does this
signify? Where is this written? What does it profit?" He
engages
the intellect. The _Table of Christian Life_ of the Middle Ages,
which
"all good Christians are in duty bound to have in their houses,
for
themselves, their children, and household," is regarded by Cohrs as
a sort of
forerunner of Luther's Small Catechism. "At the same time,
however,"
Cohrs adds, "it clearly shows the difference between the
demands
made by the Church of the Middle Ages and the requirements of
the
Evangelical Church; yonder, numerous parts without any word of
explanation,
sacred formulas, which many prayed without an inkling of
the
meaning; here, the five chief parts, in which the emphasis is put on
'What
does this mean?'" (Herzog, _R._ 10, 138.)
It was
due to the neglect of Christian teaching that Christendom had
fallen
into decay. Force on the part of the popes and priests and blind
submission
on the part of the people had supplanted instruction and
conviction
from the Word of God. Hence the cure of the Church, first of
all,
called for an instructor in Christian fundamentals. And just such a
catechist
Luther was, who made it his business to teach and convince the
people
from the Bible. Indeed, in his entire work as a Reformer, Luther
consistently
appealed to the intellect, as was strikingly demonstrated
in the
turmoil which Carlstadt brought about at Wittenberg. Instruction
was the
secret, was the method, of Luther's Reformation. In the Preface
to the
Small Catechism he says that one cannot and must not force any
one to
believe nor drive any one to partake of the Sacrament by laws,
lest it
be turned into poison, that is to say, lest the very object of
the
Gospel, which is spontaneous action flowing from conviction, be
defeated.
(539, 24; 535, 13.)
95.
Manuals Preceding Luther's Catechism.
When
Luther, in his _German Order of Worship,_ sounded the slogan:
German
services with German instruction in Christian fundamentals! he
did not
lose sight of the fact that this required certain helps for both
parents
and preachers. A book was needed that would contain not only the
text to
be memorized, but also necessary explanations. Accordingly, in
his
_German Order of Worship,_ Luther referred to his _Prayer-Booklet_
as a help
for instruction. However, the _Brief Form of the Ten
Commandments,_
etc., incorporated in the _Prayer-Booklet,_ was not
adapted
for children and parents, as it was not drawn up in questions
and
answers. To the experienced teacher it furnished material in
abundance,
but children and parents had need of a simpler book.
Hardeland
says: "It is certain that Luther in 1526 already conceived the
ideal
catechism to be a brief summary of the most important knowledge
[in
questions and answers], adapted for memorizing and still
sufficiently
extensive to make a thorough explanation possible, at once
confessional
in its tone, and fitted for use in divine service."
(_Katechismusgedanken_
2.) But if Luther in 1526 had conceived this
idea, it
was not carried out until three years later.
However,
what Luther said on teaching the Catechism by questions and
answers,
in the _German Order of Worship,_ was reprinted repeatedly
(probably
for the first time at Nuernberg) under the title: "Doctor
Martin
Luther's instruction how to bring the children to God's Word and
service,
which parents and guardians are in duty bound to do, 1527."
This
appeal of Luther also called forth quite a number of other
explanations
of the Catechism. Among the attempts which appeared before
Luther's
Catechisms were writings of Melanchthon, Bugenhagen, Eustasius
Kannel,
John Agricola, Val. Ickelsamer, Hans Gerhart, John Toltz, John
Bader,
Petrus Schultz, Caspar Graeter, Andr. Althamer, Wenz. Link, Conr.
Sam, John
Brenz, O. Braunfels, Chr. Hegendorfer, Caspar Loener, W.
Capito,
John Oecolampad, John Zwick, and others. The work of Althamer,
the
Humanist and so-called Reformer of Brandenburg-Ansbach, was the
first to
bear the title "Catechism." As yet it has not been ascertained
whether,
or not, Luther was acquainted with these writings. Cohrs says:
"Probably
Luther followed this literature with interest, and possibly
consulted
some of it; the relationship is nowhere close enough to
exclude
chance; still the frequent allusions must not be overlooked; as
yet it
cannot be simply denied that Luther was influenced by these
writings."
On the other hand, it has been shown what an enormous
influence
Luther exercised on that literature, especially by his _Brief
Form_ and
his _Prayer-Booklet._ "In fact," says Cohrs, "Luther's
writings
can be adduced as the source of almost every sentence in most
of these
books of instruction." (W. 30, 1, 474.) Evidently, Luther's
appeal of
1526 had not fallen on deaf ears.
96.
Luther's Catechetical Publications.
Luther
not only stirred up others to bring the Catechism back into use,
but
himself put his powerful shoulder to the wheel. From the very
beginning
he was, time and again, occupied with reading the text of the
Catechism
to the people, and then explaining it in sermons. From the end
of June,
1516, to Easter, 1517, he preached on the Ten Commandments and
the
Lord's Prayer. (W. 1, 394; 2, 74; 9, 122.) In 1518 the explanation
of the
Ten Commandments appeared in print: "_Decem Praecepta
Wittenbergensi
Praedicata Populo._ The Ten Commandments Preached to the
People of
Wittenberg." (1, 398. 521.) Oecolampadius praised the work,
saying
that Luther had here "taken the veil from the face of Moses."
Sebastian
Muenster said: Luther explains the Ten Commandments "in such a
spiritual,
Christian, and Evangelical way, that its like cannot be
found,
though many teachers have written on the subject." (1, 394.)
Agricola
published Luther's sermons on the Lord's Prayer at the
beginning
of 1518 with some additions of his own, which fact induced
Luther to
publish them himself. April 5, 1519, his _Explanation of the
Lord's
Prayer in German_ appeared in print. It was intended for the
plain
people, "not for the learned." (2, 81 to 130.) July 2, 1519, the
Humanist
Beatus Rhenanus wrote to Zwingli that he would like to see this
explanation
of the Lord's Prayer offered for sale throughout all
Switzerland,
in all cities, markets, villages, and houses. Mathesius
reports:
"At Venice Doctor Martin's Lord's Prayer was translated into
Italian,
his name being omitted. And when the man saw it from whom the
permission
to print it was obtained, he exclaimed: Blessed are the hands
that
wrote this, blessed the eyes that see it, and blessed will be the
hearts
that believe this book and cry to God in such a manner." (W. 2,
75.) This
work passed through many editions. In 1520 it appeared in
Latin and
Bohemian, and as late as 1844 in English. March 13, 1519,
Luther
wrote to Spalatin: "I am not able to turn the Lord's Prayer
[Explanation
of the Lord's Prayer in German of 1518] into Latin, being
busy with
so many works. Every day at evening I pronounce the
commandments
and the Lord's Prayer for the children and the unlearned,
then I
preach." (Enders 1, 449.) Thus Luther preached the Catechism,
and at
the same time was engaged in publishing it.
The
_Brief Instruction How to Confess,_ printed 1519, was also
essentially
an explanation of the Ten Commandments. It is an extract
from
Luther's Latin work, _Instructio pro Confessione Peccatorum,_
published
by Spalatin. Luther recast this work and published it in
March,
1520, entitled: _Confitendi Ratio._ (W. 2, 59. 65.) As a late
fruit of
his _Explanation of the Lord's Prayer in German_ there
appeared,
in 1519, the _Brief Form for Understanding and Praying the
Lord's
Prayer_ which explains it in prayers. (6, 11-19.) In 1519 there
appeared
also his _Short and Good Explanation Before Oneself and Behind
Oneself_
("vor sich und hinter sich") a concise explanation how the
seven
petitions must be understood before oneself ("vor sich"), _i.e._,
being
ever referred to God, while many, thinking only of themselves, put
and
understand them behind themselves ("hinter sich"). (6, 21. 22.)
June,
1520, it was followed by the _Brief Form of the Ten Commandments,
the
Creed, the Lord's Prayer,_ a combination of the revised _Brief
Explanation
of the Ten Commandments,_ of 1518, and the _Brief Form for
Understanding
the Lord's Prayer,_ of 1519, with a newly written
explanation
of the Creed. With few changes Luther embodied it in his
_Prayer-Booklet,_
which appeared for the first time in 1522. Here he
calls it
a "simple Christian form and mirror to know one's sins, and to
pray."
The best evidence of the enthusiastic reception of the
_Prayer-Booklet_
are the early editions which followed hard upon each
other,
and the numerous reprints during the first years. (10, 2,
350-409.)
In 1525 Luther's sermons on Baptism, Confession, and the
Lord's
Supper were also received into the _Prayer-Booklet,_ and in 1529
the
entire Small Catechism.
After his
return from the Wartburg, Luther resumed his Catechism labors
with
increased energy. March 27 Albert Burer wrote to Beatus Rhenanus:
"Luther
intends to nourish the weak, whom Carlstadt and Gabriel aroused
by their
vehement preaching, with milk alone until they grow strong. He
daily
preaches the Ten Commandments." At Wittenberg special attention
was given
to the instruction of the young, and regular Catechism-sermons
were
instituted. In the spring of 1521 Agricola was appointed catechist
of the
City Church, to instruct the young in religion. Lent 1522 and
1523,
Luther also delivered Catechism-sermons, Latin copies of which
have been
preserved. In the same year Bugenhagen was appointed City
Pastor,
part of his duties being to deliver sermons on the Catechism,
some of
which have also been preserved.
Maundy
Thursday, 1523, Luther announced that instead of the Romish
confession,
abolished during the Wittenberg disturbances, communicants
were to
announce for communion to the pastor and submit to an
examination
in the Catechism. As appears from Luther's _Formula Missae_
of this
year, the pastor was to convince himself whether they were able
to recite
and explain the words of institution by questioning them on
what the
Lord's Supper is, what it profits, and for what purpose they
desired
to partake of it. (12, 215. 479.) To enable the people to
prepare
for such examination, Luther (or Bugenhagen, at the instance of
Luther)
published a few short questions on the Lord's Supper, culled
from one
of Luther's sermons. This examination became a permanent
institution
at Wittenberg. In a sermon on the Sacrament of 1526, Luther
says:
"Confession, though it serve no other purpose, is a suitable means
of
instructing the people and of ascertaining what they believe, how
they
learn to pray, etc., for else they live like brutes. Therefore I
have said
that the Sacrament shall be given to no one except he be able
to give
an account of what he receives [in the Sacrament] and why he is
going.
This can best be done in confession." (19, 520.)
Furthermore,
on Sundays, after the sermon, the Catechism was read to the
people, a
custom which likewise became a fixture in Wittenberg.
According
to a small pamphlet of 1526, entitled, "What Shall be Read to
the
Common People after the Sermon?" it was the text of the five chief
parts
that was read. (Herz., _R._ 10, 132.) These parts came into the
hands of
the people by means of the _Booklet for Laymen and Children,_
of 1525,
written probably by Bugenhagen. He also reorganized the
Wittenberg
school which the fanatics had dissolved; and, self-evidently,
there,
too, Catechism instruction was not lacking. In a similar way
religious
instruction of the young was begun at other places, as
appears,
for example, from the _Opinions on Reformation_ by Nicolaus
Hausmann
(Zwickau), of 1523 and 1525. Melanchthon's _Instructions for
Visitors_
(Articuli de quibus egerunt per visitatores), drawn up in
1527, and
used in the visitation of 1528 and 1529 as the guide by which
pastors
were examined, and pointing out what they should be charged to
do,
provide, above all, for Catechism-preaching on every Sunday, and
give
instructions for such sermons. (_C. R._ 26, 9. 48.)
Thus
Luther's strenuous efforts at establishing the Catechism were
crowned
with success. In the Apology of 1530 Melanchthon declares
triumphantly:
"Among the opponents there is no Catechism, although the
canons
require it. Among us the canons are observed, for pastors and
ministers
instruct the children and the young in God's Word, publicly
and
privately." (526, 41.)
97.
Immediate Forerunners of Luther's Catechisms.
Luther's
entire pastoral activity was essentially of a catechetical
nature
and naturally issued in his two Catechisms, which, more than any
other of
his books, are the result of his labor in the congregation.
Three
writings, however, must be regarded as their direct precursors,
_viz._,
the _Short Form of the Ten Commandments, the Creed, and the
Lord's
Prayer,_ of 1520, the _Booklet for Laymen and Children,_ of 1525,
and the
three series of Catechism-sermons of 1528, delivered in
Bugenhagen's
absence. True, they are not yet real catechisms, but they
paved the
way for them. The _Short Form_ is a summary and explanation of
the three
traditional chief parts. In the preface to this work, Luther
expresses
himself for the first time on the value and the coherence of
these
parts, which he considered to be the real kernel of the Catechism.
In the
_Short Form_ he also abandoned the traditional division of the
Creed
into twelve parts, choosing, instead, the threefold division of
the later
Small Catechism. In 1522 he embodied the _Short Form_ into his
_Prayer-Booklet,_
in consequence of which it was given extended
circulation.
It has been called Luther's first catechism, and Luther
himself
regarded it so for in his _German Order of Worship_ he
recommends
its use for catechetical instruction. In it are summed up
Luther's
catechetical efforts since 1516.
The
_Booklet for Laymen and Children_ appeared at Wittenberg in 1525, at
first in
Low German (_Ein Boekeschen vor de leyen unde Kinder_), but
done into
High German in the same year. Though Bugenhagen is probably
its
author, no doubt, the book was written at the suggestion and under
the
influence of Luther, parts of whose earlier explanations it
contains,
and who also since 1526, made use of it in his public
services.
Besides the three traditional parts, it offered for the first
time also
those on Baptism (without the baptismal command) and on the
Lord's
Supper. The wording of the text was practically the same as that
of
Luther's Enchiridion. Several prayers, later found in Luther's
Enchiridion,
were also added. Hence the _Booklet for Laymen and
Children_
is properly considered a forerunner of Luther's Catechisms.
The three
series of Catechism-sermons of 1528 must be considered the
last
preparatory work and immediate source of the explanation of the
Catechisms.
Luther delivered the first series May 18 to 30; the second,
from
September 14 to 25; the third, from November 30 to December 19.
Each
series treats the same five chief parts. We have these sermons in a
transcript
which Roerer made from a copy (_Nachschrift_); the third
series
also in a copy by a South German. In his _Origin of the
Catechism,_
Buchwald has shown how Luther's Large Catechism grew out of
these
sermons of 1528. In his opinion, Luther, while engaged on the
Large
Catechism, "had those three series of sermons before him either in
his own
manuscript or in the form of a copy (_Nachschrift_)." This
explains
the extensive agreement of both, apparent everywhere.
Luther
himself hints at this relation; for said sermons must have been
before
him when he began the Large Catechism with the words: "This
sermon is
designed and undertaken that it might be an instruction for
children
and the simple-minded." (575, 1.) This was also Roerer's view,
for he
calls the Large Catechism "Catechism preached by D. M.," a title
found
also in the second copy (_Nachschrift_) of the third series:
_Catechism
Preached by Doctor Martin Luther._ In the conclusion of the
first
edition of the Large Catechism, Luther seems to have made use also
of his
sermon on Palm Sunday, 1529, and others, and in the _Short
Exhortation
to Confession,_ which was appended to the second edition, of
the
sermon of Maundy Thursday, 1529, and others. Some historians,
however,
have expressed the opinion that the relationship might here be
reversed.
The substance of the sermon-series is essentially that also of
the Large
Catechism. In form the Catechism differs from the sermons by
summing
up in each case what is contained in the corresponding three
sermons
and by giving in German what the copies of the sermons offer in
a mixture
of Latin and German (principally Latin, especially in the
first
series).
Following
is a sample of the German-Latin form in which Roerer preserved
these
sermons: "Zaehlet mir her illos, qui reliquerunt multas divitias,
wie
reiche Kinder sie gehabt haben; du wirst finden, dass ihr Gut
zerstoben
und zerflogen ist, antequam 3. et 4. generatio venit, so ist's
dahin.
Die Exempel gelten in allen Historien. Saul 1. fuit bonus etc. Er
musste
ausgerottet werden, ne quidem uno puello superstite, quia es
musste
wahr bleiben, quod Deus hic dicit. Sed das betreugt uns, dass er
ein Jahr
oder 20 regiert hat, et fuit potens rex, das verdreusst uns ut
credamus
non esse verum. Sed verba Dei non mentiuntur, et exempla
ostendunt
etc. Econtra qui Verbo Dei fidunt, die muessen genug haben
etc., ut
David, qui erat vergeucht [verjagt] und verscheucht ut avicula;
tamen
mansit rex. Econtra Saul. Sic fit cum omnibus piis. Ideo nota bene
1.
praeceptum, i.e., debes ex tota corde fidere Deo et praeterea nulli
aliae
rei, sive sit potestas etc., ut illis omnibus utaris, ut sutor
subula
etc., qui tantum laborat cum istis suis instrumentis. Sic utere
bonis et
donis; sie sollen dein Abgott nicht sein, sed Deus." (30, 1,
29.) The
three series of sermons of 1528, therefore, were to the
explanation
of Luther's Catechisms what the _Booklet for Laymen_ was to
the text.
98.
Catechism of Bohemian Brethren.
The
assertion has been made that Luther, in his Small Catechism,
followed
the Children's Questions of the Bohemian Brethren which at that
time had
been in use for about sixty years. This catechism, which was
not clear
in its teaching on the Lord's Supper, came to the notice of
Luther
1520 in Bohemian or Latin, and 1523 in German and Bohemian. In
his
treatise, _Concerning the Adoration of the Sacrament of the Holy
Body of
Christ,_ 1523, Luther remarks: "A book has been circulated by
your
people [the Bohemian Brethren] in German and Bohemian which aims to
give
Christian instruction to the young. Among other things the
statement
is made that [the presence of] Christ in the Sacrament is not
a
personal and natural one, and that He must not be adored there, which
disquiets
us Germans very much. For without doubt it is known to you
how,
through the delegates you sent to me, I requested you to make this
particular
article clear in a separate booklet. For by word of mouth I
heard
them confess that you hold unanimously that Christ is truly in the
Sacrament
with His flesh and blood as it was born of Mary and hung on
the
cross, as we Germans believe. That booklet has now been sent to me
by Mr.
Luca in Latin. Still, in this article it has not yet been made as
pure and
clear as I should like to have seen it. Hence I did not have it
translated
into German nor printed as I promised, fearing I might not
render
the obscure words correctly, and thus fail to give your meaning
correctly.
For it may be regarded as a piece of good luck if one has hit
upon an
exact translation, even if the passage is very clear and
certain,
as I daily experience in the translations I am making. Now,
that this
matter may come to an end, and that the offense of the German
booklet
which you have published may be removed, I shall present to you
and
everybody, as plainly and as clearly as I am able to do, this
article
as we Germans believe it, and as one ought to believe according
to the
Gospel. There you may see whether I have stated correctly what
you
believe or how much we differ from one another. Perhaps my German
language
will be clearer to you than your German and Latin is to me."
(11,
431.) Luther, then, was familiar with the catechism of the
Bohemians,
which contained, besides the chief parts of the ancient
Church,
also the doctrine of the Sacraments. This, therefore, may have
suggested
to him the idea of publishing a small book for children with
questions
and answers, which would also contain the parts of Baptism and
the
Lord's Supper. Such at least is the opinion of Cohrs, Kolde,
Koestlin,
Kawerau, and Albrecht. (W. 30, 1, 466.) But we have no sure
knowledge
of this. At any rate, it is not likely that it was the book of
the
Bohemian Brethren which prompted Luther to embody the Sacraments in
his
Catechism. The further assertion of Ehrenfeuchter, Moenckeberg, _et
al._ that
Luther in his Table of Duties followed the Bohemian Brethren,
is
incorrect, since the Table of Duties appeared much later in their
catechism.
