Oor die inhoud en boodskap van die Heidelbergse Kategismus

The essay argues that it is meaningful to speak about the theme, content and message of the Heidelberg Catechism, although these three should be distinguished. A first section claims that the Catechism shows more of a single argument and purpose than many other catechisms of the time, because they...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Author: D. Smit
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: University of the Free State 2014-12-01
Series:Acta Theologica
Online Access:https://journals.ufs.ac.za/index.php/at/article/view/2661
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1823858791248035840
author D. Smit
author_facet D. Smit
author_sort D. Smit
collection DOAJ
description The essay argues that it is meaningful to speak about the theme, content and message of the Heidelberg Catechism, although these three should be distinguished. A first section claims that the Catechism shows more of a single argument and purpose than many other catechisms of the time, because they often consisted of a mere compilation of diverse material, without clear purpose. A second section further develops this claim by showing how the comfort of the first question and answer forms the continuing motif, providing the theme and structure of the Catechism. A third section serves as reminder of Barth’s claim that Jesus Christ is the content of this comfort and therefore of the Heidelberg Catechism. A fourth section suggests a final distinction, arguing that the message is still different from the purpose, theme and content, since it depends on specific readers in their own contexts, as the reception history has shown.
format Article
id doaj-art-af981ce411e2470492f259261fe509b4
institution Kabale University
issn 1015-8758
2309-9089
language English
publishDate 2014-12-01
publisher University of the Free State
record_format Article
series Acta Theologica
spelling doaj-art-af981ce411e2470492f259261fe509b42025-02-11T09:56:32ZengUniversity of the Free StateActa Theologica1015-87582309-90892014-12-012010.38140/at.v0i20.2661Oor die inhoud en boodskap van die Heidelbergse KategismusD. Smit0Stellenbosch University, South Africa The essay argues that it is meaningful to speak about the theme, content and message of the Heidelberg Catechism, although these three should be distinguished. A first section claims that the Catechism shows more of a single argument and purpose than many other catechisms of the time, because they often consisted of a mere compilation of diverse material, without clear purpose. A second section further develops this claim by showing how the comfort of the first question and answer forms the continuing motif, providing the theme and structure of the Catechism. A third section serves as reminder of Barth’s claim that Jesus Christ is the content of this comfort and therefore of the Heidelberg Catechism. A fourth section suggests a final distinction, arguing that the message is still different from the purpose, theme and content, since it depends on specific readers in their own contexts, as the reception history has shown. https://journals.ufs.ac.za/index.php/at/article/view/2661
spellingShingle D. Smit
Oor die inhoud en boodskap van die Heidelbergse Kategismus
Acta Theologica
title Oor die inhoud en boodskap van die Heidelbergse Kategismus
title_full Oor die inhoud en boodskap van die Heidelbergse Kategismus
title_fullStr Oor die inhoud en boodskap van die Heidelbergse Kategismus
title_full_unstemmed Oor die inhoud en boodskap van die Heidelbergse Kategismus
title_short Oor die inhoud en boodskap van die Heidelbergse Kategismus
title_sort oor die inhoud en boodskap van die heidelbergse kategismus
url https://journals.ufs.ac.za/index.php/at/article/view/2661
work_keys_str_mv AT dsmit oordieinhoudenboodskapvandieheidelbergsekategismus