Early Christian Beliefs About Catechesis

Apostolic Constitutions, Apostolic Constitutions Direct teaching

Instruct the catechumens in the elements of religion, and then baptize them.

Apostolic Constitutions, Apostolic Constitutions Supporting witness

Let him that offers himself to baptism learn these and the like things during the time that he is a catechumen;

Cyprian, Epistles Supporting witness

...oning to cancel out the truth of the Gospel statement. They object to us by bringing up the case of catechumens. They ask whether, if one of them should be arrested and killed for confessing the name before he is baptized in the Church, he would lose the hope of salvation and the reward of confession because he had not first been born again by water. Therefore, let people of this kind, who help and favor heretics, know first that these catechumens hold the sound faith and truth of the Church. They go forward from the divine camp to fight against the devil with a full and sincere confession of God the Father, and of Christ, and of the Holy Spirit. Then let them know that such people are certainly not deprived of the sacrament of baptism, since they are baptized with the most glorious and greatest baptism of blood. About this baptism the Lord also said that He had another baptism to be baptized with. But the same Lord declares in the Gospel that those who are baptized in their own blood and made holy by suffering are brought to completion and receive the grace of the divine promise. He shows this when, in His very suffering, He speaks to the thief who believed and confessed, and p

Apostolic Constitutions, Apostolic Constitutions Supporting witness

...y He strengthen them in piety, unite them to His holy flock and number them with it, grant them the laver of regeneration and the garment of incorruption, which is the true life, deliver them from all ungodliness, and give no place to the adversary against them. May He cleanse them from all filthiness of flesh and spirit, dwell in them, and walk in them, by His Christ. May He bless their going out and their coming in, and direct their affairs for their good. Let us still earnestly offer our prayers for them, that by their admission they may obtain the forgiveness of their transgressions, and so may be considered worthy of the holy mysteries and of constant communion with the saints. Rise up, you catechumens, ask for yourselves the peace of God through His Christ, a peaceful day and one free from sin, and the same for the whole time of your life, and your Christian end of it, a compassionate and merciful God, and the forgiveness of your transgressions. Dedicate yourselves to the only unbegotten God, through His Christ. Bow down your heads, and receive the blessing. But when each one is named by the deacon, as we said before, let the people say, Lord, have mercy on him; and let th

Apostolic Constitutions, Apostolic Constitutions Supporting witness

...he one who has despaired of salvation because of the great number of offenses to perish completely. Search for the one who has grown sleepy, drowsy, and sluggish, and who is careless about his own life because of the depth of his sleep, and who is far from his own flock, so that he is in danger of falling among the wolves and being devoured by them. Bring him back by admonition. Urge him to be watchful, and plant hope in him. Do not allow him to say what some have said: “Our impieties are upon us, and we pine away in them; how then shall we live?” Therefore, as much as possible, let the bishop make the offense his own, and say to the sinner, “Only return, and I will undertake to suffer death for you, as our Lord suffered death for me and for all men.” For the good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. But the hired servant, who is not the shepherd and whose own the sheep are not, sees the wolf coming, that is, the devil, and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf seizes them. John 10:11-12 We must know, therefore, that God is very merciful to those who have offended, and has promised repentance with an oath. But the one who has offended and does not know this promise of G

Clement of Alexandria, The Instructor (Paedagogus) Direct teaching

You cannot tell the time. For instruction leads to faith, and faith with baptism is trained by the Holy Spirit.

Clement of Alexandria, The Instructor (Paedagogus) Supporting witness

...ment we hear, we who were untaught become disciples. Does this, I ask, happen at the coming of this instruction? You cannot tell the time. For instruction leads to faith, and faith with baptism is trained by the Holy Spirit. That this faith is the one universal salvation of humanity, and that there is the same equality before the righteous and loving God, and the same fellowship between Him and all, the apostle showed most clearly when he spoke in this way: "Before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up to the faith which should afterwards be revealed, so that the law became our schoolmaster to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith; but after that faith has come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster." Do you not hear that we are no longer under that law which came with fear, but under the Word, the master of free choice? Then he added the statement, free from all partiality: "For you are all the children of God through faith in Christ Jesus. For as many as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for you are all one in Christ Jesus." Galatians 3:26-2

Clement of Alexandria, The Instructor (Paedagogus) Supporting witness

And if we become listeners to the Word, let us glorify the blessed dispensation by which man is trained and sanctified as a child of God, and has his conversation in heaven, being trained from earth, and there receives the Father, whom he learns to know on earth.

Justin Martyr, The Discourse to the Greeks Supporting witness

...lls the soul. O trumpet of peace to the soul at war! O weapon that drives away terrible passions! O instruction that quenches the innate fire of the soul! The Word influences not by making poets, nor equipping philosophers or skilled orators, but by its teaching, it makes mortals immortal, turns mortals into gods, and transports them from the earth to the realms above Olympus. Come, be taught; become as I am, for I, too, was as you are. These have conquered me—the divinity of the instruction and the power of the Word: for just as a skilled serpent-charmer lures the terrible reptile from its den and causes it to flee, so the Word drives the fearful passions of our sensual nature from the depths of the soul; first driving forth lust, through which every ill arises—hatreds, strife, envy, rivalries, anger, and the like. Once lust is banished, the soul becomes calm and serene. And being freed from the ills in which it was deeply submerged, it returns to Him who made it. For it is fitting that it be restored to the state from which it departed, the state where every soul once was or is.

Tertullian, On Baptism Supporting witness

instructing not only such as are just becoming formed (in the faith), but them who, content with having simply believed, without full examination of the grounds of the traditions, carry (in mind), through ignorance, an untried though probable faith.

Tertullian, Against Marcion Supporting witness

It was engaged in forming the faith of such as would learn, by gradual stages, for the perfect light of the Christian discipline, through the best precepts of which it was capable, inculcating a benevolence which as yet expressed itself but falteringly.

Acts 18:25 Direct teaching

This man had been instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he spoke and taught accurately the things of the Lord, though he knew only the baptism of John.

Acts 19:4 Direct teaching

Then said Paul, John verily baptized with the baptism of repentance, saying unto the people, that they should believe on him which should come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus.

Origen, Commentary on John Supporting witness

...declaring himself to have come to baptize with water, Matthew alone adds the words “to repentance,” teaching that the benefit of baptism is connected with the intention of the person baptized. To him who repents it is salutary, but to him who comes to it without repentance it will turn to greater condemnation. And here we must note that the wonderful works done by the Savior in the cures He performed, which are symbolic of those who at any time are set free by the word of God from any sickness or disease, though they were done to the body and brought bodily relief, yet also called those who were benefited by them to an exercise of faith. So also the washing with water, which is symbolic of the soul cleansing herself from every stain of wickedness, is no less in itself to him who yields himself to the divine power of the invocation of the Adorable Trinity, the beginning and source of divine gifts. For there are diversities of gifts. This view receives confirmation from the narrative recorded in the Acts of the Apostles, which shows the Spirit to have descended so plainly on those who receive baptism, after the water had prepared the way for Him in those who properly approached th

Hippolytus, Discourse on the Holy Theophany Supporting witness

...creature? Baptize me, the Baptist, that Your pre-eminence may be known. I, O Lord, baptize with the baptism of repentance, and I cannot baptize those who come to me unless they first confess fully their sins. Be it so then that I baptize You. What have You to confess? You are the Remover of sins, and will You be baptized with the baptism of repentance? Though I should venture to baptize You, the Jordan dares not come near You. I have need to be baptized by You, and You come to me?"

Archelaus, Disputation with Manes Supporting witness

...f He is not a man, then He was not seized. If He was not seized, then He did not suffer, nor was He baptized. If He was not baptized, then none of us is baptized. But if there is no baptism, then there will be no remission of sins, and every man will die in his own sins." Manes said: "Is baptism, then, given on account of the remission of sins?" Archelaus said: "Certainly." Manes said: "Does it not follow, then, that Christ sinned, since He was baptized?" Archelaus said: "God forbid! No, rather, He was made sin for us, taking our sins upon Himself. For this reason He was born of a woman, and for this reason also He came to the rite of baptism, so that He might receive the purification of this part, and so that the body which He had taken to Himself might be able to bear the Spirit, who had descended in the form of a dove."

Cyprian, Epistles Supporting witness

5. Or if they say that the power of baptism comes from the greatness of the name, so that those who are baptized anywhere and in any way, in the name of Jesus Christ, are considered renewed and sanctified, then why are the baptized among them not also given the laying on of hands, in the name of that same Christ, to receive the Holy Spirit? Why does the same greatness of the same name not have power in the laying on of hands, if, as they claim, it had power in the sanctifying of baptism? For if someone born outside the Church can become God's temple, why can the Holy Spirit not also be poured out on that temple? For the one who has been sanctified, with his sins taken away in baptism, and has been spiritually remade into a new man, has become fit to receive the Holy Spirit, since the apostle says, "As many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ." Galatians 3:27. He who, after being baptized among the heretics, is able to put on Christ, can much more receive the Holy Spirit whom Christ sent. Otherwise, the One who is sent would be greater than the One who sends, so that a person baptized outside may indeed begin to put on Christ, but not be able to receive the H

Cyprian, Epistles Supporting witness

25. And now some among us claim that the baptism of heretics has the same standing. As if out of a certain dislike of baptizing again, they consider it unlawful to baptize after God's enemies. Yet we find that those whom John had baptized were baptized again. John was considered the greatest among the prophets. John was filled with divine grace even in his mother's womb. He was upheld with the spirit and power of Elijah. He was not an enemy of the Lord, but His forerunner and announcer. He not only foretold our Lord in words, but even showed Him to people's eyes. He even baptized Christ Himself, by whom others are baptized. But if a heretic could for that reason obtain the right of baptism, because he baptized first, then baptism would belong not to the one who possesses it, but to the one who seizes it. And since baptism and the Church cannot in any way be separated or divided from one another, whoever has first been able to seize baptism has equally seized the Church also. Then you begin to seem to him to be a heretic, because he got there before you, and you, having come later, have by yielding and giving way given up the right that you had received. But Holy Scripture declares

Anonymous, Treatise on Re-Baptism Supporting witness

...s not baptized by a bishop in such a way as to receive the laying on of hands at once, and yet dies before receiving the Holy Spirit, would you judge that he has received salvation or not? For even the apostles themselves, and the disciples who also baptized others and had themselves been baptized by the Lord, did not receive the Holy Spirit at once. For the Spirit had not yet been given, because Jesus had not yet been glorified. And after His resurrection, a considerable time passed before that happened. In the same way, when the Samaritans were baptized by Philip, they did not receive the gift until the apostles, who were invited from Jerusalem to Samaria, came down to them, laid hands on them, and gave them the Holy Spirit by the laying on of hands. During that interval, any one of them who had not received the Holy Spirit might have been cut off by death, and died deprived of the grace of the Holy Spirit. Nor can it be doubted that the same kind of thing is common in the present day and happens often: many people, after baptism, leave this life without the laying on of the bishop's hands, and yet are considered complete believers. Just so, the Ethiopian eunuch, when he was r

Apostolic Constitutions, Apostolic Constitutions Supporting witness

... teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things whatever I have commanded you,” Matthew 28:19. Baptize in the name of the Father who sent, of Christ who came, and of the Comforter who testified. But first you shall anoint the person with the holy oil, and afterward baptize him with water, and at the end you shall seal him with the ointment. In this way, the anointing with oil may be the participation of the Holy Spirit, the water the symbol of the death of Christ, and the ointment the seal of the covenants. But if there is neither oil nor ointment, water is enough for the anointing, for the seal, and for the confession of Him who is dead, or rather of the one dying together with Christ. But before baptism, let him who is to be baptized fast. For even the Lord, when He was first baptized by John and remained in the wilderness, afterward fasted forty days and forty nights. But He was baptized and then fasted, because He Himself had no need of cleansing, or of fasting, or of purification, since He was by nature pure and holy. Rather, He did it so that He might bear witness to the truth to John a

Tertullian, On Baptism Supporting witness

...l answer those who claim that the apostles were not baptized. For if they had received John's human baptism, and were desiring the Lord's baptism, then the Lord Himself had declared that baptism is one. He said to Peter, who wanted to be completely washed, "He who has once bathed has no need to wash a second time" in John 13:9-10. Of course, He would not have said this at all to someone who had not been baptized. So even here we have clear proof against those who, in order to destroy the sacrament of water, deny to the apostles even John's baptism. Can it seem believable that the way of the Lord, that is, John's baptism, had not yet been prepared in those persons who were appointed to open the way of the Lord throughout the whole world? The Lord Himself was baptized, even though He had no repentance due from Him. So was baptism not necessary for sinners? As for the fact that others were not baptized, those people were not companions of Christ, but enemies of the faith, teachers of the law, and Pharisees. From this fact another point may be drawn: since those who opposed the Lord refused to be baptized, those who followed the Lord were baptized, and were not of the same mind as t

Tertullian, On Baptism Supporting witness

...that same baptism of John, His disciples used to baptize as ministers, with which John had baptized before as forerunner. Let no one think it was with some other baptism, because no other exists, except that of Christ afterward. Which, at that time, of course, could not be given by His disciples, since the glory of the Lord had not yet been fully attained, nor the efficacy of the font established through the passion and the resurrection. Because neither can our death see dissolution except by the Lord's passion, nor can our life be restored without His resurrection.

Clement of Alexandria, The Stromata (Miscellanies) Direct teaching

...that foundation is completed in the believer, and is further perfected by the faith that comes from instruction and the word, so that the commandments may be carried out. Such were the apostles, of whom it is said that faith removed mountains and transplanted trees. From this, seeing how great its power was, they asked that faith might be added to them, Luke 17:5 a faith that helpfully grips the soil like a grain of mustard seed and grows splendidly in it, so much so that the principles of sublime things rest on it. For if someone knows God by nature, as Basilides thinks, who calls intelligence of a higher order both faith and kingship, and a creation worthy of the essence of the Creator; and explains that near Him there exists not power, but essence and nature and substance; and says that faith is not the rational assent of the soul using free will, but an undefined beauty belonging immediately to the creature, then the commandments of both the Old and New Testaments are unnecessary, if a person is saved by nature, as Valentinus wants, and is by nature a believer and one of the elect, as Basilides thinks. And nature would have been able, at some time or other, to shine forth ap

Hippolytus, Refutation of All Heresies Supporting witness

... what was declared: “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” Proverbs 1:7 For after being instructed by Christ, who was seated near him, he began to gain wisdom, since he learned who the Non-Existent One is, what the Sonship is, what the Holy Spirit is, what the structure of the universe is, and what the final end of all things is likely to be. This is the wisdom spoken in a mystery, about which, Basilides says, Scripture uses these words: “Not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit.” 1 Corinthians 2:13 Then the Archon, after being instructed and taught, and being filled with fear, went on to confess the sin he had committed by exalting himself. This, he says, is what is declared: “I have recognized my sin, and I know my transgression, and about this I will confess forever.” Then, when the Great Archon had been instructed, and every creature of the Ogdoad had been instructed and taught, and after the mystery became known to the heavenly powers, it was also necessary that afterward the Gospel should come to the Hebdomad, so that the Archon of the Hebdomad likewise might be instructed and taught the Gospel in the same way. So the Son of the Gr

Irenaeus, Against Heresies: Book IV Supporting witness

But our faith was also prefigured in Abraham, and he was the patriarch of our faith and, in a way, its prophet, as the apostle clearly taught when he says in the Epistle to the Galatians: “So, the one who gives you the Spirit and works miracles among you, does he do it by the works of the law or by hearing with faith? Just as Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness. Know therefore, that those who are of faith are the children of Abraham. The Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, announced beforehand to Abraham that in him all nations would be blessed. So then those who are of faith are blessed with faithful Abraham.” For these reasons, the apostle declared that this man was not only the prophet of faith but also the father of those who believe in Jesus Christ among the Gentiles, because his faith and ours are the same: he believed in future things as if they were already accomplished, because of the promise of God; and similarly, we also, because of the promise of God, see through faith that inheritance stored up for us in the future kingdom.

Hippolytus, Treatise on Christ and Antichrist Supporting witness

...mselves. But first of all, they were endowed with wisdom by the Word. Then again, they were rightly instructed in the future by means of visions. And then, when they themselves were fully convinced, they spoke those things that were revealed by God to them alone and concealed from all others. For what reason should the prophet be called a prophet, unless he in spirit foresaw the future? For if the prophet spoke of any chance event, he would not be a prophet when speaking of things that were under the eyes of all. But one who sets forth in detail things yet to be was rightly judged a prophet. Therefore prophets were, with good reason, called seers from the very first, 1 Samuel 9:9. And so we too, being rightly instructed in what was declared before by them, do not speak from our own capacity. For we do not try to make any change, one way or another, among ourselves in the words spoken long ago by them. Instead, we make public the Scriptures in which these things are written, and we read them to those who can believe rightly. For that is a common benefit for both: for the one who speaks, in holding in memory and setting forth correctly the things spoken long ago; and for the one w

Origen, Commentary on John Supporting witness

...ify yourselves for tomorrow; the Lord will do wonders among you.” And he commands the priests to go before the people with the Ark of the Covenant, in which the mystery of the Father’s divine arrangement concerning the Son is plainly shown, and that arrangement is highly exalted by Him who gave the Son this office: “That at the name of Jesus,” as Philippians 2:9-11 says, “every knee should bow, of things in heaven and things on earth and things under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” This is pointed out by what we find in the book called Joshua: “In that day I will begin to exalt you before the children of Israel.” And we hear our Lord Jesus saying to the children of Israel in Joshua 3:9-10, “Come here and hear the words of the Lord your God. By this you shall know that the living God is among you.” For when we are baptized into Jesus, we know that the living God is in us. And in the former case, they kept the Passover in Egypt and then began their journey. But with Joshua, after crossing the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, they pitched their camp in Galgala. For a sheep had to be obtained befo