The catechumen's guide ...

Preface

This book - as the title implies, is intended to aid Catechumens in their preparations for the lecture room, so that their instruction, which must ever be regarded as an important branch of ministerial duty, may be rendered more interesting to the pastor, and more useful to themselves. But, although designed chiefly for this purpose, it may also, perhaps, in some degree, assist the intelligent and advanced Christian in his investigations of truth and duty, and prove advantageous to those who have just entered the ministry.

The introduction to the work, is a defence of the plan of Catechetical Instruction ; this is followed by an address to Catechumens, and the whole closes with an address to Young Communicants. The questions have been appended at the bottom of each page, so as to exercise, as much as possible, the reflective powers of the reader. A serious objection generally urged against catechetical instruction, is the fact, (often too well established,) that the answers of the Catechumen are mere recitation from memory, and that, consequently, they axe not to be regarded

IV. PREFACE.

as expressive of the real sentiments and convictions of the heart. It has been thought best, therefore, to leave the text unbroken, so that it may be read like other works of a popular doctrinal character.

In the preparation of this work, the author has unhesitatingly availed himself of all the materials within his reach. Many works of a similar kind have been published m Germany, and the late production of Dr. Harnisch, containing illustrations of the ten commandments, is highly valuable, as it embraces, on this subject, all the excellences of preceding writers. To this work, with others, the author has had access, and acknowledges himself much indebted. Most of the prayers have been translated from the German, and others have been compiled from our excellent Liturgy.

A work similar to the one now offered to the church, has long been a desideratum ; should the present imperfect effort promote in any degree, the purpose for which it is intended, the author will have reason to rejoice that he has not labored in vain. He is fully aware of its many deficiencies; but these he has found it more easy to discover, than to avoid. He submits it therefore — not to the severe ordeal of impartial and enlightened criticism — but to the prayerful attention of those, for whose beneiit it has been prepared.

Introduction

It has ever been customary in the Lutheran church to instruct candidates for confirmation in the firs: principles or leading doctrines of Christianity. This course of preparatory instruction, consisting of a series of catechetical lectures, is commenced by the pastor a few months previous to the time of confirmation. And. severely as it has been reprehended, by those who have remained voluntarily ignorant of its advantages, the plan is pursued by the ministers of our communion, under the conviction, that so far from being evil in its tendency, its universal adoption would be the commencement of a new and brighter era. in the history of the church.

The practice in question is based on the very constitution of the human mind, and is dearly recognized in the gospel itself.

Were an individual about to engage another to undertake for him some hazardous enterprise, he would first carefully explain to him its nature, and warn him of all the dangers in the way of his success : and he would rather present to his mind many imaginary difficulties, than to conceal a single obstacle he would be likely to encounter. This would be the only way to test his courage and determination. Were this rational precaution neglected, the person employed might suddenly meet some unforeseen and unexpected danger, which would cause him to shrink from all further effort, and thus the entcrprize would fail. Let us take a familiar example, for the sake of illustration.

When it was determined by the American congress to contend with England for the independence of these United States, and when an army \v r as raised for this purpose, every individual belonging to that band of patriots, was well acquainted with the superior strength and facilities of the enemy. It was known that the English troops were well disciplined, that their means of carrying on the war were abundant, that the contest would, in all probability, be prolonged for years, unless America should consent to yield to the unjust oppressions of her foe, and that there were many circumstances to threaten the total defeat of our arms. With this knowledge of the difficulties they would have to encounter in contending for their rights, our forefathers, nevertheless, pledged "their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor," in the cause of freedom. And why did they persevere until they conquered ? Was it simply because they were engaged in a ricrhte^us undertaking? No. It was because they had counted ike cost. They pledged their lives, under the conviction that life might be the forfeit of their exertions. Danger d;d not intimidate them, because they expected to meet it. Defeat did not dishearten them, because their own inferiority in numbers and resources, scarcely allowed them to hope for conquest.

Thus it is with the religion of Jesus Christ. It requires those who embrace it to sacrifice interest to duty, and to cany on a perpetual contest with the sinful desires and passions of their own hearts. It does not admit of indolence and inactivity, but it calls for the diligent and unremitted exercise of all the mental, moral and bodily powers. The Christian is appropriately called a soldier of the cross. He has a battle to fight, and a victory to gain. There are enemies within him and around him. And the courage and determination of every one, who wishes to enlist under the banners of the gospel, cannot be tested, unless lie is made acqauinted with the holy requirements of the oreat Captain of our salvation.

I lay it down, therefore, as a principle which ought to regulate every minister of the gospel, that no one should be received into the churchy whilst ignorant of the doctrines taught, and the moral obligations enforced in the word of God. Now it is a fact, that persons have been frequently received into church-fellowship, whilst unacquainted with the most obvious truths and simple requirements of the gospel. Nothing can be more detrimental to the interests of piety, than this mistaken measure. And we may safely attribute to this cause, the melancholy dissensions that have arisen, and still exist, in individual congregations, and the actual defection of many of the professed followers of Christ.

Suppose the soldiers of the American revolution had been ignorant of the resources of the enemy, and of the order that pervaded their ranks, and suppose they had imagined that they were to contend in battle with a few undisciplined troops like themselves, it is easy to conceive that the very sight of a well-disciplined army, with all the "pomp and circumstance" attending it, would have sent terror to almost every heart. Or had they been assured that congress would supply all their wants, and ad-

8 rBCHKTIGAL INSTRUCTION.

minister to the necessities of their families, and secure to them every comfort and luxury, with what feelings would they have encountered the fatigue and misery they endured, and how long would they have witnessed, without murmuring and revolt, the burning of their houses and their bftfBS, and the total destruction of their crops and cattle ? But they knew the worst, and this enabled them to face '■very danger with firmness and determination.

Now it is equally necessary, that candidates for churchmembership should be made acquainted with all the duties thev will have to perform, and all the sacrifices they will be required to make, as the followers of Christ. If they are destitute of this knowledge, there will be great danger that they will not persevere to the end. There may be those, who, at the time of their admission into the church, were wholly, or in a great degree, ignorant of their duty, and have nevertheless been diligent in the discharge of every obligation, subsequently revealed to them. Yet, I am bold to say, that the policy to which I have just animadverted, is injudicious and unscriptural, and, m many instances, ruinous to the interests of religion. And therefore I contend, that persons who are but partially awakened to a sense of moral obligation, or only alarmed at the consequences of their guilt, should be fully enlightened in regard to the most prominent points cf Christian doctrine and duty, before they are received into fellowship with the church.

Not long since, a female applied to a minister of our church for confirmation. In a conversation with her, he «oon discovered, that she was entirely ignorant of Christian duty. She could not read, had never been accustomed to attend the preaching of the gospel, and had been

THE PRACTICE DEFENDED. y

induced to make this application by some vague and indefinite impression received at a prayer meeting which she had recently attended. It was the day previous to confirmation, when the circumstance I am now relating occurred. The minister explained to her the necessity of being acquainted with the requirements of that Master whom she professed a willingness to serve. He told her that her present feelings might undergo a very material change after she became enlightened in regard to Christian duty, and that it would be impossible for her to test the firmness of her present purpose, without the knowledge of the most prominent truths and obligations of the gospel. He also advised her to attend a course of catechetical instruction, then in progress, and recommended that she should apply to some pious friend to read to her the Scriptures, as she could not read them herself. But it proved in the end, that the feeling which prompted her request to be admitted into the church, was momentary, and transient, and unfounded on a real sense of duty. And the subsequent conduct of this individual, confirmed the wisdom of the measure pursued in her case.

It must ever be remembered, that man is an intelligent being, possessing reason and judgment, and the power of choice, and therefore to be properly influenced as a free, moral agent, he must be made acquainted with all the facts and circumstances, attending any course of action he is requested to pursue. In reference to religious truth, it is essential that he become persuaded, — 1. Of the necessity of a divine revelation ; 2. That the Bible is a divine revelation ; and finally, by arguments drawn from the Bible itself, and addressed to his understanding, that he is obligated by every serious consideration, and by every

worthy motive, to love and serve that Being who has revealed his character and will to man. The light thus dirt used throughout the mind, and brought home to the • -onscience by the spirit of truth, will become the power of God unto salvation. The most of those who live in ( 'hristian lands are already convinced of the divine origin of the Scriptures of the Old and New Testament, and all that remains to be done in this case, is to state and i xplain the prominent doctrines of revelation, and make known the duties they involve.

I have said, that the practice for which I am contending, is clearly recognized in the Bible itself. This position I shall now endeavor to establish. Here let it be borne in mind, that catechetical instruction is nothing more, or less, than the statement and illustration of Christian doctrine and duty. The faithful minister exhibits to the members of his class, the whole system of evangelical truth. He describes to them the character of that God whom they have offended. He speaks of their own sinfulness, and their need of a Saviour. He dwells upon the scenes of Calvary, and points to the Lamb of God. who taketh away the sins of the world. He exhorts them to flee from the wrath to come. He lays various motives before them. He appeals to their love of happiness and then* dread of suffering. He warns and entreats. In a word, he employs every argument which he thinks will influence their decisions, and arrest their attention to duty, and the interests of their immortal souls. Now this is the only course to be pursued, if man. as a rational being, possessing" the power of choice, is to be influenced by motives or persuasion. Does the Bible then recognize and sanction this kind of influence? Let us see.

It is evident in the first place, that the requisitions of the moral law are not arbitrary ; and though God, as the moral Governor of the universe, has an undoubted right to require the obedience of man without expostulation or argument, in revealing his will to our sinful race he has graciously condescended, not only to state the ground of his requirements, but to present every motive to obedience, which infinite affection and wisdom could suggest.

Again : The intellectual powers of man have become more or less affected by the fall. One of the most dreadful consequences of sin is the prostration of those faculties of the mind, which, had they remained unimpaired, would have enabled us, at a glance, to admire the infinite perfections of the Deity, to be grateful for the evidences of his goodness, and to acknowledge the reasonableness of all his requirements. In other words, the moral condition of the sinner, has influenced his intellectual condition, in as far as religious truth and moral duty are concerned. Under these circumstances, how is apostate man to become a worshipper of the living God ? The wisdom of the Almighty has established the means of imparting light to his understanding through the medium of divine revelation. And this is just such a revelation as he wants. It is admirably adapted, not only to his mental, but also to his moral constitution. It addresses him not only as a rational being, but also as a being so depraved by sin, as to remain unaffected by the simple statements of duty. It meets all the prejudices of the human heart, and takes from the sinner every apology for non-compliance with its inspired dictates.

Refer for a moment to the book of the prophet Isaiah, (i. 18) " Come now and let us reason together, saith the

I/)rd.'' This appeal, which so beautifully and touchingly exhibits the condescension of the Creator, unfolds to us the true Character of man as a free agent — a character which, though imparted by a higher power, is never to be lost sight of. in any effort that is made to influence the individual thus constituted. In all the overtures of divine mercy, man is left to choose for himself, an eternal destiny of happiness or woe. And it is the design of God that every truth should be exhibited to the sinner's view, so that he may have no excuse for his rebellion, and also that his resolution of obedience may spring from a conviction of the reasonableness of the divine law. It is thus with every true and persevering child of God. lie walks in the path of duty, because reason, enlightened by revelation, points it out to him as the path of wisdom and of peace.

The address that was made to the Israelites by Elijah, when at his command they were assembled by Ahab, at Mount Carmel, may also serve to illustrate this point. ••How long halt ye between two opinions? If the Lord be God follow him; if Baal, then follow him." Here the question of their allegiance to God is thrown open to discussion ; and the Israelites are justly censured for remaining in a state of indecision, because their very constitution as rational beings, enabled them to pass judgment on the conflicting claims of the Lord and Baal, to their service and their love. They are urged to test these claims, and to decide, by their knowledge of the attributes of the true God, and of the idol of the Zidonians, which of the two, their duty, as well as their interest, required them to worship.

The testimony of Christ in reference to this question is still more satisfactory, as he proves the absurdity of professing an attachment to him, or his cause, before we have acquired the knowledge of the many sacrifices and duties, which that profession involves. The Saviour said to the multitude who followed him : " which of you intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish it."

This counting the cost is a mental process, and consists in that calm deliberation, with which every one is to regard the responsibilities of the Christian character, before he assumes them. As already remarked, every disciple of Christ is required to make sacrifices, if faithful to the interests of his Master's cause. Many of these borrow their complexion from the circumstances of the individual himself; as in the primitive age of the Church, the Christian became the child of poverty, and the victim of persecution, in the very nature of the case. But there are principles of action, established in the gospel, which demand the exercise of a self-denying spirit^ under every circumstance that is favorable to its manifestation. "If any man will be my disciple," says the Saviour, "let him deny himself." Hence, no desire is to be indulged, and no affection cherished, in any instance, that is inconsistent with the moral requirements of revealed truth. Every emotion of anger, and every feeling of revenge, is to be subdued. Wealth, honor, and the approbation of the world, are all to be sacrificed, unless they can be acquired in the way of duty. In social intercourse, that golden rule is to be the basis of action : " Do unto others, as you would wish others do unto you," The prosperity of an enemy must not

11 CATECHETICAL INSTRUCT:

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It may be well to remark here, that the knowledge we deem requisite, is the knowledge of fundamental principles, or first truths. We only contend for an acquaintance with the essential doctrines and moral precepts of the gospel: and we contend for this, because man. as a voluntary agent, cannot yield to the influence of these precepts and doctrines, before he knows them. Nothing can be more self-evident. Besides, this knowledge is easily attained. And hence, there is not the shadow of an excuse for those who receive persons into full communion with the church, as long as they are ignorant of the doctrines and moral requirements of .Christianity, and have never made the will and character of the Creator, subjects of inquiry and meditation.

Such persons in applying for church membership are actuated by an impulse, or emotion, with which the judgment has nothing to do.

When, on the other hand, the sinner discovers, after a prayerful investigation of the claims of the Creator on his obedience and love, that these claims are well established and just, his decision to submit to God (if decision follows) is the result of reflection. He has weighed all the circumstances of the case. He not only believes the doctrines of the gospel to be true^ but finds himself solemnly obligated to obey its moral precepts; not merely as the means of promoting his own happiness, but chiefly, because they are the commands of an infinitely wise and holy Being. He decides as a voluntary agent ought to decide — not at the impulse of a sudden emotion of admiration or fear — but after he has acquired a knowledge of the essential doctrines and precepts of that gospel, which is to constitute the standard of his actions through life, while it administers to his soul, in its promises, the hope of everlasting joy in heaven. Sanctified by the spirit of Truth, this knowledge becomes, in his case, "the power of God unto salvation." He engages in the service of a master whose requirements are familiar to his mind. He has counted the cost, and acts understanding^ when he announces his allegiance to the cause of heaven.

There are two other points of view, in which this subject is of the highest interest.

1. The injury sustained by the church, in the admission of members, who are unenlightened in regard to Christian doctrine and duty.

2. The important benefits secured to the church, by every accession of those, who have a "zeal according to knowledge."

I am aware of the objection, often urged against the system of preparatory instruction, as it exists in the Lutheran church. It is said, that, under its operation, persons are admitted into church-fellowship, after having committed to memory the words of the Catechism, before the truths of the gospel have exercised their saving influence over the heart. But this objection cannot be sustained. For every candid inquirer will, at once, perceive, that a course of catechetical lectures will no sooner lead to this result, than the system of bible class instruction, so eminently useful wherever it has been adopted. The one is but a modification of the other. It is the object of both systems to impress upon the minds of the young, the momentous truths of divine revelation.

I do not deny that some ministers have received persons into full communion with the church, after a systematic course of religious instruction, without requiring the evidences of genuine piety. And I know that wherever this plan has been pursued, the result has been lamentable in the extreme, Formality in religion, and the habitual neglect and violation of duty, must inevitably attend this policy. For whoever is not imbued with the spirit of the gospel, must necessarily be as dead as the letter itself. I have seen members of the church who have arrived at the age of thirty or forty years, and have never partaken of the Lord's supper since the day of their confirmation, fifteen or twenty years ago. For fifteen or twenty years, ever since they united with the church, they have lived in the constant neglect of duty. Such individuals are destitute of all evangelical zeal. They perform no act, which, by the disinterestedness of its motive, impels others to exertion in the sacred cause of Christ. Every thing they do, is done in the cold, calculating spirit of selfishness. They are prayerless, and unconcerned about the salvation of others. And were the conversion of the world to depend upon their efforts, it would never take place.

But if there are members of this character in the church, it may be in consequence of ministerial negligence, or of self-deception. It cannot be the result of a plain statement of gospel truth, when the mind is prayerfully directed to its contemplation. We shall have occasion to advert hereafter, to the important advantages that flow to the church, from the faithful performance

of this part of ministerial duty.

*2

It is indeed a matter of deep regret, that, in any instance, a mere theoretical acquaintance with the doctrines and precepts of the gospel, has been considered a sufficient ground of admission into church communion. But there is an evil, of equal, if not greater magnitude, in a church, composed of members, whose attention has perhaps been suddenly arrested by listening to a single discourse, and who, on the very first indication of any thing like zeal for the service of God, or anxiety for their individual happiness, have been hurried into church-fellowship — their minds unenlightened, save by the solitary gleam of knowledge, to which they owed their first impressions. There is a spirit of proselytism abroad, which cannot be too severely censured, when it introduces into the church, the certain means of its corruption. And it is to be feared that there are ministers of the gospel, who are less solicitous to swell the ranks of true believers, than to increase the strength and influence of party.

Make the sinner acquainted with the fundamental principles of inspired truth ; the humility he must exercise, the sorrow he must feel for past offences, the sacrifice he must make of this worlds pleasures, perhaps of friendship ; tell him of the important duties he will be required to perform as a "follower of the Lamb;" and if he shrink not from the trial then ; if with an intimate knowledge of the prominent features of the gospel system, he is still willing to embrace it ; if pride, self-sufficiency, and self-interest, try their influence over him, in vain, there will be some reason for the belief, that his wishes are sincere, and his purposes firm.

The injury sustained by the church, in the admission of members who are unenlightened in regard to Christian doctrine and duty, may be referred to the following heads :

1. Apostacy is one of the fatal consequences of this mistaken policy. Persons who have been received into the church, while ignorant of the first principles of gospel truth, and who become eventually enlightened, are often so startled, by their hitherto unsuspected obligations, that they "go back unto perdition." How many instances of this kind does the history of the church afford, especially "in these latter days!" How many are there, who refuse to walk with Christ, as soon as they become aware of the sacrifices which his service demands, and are made acquainted with the duties, which the moral precepts of the gospel impose !

2. Every act of apostacy lowers the profession of the gospel, in the esteem of many who are yet on the side of the world. It frequently determines the wavering in favor of sin, and confirms in the infidel, a spirit of unbelief.

3. The individual who professes Christianity, while ignorant of its principles, may be driven into the lowest depths of scepticism. Let him but hear or read the arguments of the unbeliever, and if no kind friend is near to expose their sophistry, he may, first, begin to waver, until, driven to desperation, by mistaking his own ignorance for the weakness of his cause, he becomes an infidel himself. The wide and rapid spread of infidelity, in the present day, is to be attributed in part, without a question, to this simple, but mischievous and extensively operating cause.

4. Ignorance of Christian doctrine and duty, tends directly to form the character of the Enthusiast. Individuals destitute of the knowledge of the doctrines and moral precepts of the gospel, and admitted into the church while their minds are comparatively unenlightened, may have a species of zeal ; but it will be directed in all its efforts by their limited and distorted views. Hence the church is often brought to lament the imprudent measures of its well-meaning, but mistaken friends. And in most cases it will be found impossible to check this zeal, or give it a new and more useful direction. Self-conceit, the offspring of ignorance, will generally resist every effort of truth, to curb, in the unenlightened mind of the enthusiast, those wild and turbulent feelings, to whose impulse he implicitly yields. And in such a character there is a spirit of censoriousness, which condemns all the efforts of an enlightened zeal, as the fruits of lukewarmness and indifference. These are the persons who believe the end justifies the means, and make utility the ground of their proceedings, instead of the plain directions of revealed truth. The tendency of all this is, to create disorder and schism in the church.

5. Ignorance also begets self-righteousness.

6. The last consequence of ignorance to which I shall allude, is that gross and glaring inconsistency, which has done more injury to the church than all other causes united. Many who enter the church with wrong impressions of truth and duty, desire to maintain their good standing, though, at the same time, they are worldly-minded, and neglect almost every obligation. Consequently, their professions of piety are loud and frequent, but while they call upon God with their lips, their hearts are far from him. Nothing can be more hurtful to the interests of religion, than the dissimulation of its professed friends.

In regard to the important benefits, which flow to the church from every accession of those who have a zeal according to knowledge, they are so obvious, we need scarcely offer a single remark.

1. The knowledge of gospel doctrine and duty, tends to promote harmony of feeling and unity of action among all the members of the household of faith. The more expansive and evangelical the Christian's views, the less will he feel . the influence of a Sectarian spirit. The ages of persecution have always been, emphatically, ages of ignorance. Ever since the protestant Reformation, the light of truth, shining from the sacred page, has been struggling to penetrate the systems of human invention that have obscured it ; and now, in this age of candid investigation and enlightened inquiry, Christians begin to see that they stand on common ground, and are fast uniting to promote those mighty schemes of benevolence, which are intended to benefit all mankind. The Bible Society is a monument of enlightened Christian zeal. It serves to illustrate, that a true knowledge of the doctrines and moral precepts of the gospel, tends to unite believers of every name — to create and cherish that harmony of feeling, which leads to unity of action as its natural result. The same may be said of the connection lately formed, between the Home Missionary Society and the Parent Missionary Society of the Lutheran church. It becomes necessary then, in a day like this, to foster this spirit of union, by affording to all applicants for admission into the church, the most enlarged views of duty, so that they may be prepared to take a right stand in tlic great enterprises of the age. These views may of course be acquired, and ought to be expanded by reading. But it is a notorious fact, that many of the members of our church have not been accustomed to read the religious intelligence of the day: and every minister should therefore specify, in his lectures to catechumens, the most prominent benevolent operations of the age, explain their design, and earnestly enforce their claims to the co-operation of every follower of Christ. At the same time, he should recommend to their patronage, some religious periodical, as a vehicle of intelligence concerning the spiritual condition and wants of mankind, and as suggesting methods, to extend to the whole human race, the blessings of the gospel.