Catechesis
As defined in the Catechism of the Catholic Church, paragraph 5 (quoting Pope John Paul II's Apostolic Exhortation Catechesi tradendae, §18): Catechesis is an education in the faith of children, young people and adults which includes especially the teaching of Christian doctrine imparted, generally speaking, in an organic and systematic way, with a view to initiating the hearers into the fullness of Christian life.In the Catholic Church, catechist is a term used of anyone engaged in religious formation and education, from the bishop to lay ecclesial ministers and clergy to volunteers at the local level.
In the early church, catechumens were instructed (catechized) in the basic elements of the faith such as the Apostles' Creed, Lord's Prayer, and sacraments in preparation for baptism.
During this time, catechumens attended several meetings of intensive catechetical preaching, often by the bishop himself, and often accompanied by special prayers, exorcisms, and other rites.
[18] Jean Gerson's L'ABC des simples gens was an important catechetical work published at the advent of the printing press.
[20]Bishop of Basel Christoph von Utenheim, in one of the most successful efforts to revive catechesis, worked to have regular catechetical preaching instituted throughout his diocese.
He wanted the catechumen to understand what he was learning, so the Decalogue, Lord's Prayer, and Apostles' Creed were divided into small sections, with each followed by the question "What does this mean?"
[22] Erasmus responded with his own Catholic catechism in 1530 in Latin, which was translated to English for as A Playne and Godly Exposition or Declaration of the Commune Crede.
In no case is a catechumen absolutely bound to be baptized, preserving the principle that the recipient of a sacrament must not be forced against his will; the person concerned must be drawn spiritually to the faith in addition to being intellectually persuaded.
[24] The Protestant Churches who baptize infants, for instance Lutheran and Anglican/Episcopalian, tend to follow a catechumenate which can be likened to a course in the fundamentals of the religion, lasting typically six months and ending with baptism at Easter.
The 9th meeting of the Anglican Consultative Council in Cape Town, January 1993, stated among other points in Resolution 44: In those Protestant denominations that do not baptise infants, such as the Conservative Anabaptist Churches, the catechumenate status may be considered the norm amongst the young.
Jehovah's Witnesses require a catechumenate of disciples of all ages prior to baptism with a study program led by a baptized minister, using a Watch Tower Society topical textbook that teaches basic Bible doctrines.
The status of the "converted" was dealt with at the same time, but in a way that cannot be considered typical of general Christian thinking, when it was declared that rebaptism was not to be thought of; as a consequence the previously baptized cannot become catechumens.
The remark in the foregoing section on "stages of growth" is important to understand this confusion, and happily this can also be seen as typical of the thinking outside the Anglican church.
The main difference between denominations is whether these courses include or exclude those who are baptized, and an overlap with youth ministries and even to an extent with evangelism is observable.
The divergence between Christian practice as regards catechumens (a formalised, gradual approach) and the idea of conversion (a sudden, overwhelming event) as the entry into the Church, is one of appearance rather than substance.
It is recorded in the Bible that Paul the Apostle, who started out as a Jewish persecutor of the Church, underwent sudden conversion on the way to Damascus when Jesus Christ appeared to him in a vision.
The Essenes were a group of religious and philosophic virtuosi, living a utopian life of the sort that would provoke the admiration of Jews and non-Jews alike.
Josephus mentions their three-year catechumenate, their oath of loyalty to the group, their separation from their fellow Jews, their emphasis on purity and ablutions, but he regards them not as a 'sect' but as a pietistic elite."
