A Short Sum of the Whole Catechism, Title page – To the reader
¶ A SHORT Summe of the whole Catechiſme, wherin the Queſtion is propounded, and anſwered in fewe wordes, for the greater eaſe of the common people & children.
Gathered by M. IOHN CRAIG, Miniſter of Gods worde, to the Kinges Maieſtie.
Iohn. xvij.
This is life eternall, to know thee the onelyonly very God, & whom thou haſte ſent Ieſus Chriſt.
LONDON Imprinted by Iohn Wolfe for Thomas Manne, dwelling in Pater noſter row at the ſigne of the Talbot.
The Contents of this books, diuided into ten parts.
1 The creation of man, and his firſt eſtate of Innocencie, without death and miſerie.
2 The miſerable fall of man from God and his former eſtate vnderunder the bondage of ſinne, death and all other kinde of miſeries.
3 The calling of Man againe to repentance, and his third eſtate in Ieſus Chriſt, & how he ſhould honor his redeemer foure wayes.
4 The firſt part of Gods honor, is Faith, and here the beleefe and faith is declared.
5 The ſecond part of Gods honor is Obedience, & here the lawe is declared, and how it doth differ from the Goſpell.
6 The third part of Gods honour is prayer, which is declared in generall, with an expoſition of the Lords prayer.
7 The fourth part of Gods honour is Thankeſgiuing, where the cauſes, the rule, and other circumſtances of thankes are declared.
8 The ordinary inſtruments of ſaluation, are theſe the worde, the Sacraments, and Miniſtery of men, which are particularly declared.
9 The firſt cauſe of our Saluation is Gods eternall election and here the progreſſe of the ſame, and two endes of all fleſh are declared.
10 A ſhort & general confeſſion of the true Chriſtian faith & religion according to Gods word, ſubſcribed by the kings M. & his houſhold. &c.
To the Profeſſors of Chriſts Goſ-Goſpell at new A birdene, M. Iohn Graig, wiſheth the perpetuall comfort and increaſe of the holy Spirit, to the ende of their battell.
IT is not vnknowne to ſome of you (deare brethren in the Lord) that for your ſake chifly I tooke paines, firſt to gather this breefe Sum: Therefore willing now to ſet it out and make it common to others: I thought good to recommend the ſame to you againe in ſpeciall, as a token of my good wil towards you all, and as a memoriall of my doctrine, and earneſt labours, beſtowed among you, and vponupon that countrie, for the ſpace of ſixe yeares. Wherefore deſiring to heare of your profit, & fruites of my labours, I can not, but of very louelove and duety, exhort you not onelyonly to take this my labour in good part: but alſo to vſe it aright, leaſt it bee a witneſſe againſt you in the daye of the Lorde. It ſhall be verie comfortable and fruitful to you, if ye cauſe this ſhort ſumme to be oft and diligently reade in your houſes: for hereby ye your ſelues, your children, & ſeruants, may profit more & more, in the principall points of your ſaluation. What neede ye hauehave of this continuall exerciſe in your houſes, ye know your ſelues, and I by experience, can beare witneſſe, of the greate and groſſe ignorance of ſome amonge you: notwithſtanding the cleare light of the goſpell of long nowe ſhining there. In handling this matter, I hauehave ſtudied to my power, to bee plaine, ſimple, ſhort, and profitable, not looking ſo much to the deſire & ſatisfaction of the learned, as to the inſtruction and helpe of the ignorant. For firſt, I hauehave abſteyned from al curious & hard queſtions, and next I hauehave brought the queſtion and the anſwere to as fewe wordes as I could, and that for the eaſe of children and common people, who can not vnderſtand nor gather the ſubſtance of a long queſtion, or a long anſwere conſirmed with many reaſons. And yet if any will exerciſe their houſholde in the common Catechiſme, (the which thing I exhort all men to doe) this my labour can not hurt, but rather it ſhall be a great helpe to them, ſeeing I both gather the ſubſtance of the whole Catechiſme in fewe wordes, and alſo follow the ſame order, except a litle in the beginning and in the ende, where certaine things are added, which all men (I hope) ſhall iudge to be verie profitable, and neceſſarie to be knowne. There are alſo ſome queſtions & anſweres interlaced in ſundrie places, but chiefly in the matter of the Sacraments, which ſerue greatly to the right vnderſtanding of the matter in hand. But if men will bee both weary to learne the common Catechiſme, and alſo this briefe Summe: I can not vnderſtād, what good they wil hauehave to know the right way of their ſaluation. For certain and ſure it is, that the reading or rehearſing (by worde) of the Beleefe, the Lordes prayer, the Lawe, and number of the holie Sacraments, can profit nothing to ſaluation, without the right vnderſtanding and liuely application of the ſame to our ſelues in particular: in the which onelyonly doth the true Chriſtian faith conſiſt. Wherefore I maruell greatly of the brutiſhnes of many, who doe glory in Faith, and yet neyther hauehave they knowledge, nor feeling of the principall heades of our Chriſtian ſaith, as their anſweres doe teſtifie, when they are brought to any publike examination. But albeit the greate multitud periſh in their wilfull ignorance, yet (I hope ſome ſhall profit by this my labour, taken for the Church of God, of the which I iudge you to be a parte. Therefore take heed to your ſelues, and ſuffer no others to goe before you in this ſpiritual exerciſe: for great diſhonour it ſhal be to you, if others ſhal profit more by this breefe ſumme, then ye, ſeing for your cauſe it was firſt writtē, taught among you: and nowe laſtly vnderunder your name come to the knowledge of others. Be not of thoſe men to whome all kinde of good doctrine is eyther hard and obſcure, or els ouer baſe and common: for as the one hath no will to learne, euen ſo the other would be fedde with ſome curioſitie or newe doctrine. If any ſhal complaine of my obſcuritie in theſe ſhort anſweres, let him conſider how hard a thing it is, to bee both ſhort and plaine, or yet to ſatiſfie all mens deſire & iudgement in lighter matters, then this is. Alwayes if dayes bee graunted, I minde with the helpe of God, to make this ſumme more ample, & more plaine, if the brethren ſhall iudge it needfull. In this meane time, I deſire all men to take this my trauaile in good part, & vſe it to the edification of the Church, & glory of our God. To whom be all honour & praiſe, for euer aud euer.
Amen.
At EDENBVRGH, the xx. of Iuly, in the yeare. 1581.
To the Reader.
MEruell not (gentle Reader) that I alleadge no authoritie of the Scriptures, nor fathers, for the confirmation of this doctrine: ſeeing my purpoſe is not ſo much to inſtruct our prophane Atheiſtes and Apoſtates, as to put our brethren in memory of that doctrine, which they dayly here confirmed (in our ordinarie teaching) by the ſcriptures and conſent of the godly Fathers.
Alwayes if eyther the brethren, or other woulde hauehave further confirmation of this doctrine, let thē reade the Inſtitution of M. Iohn Calum, and other godly men, who hauehave written aboundantly for the defence of this doctrine, according to the ſcriptures of God. I doubt not, but good men, and ſuch as are perſwaded of the trueth, will take this mine excuſe in the beſt part, and giuegive thankes to God for my labour, taken for their comfort. But as for the godles band of Atheiſtes and Apoſtates whom God hath ordained to diſtruction, I care not what they ſhall iudge of this my ſimple writing, & paines taken for the inſtruction of the ignorant. I woulde maruell greatly of the ſucceſſe of our doctrine, which is now impugned and purſued by men, (to the ſight of the world) of great eſtimation and iudgement, if the ſame had not come to paſſe to the Prophets and Apoſtles in their age, whoſe doctrine and religion was moſt faiſty impugned, and cruelly perſecuted by the Sonnes of perdition. Of this we are forwarned by the Apoſtles, that men, after the witneſsing of the truth, ſhall depart to their vomit againe and become Traitoures and perſecutors of Gods trueth, which they profeſſed afore with vsus. When we ſee this fierie tryall and fearefull iudgement in the Church, let vsus examine our ſelues be time, and call to God for conſtancie in the trueth, and praiſe his iuſtice in the blinding of thoſe, that in ſo great a light, willingly and maliciouſly, delite in darkeneſſe and blaſpheme the way of righteouſeneſſe. Of this ſort are ſundrie of our nation, whoſe blaſphemous writinges come dayly to our handes, to the tryall of our faith and conſtancie, to the farther blinding of the reprobate, and their greater condemnation in the day of the Lord Ieſus Chriſt. To whome with the Father and the holy Spirit, be all honor and praiſe eternally.
Amen.