Heidelberg Catechism History

Heidelberg Catechism History

The Heidelberg Catechism originated in the ancient Electoral Palatinate of which Heidelberg in Germany was the capital. It was the result of several years of slow reformation in the Palatinate under Frederick II and the Count Palatine Otto Heinrich. Only under Frederick III was the reformation of the church in the Palatinate completed. He became Elector in 1559. He had been raised as a strict Roman Catholic but soon decided that only the Bible is the source of all truth and Christ our only Saviour. Instead of becoming Lutheran he became Calvinistic in his faith. Therefore, he desired to replace the Augsburg Confession which was in use in the Palatinate until then with a Reformed confession.

One of the first disputes he had to adjudicate was between Lutheran and Reformed understandings of the Lord’s Supper. He solved the dispute by commanding that the words of 1 Corinthians 10:16 should be used in its celebration. He also instituted the Reformed order and manner of worship and removed all traces of the Roman Catholic worship from the churches.

Two theologians who helped him in his reformation of the churches in the Palatinate were Casper Olevianus and Zacharias Ursinus. Both of these men had spent years studying theology. They had both personally known Calvin and had become fully Reformed and one way or another had both ended up in Heidelberg one as a professor of theology and the other, who had been the professor as a minister.

Frederick III wanted to unify the theological teaching in the Palatinate as some were still under the influence of Roman Catholicism, others under the influence of Lutheranism and others Reformed. Besides these there were also Anabaptist currents swirling around, which were a threat to civil order. To unify them he commanded a book of instruction to be written that could be understood by all, which explained the Reformed teaching simply and systematically. It came to be called the Heidelberg Catechism. In January 1563 Frederick submitted the completed manuscript to an assembly of official instructors, professors and preachers for approval as well as a Directory for Worship. After eight days of discussion, except for one abstainer all those in attendance adopted both documents both as teaching textbook and as creed of the Reformed Church of the Palatinate.

The catechism went through three printings in its first year in which it went through various improvements. It was divided into Lord’s Days and questions and Scripture proofs were added. In the second addition a condemnation of the Roman Catholic Mass was added in Question 80 by Frederick III himself because the Roman Catholic Council of Trent had condemned the Reformation faith and placed those who confessed it under a curse. The catechism gained further definition in the third edition. It was written in German, but soon a Latin version appeared also and Ursinus lectured on it in the university.

As to its reception, in the Lower Palatinate it was received with joy, but in the Upper Palatinate it was resisted by Lutheran ministers. It was fiercely attacked by Frederick III’s neighbouring princes and even friends. Several Lutheran princes brought charges against Frederick before the emperor Maximillian II and the Diet accusing him of departing from the Augsburg Confession. He was urged not to go to Augsburg where the Diet met for fear of life. However, in 1566 he went. There Lutheran and Roman Catholic Bishops and theologians attacked him. The emperor ordered him to appear before the Diet, rejected his defence and wanted to exterminate this book. Frederick III refused to withdraw his catechism and returned home before the Diet finished. Soon thereafter he died.

After his death his eldest son succeeded him but clung to Lutheranism and drove out the Reformed ministers and school masters. Also, Olevianus and Ursinus were driven out and the Palatinate returned to Lutheranism until he died in 1583. Ursinus also died in 1583 and Olevianus in 1587. John Casimir, who administered the Lower Palatinate for his nephew, restored both the Directory of Worship and the Heidelberg Catechism and they continued in force in the reign of Frederick IV and V. When the Palatinate was invaded by Spanish and Bavarian troops there was an attempt to eradicate any copy of these. It again was brought into use after the Spanish and Bavarian troops were defeated by Gustavus Adolphus, the Swedish king, but from then on it had brief periods of acceptance, but mainly of suppression as the Palatinate seesawed between opposing forces until freedom of religion became acceptable in northern Europe.

As far as its acceptance abroad is concerned, the Synod of Dort adopted it as one of the three confessions of the Reformed Churches of the Netherlands in 1618/19. The Synod also determined that one Lord’s Day of the Heidelberg Catechism be preached from every Lord’s Day in the afternoon. As there were 52 Lord’s Days this could be done in one year, year by year.

From there it spread through German and Dutch migrants to America and since then has been translated into many languages around the world. It has been adopted by many churches of Reformed background as a clear and simple explanation of the Reformed faith.

It is also the most personal of all the reformed confessions, because much of it is written as personal confession, self-instruction and personal prayer. It is one of the best instructors in personal godliness that exist for it teaches the truth in a highly personal manner. The choice of subject matter includes an exposition of our sinful state, our salvation as summarised in the Apostle’s Creed, an explanation of the sacraments, conversion, the ten Commandments and the Lord’s Prayer in that order. All of these touch on our personal lives and are highly relevant.