This book is a reformatted edition of the original work as it first appeared in the English language in the year 1622. St. Peter Canisius of the Company of Jesus originally composed his catechism in Latin as an easy handbook for people ""of a simpler sort."" It's use by the Jesuit fathers in Germany during the time of the Protestant Revolution was instrumental in saving half of that country from the slavery of disbelief. St. Peter Canisius' catechism, or ""Sum of Christian Doctrine,"" has been translated into over 500 languages, but is only just recently to be found in carefully updated, modern English.

St. Peter Canisius is perhaps the sole reason there is a Catholic Church in Germany, even today. Born in Holland, he was a law student and eventually a Canon of a Cathedral in Germany when he heard the preaching of St. Peter Faber, one of the first companions of St. Ignatius of Loyola. Immediately, Canisius knew his vocation and entered the Society of Jesus. Although he wasn't among the original companions of St. Ignatius, nevertheless, he was one of the first Jesuits, and the most famous. Apart from laboring for the faith in Germany and Switzerland, he was the first Jesuit to produce any major theological works, and wrote this great Catholic Catechism. Surprisingly, in the 16 century the the Church had not yet produced a Catechism to compete with the protestants. She had not yet even produced her own edition of the Latin Bible. The Church was slow to pick up on the new technology of printing, and Protestants since the late 1520s, had already produced bibles, tracts and catechisms. Canisius, remarkably and single handedly, challenged and surpassed a generation of Protestant literary output in Germany, holding that just as truly as St. Francis Xavier converted so many in the East, it was a Catholic's duty to labor likewise for the faith in Europe. As we noted above, he produced the first Catholic Catechism. This was the Summa Doctrinae Christianae, (Summary of Christian Doctrine), which was a magnum opus in multiple volumes meant for clergy and laymen. He produced a second directed to young men, the Catechismus Minor (Smaller Catechism), which is an abridgment of the multivolume Summa Doctrinae Christianae. Later, he produced a third Catechism, the Parvus Catechismus Catholicorum (Small Catechism for Catholics) which makes up the present work. St.Peter Canisius produced this work for young children between 9 and 14 years of age. This remains true of this translation, though certainly adults could benefit from its clear presentation and faithfulness to Apostolic Tradition. Therefore, the answers to the questions are more simple than in other Catechisms.This work has not been in English for several hundred years, and in that time there have been other Catechisms, notably the Baltimore, which are familiar to Catholics. In translating from the Latin, I have taken great care to remain true to the exact formulation of the questions and answers, so as not to lose any of the doctrinal content of the original. For common prayers such as the Our Father and the Hail Mary, I have preserved the standard form Catholics use when praying these prayers. There is an appendix of scripture references which support Catholic doctrine at the end of the work without any commentary, which Canisiu sarranged for youths to memorize in order to defend the faith when challenged. For these references I have used the Douay-Rheims version, in spite of its shortcomings with respect to modern English readability, because it is the closest version to the vulgate, the basis for Cansisius' work and the common point of reference for both Catholics and Protestants at that time. This work may prove easier to understand and can work in tandem with other Catechisms, and additionally, was produced by a saint and doctor of the Church. Canisius' reach was so powerful through the centuries in Germany, that Pope Benedict XVI said "Still in my father's generation, people called the catechism simply the Canisius: He is really the catechist of the centuries; he formed people's faith for centuries." This new translation, contains some beautiful artwork from the Netherlands, in honor of Canisius' birth place, and a foreword by Fr. Chad Ripperger, PhD.

This is an updated edition of the 1898 version of St. Peter Mogila's Catechism. It has been newly typeset and, with attention to the Greek and Latin, its language has been updated, and several Scriptural and Patristic citations corrected. Of the original author, St. Peter Mogila (1597-1646) was Metropolitan of Kiev and All Rus during a time of great theological need. With Roman Catholics and Protestants in the heat of polemics, St. Peter produced an authoritative Catechism which taught the Orthodox faith in a comprehensive and systematic way. It is arranged in three parts according to the three theological virtues, Faith, Hope, and Love, and through these it offers foundational instruction on the Creed, the Lord's Prayer, the Beatitudes, and the Ten Commandments. Along the way it discusses the fundamental doctrines of Orthodox Christianity. Although internally it calls itself a Confession, and certainly functions in that capacity, its question and answer format lends itself more aptly to the genre of catechetical instruction, hence its going by that name. Moreover, despite its occasional use of a Latin idiom in the conveyance of some teachings, this is by no means evidence of capitulation to any non-Orthodox sentiments. It is thoroughly Orthodox, and for that matter was forged in great awareness of what makes Orthodox Christianity the fullness of the Christian Faith, distinct from both Roman Catholicism and Protestantism. As one will notice from the Letters of Patriarchs Nectarius and Parthenius, also included within the present text, not only was this Catechism composed and approved at the highest levels of the Russian Orthodox Church, this particular Catechism was also given the express personal approval and formal recommendation of the Patriarchs of Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, and Jerusalem, respectively, together with over twenty other Bishops and clergy. Further, it was officially received at the Particular Council of Jerusalem held under Dositheus, the Patriarch of Jerusalem, in 1672, in these words: "This [Confession of Peter Mogila] the Eastern Church has entirely received, and does receive." This Catechism is, therefore, together with St. Philaret's, among the foremost Catechisms of the Eastern Church, and as such may be read with great spiritual profit, and rightly belongs in the hands of all Orthodox Christians, Catechumens, and Inquirers.

"Author, preacher, catechist, and builder of schools, Saint Peter Canisius was a leading Jesuit force in the central European Counter Reformation. By making his vows before Peter Favre in Mainz in 1543, he became the first German son of the Society of Jesus. When he died in 1597, he had founded eighteen colleges from Messina in Sicily to Hungary, written thirty-seven books, and inspired countless fellow Jesuits in their disputations with the rising tide of Reformers." "Originally published in 1935, this story reveals the early struggles of Canisius, his many years of dedicated leadership in the Society, and the history of his Summary of Christian Doctrine, which appeared in two Catechism versions and some 200 printings during his lifetime."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved