Of Catecbifms. expectation of the M.Jlhh, it WJS fuppofed ~hlt the pcopic ... Iud ro ~u~h prepara_rory knowledge, as rmde thC'fn the more c~pablc: of B1pofm as {oon as they d1d but knoufly p1ofds, to Be/i 1 ve) and Co 11 [tm to the terms of the: Covemnt : And thetefore they were prtfendy b.1ptized, AtiJ 2 • ,s, 39> 40· 3· Thlt this could nor be. rationally fuppofed among the Gmtiln, and common I!,noraat people of lhe world. And Ig1Jor.1NtU non cjl Conflnji11. He doth not Covenant who undt:dbndt.:th not the; Covenant, as to wb!St M promifed him, and wh:a be promifttb. 4· That the Apofilc:s baptiud, and Clufed others to biptize nuny thoufands, and fettle many Churches, before any part of the New Tdiamcnt was wri'ttcn, even many and many years. 5· That the ApoHles d~d · their work as ~e~l and be~ter thm any that fucceeded them. 6. That 1htir fuccdfors m the Cbmrnon Mtmllery, dtd as far as any Church EUtOiy leadeth us up, Inftruli and Catechi[t men in the meaning of the Baptifm.al Cov~nant, ( which is the Chritlhn faith,) before they baptized tbtm: Yea, they kept them long m the hate of C,;techHmr:ns ufually, be~ fore ·rhcy would baptize them. And after baptized but nvice a year, at EJjler and l.Yhitfolllidt ( as " our Liturgy noteth ) And they received an account of their tolerable under(hnding of Religion, bt; fore they would receive rhc:m into the Church. 7 . No doubt rhen, bur rhe Apoalcs did CJufe the baprizablc, to underfiand rhe three Articles of ,Chrjfis own Cretd and Covenant, and to give fame: account of it before they baptiz.td them, ordinaIily aniong the Gentiles. · 8. No doubt therefore hut they u[ed many more Explicatory words, to caufe rhem to underfiand tho[e few. 11 • Thqe is neithet proof nor probability, that rhcy ufed a Compofure of jufi the fame words, and no more or lcfs: Bec1ufc they had to do wirh pcrfons of fevcral capacities, fame b,_nnwing, who needed fewer wordi, an.d forne ignortJnt and duU, who needed more: Nor is any fuch Compofure H~b.5. n ,·t, come down to our hands. 8.:: 6. 1, 2, 3• IO· But it is more than probable, that the: Matter opened· by them to aU the Catechumen! was Oill rhe fame, when the wordt were not the fame. For Gods Promi[e1 and ma'!J Condition~ are Hill the fame ( wh<re the_ Gofpcl cometh ). Th~ugh !ince by t~c occa!ion of Herefies , fame few mate· rlal claufcs- are mftru:d. For all Chn{hans had one ChnfhanJty , and mufi go one way to Heaven. · 1 ,, It is alfo more t~an probable, that they did not ~~eedlrfly vary the words, lefi it fl10uld teach men ro vary the matter: Buc that all Chrifiians before bapcifm, did make rhe fame profrffi"'• of f~ith as ro the fen[e, and very mttch the fame as to the vtry wotds; uling nectffary camion, and ytt avoiding unnec(1lJry prccifenefs of formality: But fo as to obviate d11.mnable Herefics, that the Chri.. tlian profdlion might attain its ends. 12. Lafily, No doubt but this p"ractice of rhc Apofiles was exemplary and imitated by rhe Chur· chts, an.d that thus the Effentials ofReligion were by the tradition of the Creed and Bapti[m delive. 1 Tim. r, r 3 . red by thtmfdves, as far as ChriHianity went, long before any Book of the New Tetlarnent was writ~ 1. Cor.Jh3 1 7; ten: And every Cbrijliomwas an Imprefs, or Tranfcript, or SptcimeH of it. And that the following Heb. S. to. &: Churches ufing the fame Creed, (wholly in [tnfe, and mofUy in worJs) might fo fat well eaU it 10 " 16 • The Apojlle; Creed: As they did both the Wtjlern and the Nicem. ' ~tell:. 140. What is tl,e ufe of (atecbifms ? An[o:. TO be a n:ore familiar txplication of the Effentials of C~riflianity, ani the princiPal Integrals, m a larger manner than the Creed, Lords Prayer and Decaloguc do; that the ignorant may the _rr.ore cafily uudcrttand i.t•. Every man cannot gather our of the Scripture the Greatell roomers m the uue method, as dlflmtl: from all [he reft : And therefore it is part of the work ofthe~hurchesTeachers, to .do it to lhe hands and ufe of the ignorant. Qpdl1_41. (ottld any of tts ]Ja"JJe known by the Scriptures alone, the Ejfentials of ~ltgt"on from the rt\sft, ifTradttwn had not gt"llen them to tu i11 the (reed as from Apoftolical (fl{leiJion ? ' Anflv. yEs : For ... the Scripture it felf tclleth us w.h.at is nccdfa~y. to falvation : It defcribeth to us the Covenant of ~race, both Pror~u{es and Condmons: And it were flrange jf fo lar~e aVo\ume, Omuld not as plamly tell us wh2t IS necdfary (0 falvation, as fewer wmds? The Scnpmre hath not L-;[s than the Creed, . but marc. Q:!dl.
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