Catechismus, that is to say, a short instruction into Christian religion for the singular…Catechismus, that is to say, a shorte instruction into Christian religion for the synguler…

Now good children, you shall employ your selves, not only to rehearse these words without book, but also to understand, what our Lord Jesus Christ meant by them, that when you shall be asked any question herein, you may make a direct answer, and that also in time to come you may be able to instruct your children in the same. ⟨p. ccxxix⟩For what greater shame can there be, either in the sight of God or of man, then to profess thy self to be a Christen man, & yet to be ignorant in what place of scripture and by what words, Christ commanded faith, and forgiveness of since, to be preached. Seeing that a Christen man ought to believe nothing, as an article of his faith, except he be assured, that either it is gods commandment, or his word. Now good children, that you may the better understand these words, of our saviour Christ you shall know, that our Lord Jesus Christ when he began to preach, he dead call and chose his twelve Apostles and afterward besides those twelve,¹ he sent forth three score and ten disciples, and gave them authority to preach the gospel. And a little before his death and passion, ⟨image 251⟩he made his prayer to his heavenly father for them, & for all those that should believe through their preaching. As it is declared in the gospel of saint John.² Now it is not to be doubted, but that Christs prayer was heard, of his heavenly father, wherefore it followeth, that as many as believed the preaching of Christs disciples, were as surely saved, as if they had heard and believed Christ himself. And after Christs ascension, the Apostles gave authority to other godly and holy men, to minister gods word, and chiefly in those places, where there were Christen men already, which lacked preachers, and the Apostles them selves could not longer abide with them For the Apostles did walk abroad into diverse parts of the world, and did study to plant the gospel ⟨p. ccxxx⟩in many places. Wherefore where they found godly men, and mete to preach gods word, they laid their hands upon them, and gave them the holy ghost, as they themselves received of Christ the same holy ghost, to execute this office. And they that were so ordained, were in deed, and also were called, the ministers of God as the Apostles themselves were, as Paul, sayeth unto Timothy.