Rediscovering Catechism: The Art of Equipping Covenant Children

The prophet Hosea said, "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge." Luther, Calvin, and Knox saw the same destructive ignorance in the people of their day. Today we see remarkable ignorance in the churches of our time. A study of the great 16th century Reformation points to three things: first, the written Word became available for all to read, then the Church made her confessions of biblical truth, and finally, she produced catechisms in order to unite truth with believers past, present, and future. Van Dyken argues for a continuation of the Reformed tradition of catechizing our own young covenant children. The word "catechism" is derived from the Greek "katecheo" meaning "to sound down", or echo back. A teacher plants the truth in the mind of his student by means of the question and answer method--a method employed by Socrates, lawyers, judges, investigative reporters, and all good teachers. A teacher who catechizes is like the doctor--(the words were originally synonyms)--who probes, tests, and monitors his patient to the point of soundness. Van Dyken deals wisely with the common objection "no creed but Christ." He makes the case that true doctrine unites rather than divides, and employs a number of useful metaphors for catechisms and the catechetical method. Catechisms never replace the Bible but they do bring the great truths of the Scripture into orderly focus. Making this book of great practical value to the churches, Van Dyken shares his time-tested catechetical methods with the reader, and makes recommendations for putting together a biblical catechetical program. Chapter notes and appendices are included in the back, listing selected confessions and catechisms, as well as publishers and bookstores (including e-mail addresses) so that any church should find this small book of 146 pages very helpful.

Not coming from a background where catechetical instruction was employed, finding this book is a blessing. There are many study guides for various catechism available but, as far as I know, this is the only one that provides a rationale and methodology for using catechism for instruction. Thank you, Thank you, Thank you pastor Van Dyken!