Training the Next Generation

There is an old story about Question 98 of the Westminster Catechism. Evangelist D.L. Moody was speaking in Scotland to a large group of elementary students. Upon asking the rhetorical question, “What is prayer?”, hundreds of hands flew up in the air. Caught off guard by the fact that these kids were responding to a rhetorical question, he called upon a young boy, who stood up and answered, “Prayer is an offering up of our desires unto God, for things agreeable to his will, in the name of Christ, with confession of our sins and thankful acknowledgment of his mercies.” It was a direct quote of Question 98 of the Westminster Catechism. Moody was stunned, and so was i when i first heard the story.

A Catechism is simply a question/answer formatted explanation of basic beliefs of doctrine. The tradition of catechism is very old, potentially dating back to New Testament times. Although i know a few people who grew up learning different catechisms, i never even knew what a catechism was until having a Lutheran high school girlfriend provoked me to look into Luther’s Catechism to see if our beliefs could ever be reconciled. Although some churches such as the Catholic Church still maintain a regimented use of catechism, it seems to me that most Protestant churches have carelessly abandoned the use of it.

This is a great tragedy – a tragedy that has come to my mind more often in the recent days as Lydia and i talk more about eventually starting a family. We are surrounded by people with very little background in the Bible, even those who did grow up in a church. i want so desperately to pass on to my children a solid understanding of the Word of God, so they will be better equipped to answer a world that will bombard them with challenges to their faith.

Catechisms offer two major advantages. First, the organization of a catechism enables one to think logically through many basic biblical beliefs. For example, The Reformed Reader begins with the question, “Who is the first and best of beings?” It is the most basic biblical question one can ask, and logically, all things must go back to this truth, that God is the first and best of beings. Starting with basic questions, and then branching out to more complex questions will not only ensure that one has their basic concepts in place, but having those basic questions articulated will in turn give one a more solid background in which to answer more complex questions.

The organization not only allows one to think logically through biblical doctrine, but it also ensures that many important question will not go unasked or unanswered. The second question of The Reformed Reader is, “What is the chief end of man?”. Many people who grew up in the church will often forget to ask this question. Then when confronted with it in the future, they are left grappling for answers. i believe that there are countless important questions like this that those of us who grew up in the church will often take for granted in our own lives, while at the same time lacking the answers for other people who have no background. This is a significant oversight that must be corrected.

It is difficult to ponder how this would be integrated into our churches that seem are often afraid of regulations for fear of legalism. Possible solutions could range from requiring for church membership a class that would go through a catechism, to a church highly recommending a couple different catechisms. But my point here is not to establish a fool proof solution – it would probably vary between churches in any case. My point is simply that the church would do well to solidify the basic understanding of its future leaders by using a catechism more regularly, either through some kind of ‘Sunday School’ classes or small groups. Because before you know it, you are 27 and scrambling to organize your basic beliefs so that some day you can answer your child’s basic questions.

Perhaps that is why this lays heavy on my heart. Not only do i want to establish a foundation for myself, but i want my children to be well equipped to live in faith in this world. While i am well aware that this will not guarantee their faith, it will put them in a better position to understand their Creator and His Word. i find myself many days reviewing the The Reformed Reader questions, just trying to familiarize myself with it by the time my children come around. i have committed myself to take each one of them through a catechism when they are old enough to understand.

The more i have looked at the church in our society, the more i find that one of the main weaknesses we have is knowledge. This would be one way to strengthen that area. i don’t know what God holds for the next generation, but i do know this, that in a society that grows more biblically illiterate every day, a future generation of believers that has as little of a background as ours will not easily survive in the coming years.

Grace and peace,

Caleb

(My examples come from The Reformed Reader, but probably the most common Protestant Catechisms are Luther’s Catechism and The Westminster Catechism.)

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