"Most of the essays contained in this volume were delivered as lectures at the Annual Convocation of Lancaster Theological Seminary in January 1963. The Lancaster convocation marked the opening on this side of the Atlantic of the celebration of the 400th anniversary of the Heidelberg Catechism. At about the same time a similar celebration was being held at the University of Heidelberg in Germany, the home of the Catechism." -- From the introduction.

This work examines key aspects of the development of the Heidelberg Catechism, including historical background, socio-political origins, purpose, authorship, sources, and theology. The book includes the first ever English translations of two major sources of the Heidelberg Catechism--Ursinus's Smaller and Larger Catechisms--and a bibliography of research on the document since 1900. Students of the Reformed tradition and the Protestant Reformation will value this resource.

“The Heidelberg Catechism does not represent a different theological orientation... here the Reformed Church confesses the good news of Jesus Christ in. a joyful, thankful, free, personal way . . . Barth has caught this spirit in his commentary. To read it is to become acquainted with a side of Reformed Protestantism which all too often has remained hidden.” - from the Preface The two short studies by renowned theologian Karl Barth included here were first published in 1964, the 400th anniversary of the Heidelberg Catechism—a classical document of the Reformation Period. Students, ministers, laypersons, and theologians continue to find these essays helpful, for they provide not only an introduction to the Heidelberg Catechism, but also a brief, systematic presentation of Reformed theology in the 16th century and a glimpse of Barth’s own theology on the 20th century. The first essay, “Christian Doctrine According to the Heidelberg Catechism,” is a question by question interpretation, commentary, and evaluation of the catechism. “Introduction to the Heidelberg Catechism,” the second essay, examines the three basic questions of the document: Who is the Comforter? Who is comforted? and How is comfort given and in what does it consist?

Includes the text of the latest translation of the Heidelberg Catechism (1975, updated 1988) approved by the Christian Reformed Church. Scripture references are listed in footnotes.