History

The Heidelberg Catechism (HC) was composed in Heidelberg in 1563. In 1559 the reformed Elector Frederick III (1515-1576) succeeded the Lutheran Otto Heinrich in the German province, the Palatinate. The Elector looked for a means to introduce the reformed doctrines everywhere in the Palatinate and he found it in a new textbook: this catechism. The most important author of the HC was Zacharias Ursinus (1534-1583), professor in Heidelberg. Caspar Olevianus (1536-1587), as a superintendant, also contributed largely to this matter, especially concerning the final form. Under the supervision of the Elector together with other leaders in church and theology, the catechism came into being. On 18 January 1563 it was decided to publish the catechism. Soon afterwards the HC appeared in print at Johannes Mayer's in Heidelberg. It was written - as most catechisms in those days - in the question and answer format. There werd 128 (unnumbered) questions in the first edition. In the margin Biblical chapters are mentioned and not the separate texts. Even a second and a third edition appeared in the same year. The 80th question in full (about the Roman mass) was included in the third edition. In 1563 the catechism, divided into 52 Sundays and 10 lectiones, was also included in the church order of the Palatinate. This edition is looked upon as the so-called 'textus receptus'. Josua Lagus Pomeranus and Lambert Ludolf Pithopoeus translated the third edition into Latin. The most important Dutch translation was the one by Petrus Dathenus in1566 . This one appeared together with his Dutch rendering of the Genevan Psalter in one of the oldest reformed church books in our country.

Soon it became clear that the HC was of an extraordinary quality. It was used by many reformed people before long. In our country it replaced other catechisms and it was adopted as a confession and a textbook by several church councils. In 1586 the National Synod in The Hague decided that from that time on the HC had to be used. Since then the Sunday afternoon sermons and the HC in the Reformed Church in our country have been inseparably connected. Until this very day it has been used as a confession and a textbook in the Protestant Church in the Netherlands and other churches of reformed character. The HC was spread in many other countries. But especially Lutheran theologians in Germany opposed it soon after its realization.
Some characteristics:

1. An important characteristic of the HC is that it is a book of comfort. The answer to the first question expresses in an unrivalled way what the only comfort of a christian is (see the text of the HC).
2. The HC consists of three parts: Of the Misery of Man, of Man's Deliverance and of Thankfulness. These three parts form the three dimensions of the Christian Faith.
3. The old classic catechetical parts: in the HC faith, commandment and prayer have been divided in such a way that they get their own functions for faith. It is remarkable that commandment occurs twice: as a source of the knowledge of misery and as a rule of gratitude. In these and other characteristics we see that in the HC was looked for a way to oblige the Lutherans as much as possible.
4. The HC is an existential writing. It is not about a number of thruths, but about the personal perception of faith. We have to regard the use of the first person and questions like: What does it profit thee now that thou believest all this? in that perspective.

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