To see these questions and answers presented in an interactive format with key Scriptures, historical sources, explanatory notes, and resources for further study, visit catechism.holyjoys.org.
Chapter 1: God the Father & Creation (Apostles’ Creed, Article I)
Q. 1. Why did God make you?
I was made to be happy in God, and I will be restless until I find my rest in him.
Q. 2. What prevents your happiness in God?
Sin prevents my happiness in God, and always leads to misery, both now and in the life to come.
Q. 3. What has God given to direct us how to be saved from sin?
The Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, which are the Word of God, contain all things necessary to salvation. Scripture is the final authority for Christian doctrine and practice.
Q. 4. Where is the good news of God’s Word summarized?
The good news of God’s Word is summarized in the three articles of our universal and undisputed Christian faith: God the Father and our creation; the Son of God and our redemption; the Holy Spirit and our new life in the Church. These articles are confessed in the Apostles’ Creed, Nicene Creed, and Athanasian Creed, which ought to be thoroughly received and believed, since they can be proven with certainty from Holy Scripture.
Q. 5. How many gods are there?
There is only one true and living God, everlasting, without body or parts, of infinite power, wisdom, and goodness.
Q. 6. How many persons are there in God?
There are three persons in God: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. They are of one substance, power, and eternity. And this is the catholic faith: that we worship one God in Trinity, and Trinity in Unity, neither confusing the persons nor dividing the substance.
Q. 7. How did God make all things?
God made all things out of nothing, through his Son and Spirit, and all very good, to praise and manifest his glory.
Q. 8. How did God create human beings?
God created human beings male and female, with body and soul, after his own image—in knowledge, righteousness, and holiness—to know, love, and enjoy him.
Q. 9. Does God abandon his creation to chance or fortune?
God sustains and governs all his creatures, and all their actions, by his most holy, wise, and powerful providence, so that nothing happens in this world without his orderly arrangement. God is not the author of evil and does not violate human freedom.
Q. 10. If our good God made and governs all things, why is the world full of evil?
Our first parents, Adam and Eve, freely chose to sin against God, and fell from the holiness and happiness in which they were created, plunging the human race into sin, death, and misery.
Q. 11. What is God’s predestined purpose for the world?
Predestination is God’s eternal, unchangeable purpose, decreed before the foundation of the world, to send his Son Jesus Christ to be the Savior of humanity, and to elect in him all who believe through the grace of the Holy Spirit.
Chapter 2: Sin & The Law (Ten Commandments)
Q. 12. In what condition are we born because of Adam’s sin?
Because of Adam’s sin, we are conceived and born with a human nature that is corrupt in all parts, very far gone from original righteousness, and continually inclined towards evil.
Q. 13. What did God give to expose our sin and show us our need for a Savior?
God exposed our sin by giving us the moral law, which is summarized in the Ten Commandments, and requires us to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, and mind, and our neighbor as ourselves.
Q. 14. What does God teach us in the preface to the Ten Commandments, “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery”?
Because God is the Lord, and our God, and redeemer, we are bound to keep all his commandments.
Q. 15. What is meant by the first commandment, “You shall have no other gods before me”?
We should know, fear, and trust the only true God above all things. We should not give to any other the worship and glory which is due to God alone. For God sees all things, and is greatly displeased by the sin of having any other god.
Q. 16. What is meant by the second commandment, “You shall not make for yourself a carved image”?
We should not worship images, use them superstitiously, or make any image at all of God’s invisible divine nature. We should worship God in the ways which he has appointed in his Word, and look to God alone for our hope, happiness, and security. For God is sovereign over us, has a rightful claim to our lives and devotion, and is zealous for his own worship.
Q. 17. What is meant by the third commandment, “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain”?
We should honor, defend, and live up to the profession of God’s holy name, which we bear through baptism. God forbids whatever profanes his name or harms his reputation, such as hypocrisy, blasphemy, perjury, cursing, and swearing rash or unnecessary oaths. Those who abuse God’s great name shall not escape his righteous judgment.
Q. 18. What is meant by the fourth commandment, “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy”?
We should observe the times which God has appointed in his Word and regularly rest from routine employment. We should not profane the Lord’s Day or neglect to assemble with God’s people for worship. God calls us to rest also in Christ by faith, and to anticipate the eternal Sabbath.
Q. 19. What is meant by the fifth commandment, “Honor your father and your mother”?
We should honor our parents and all who are in authority, submit to their good instruction, and be patient with their shortcomings. We should not disobey their lawful commands, despise them, or disrespect them. To those who keep this commandment, God promises long life and prosperity, insofar as it shall serve for his glory and their own good.
Q. 20. What is meant by the sixth commandment, “You shall not murder”?
We should treasure and preserve God’s gift of life, pursuing peace with all people. God forbids whatever brings unjust harm to our neighbor’s life or tends toward it, such as anger, hatred, hostility, malice, revenge, murder, and abortion.
Q. 21. What is meant by the seventh commandment, “You shall not commit adultery”?
We should be pure, decent, and chaste, both within and outside of holy marriage. God forbids all impure thoughts, words, or behaviors, such as lust, immodesty, pornography, fornication, cohabitation, homosexuality, and unlawful divorce. Marriage was ordained by God as a sign of the mystical union between Christ and his Church, and should be honored by all with love, purity, and devotion.
Q. 22. What is meant by the eighth commandment, “You shall not steal”?
We should honestly obtain and generously share our wealth as good stewards of God’s resources. God forbids whatever unjustly hinders our neighbor’s estate or tends towards it, such as greed, stinginess, theft, swindling, usury, fraud, and tax evasion.
Q. 23. What is meant by the ninth commandment, “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor”?
We should speak the truth in love, upholding our neighbor’s good reputation and putting a charitable construction on everything. God forbids all harmful and self-serving speech, such as lying, deceit, doublespeak, gossip, backbiting, and slander.
Q. 24. What is meant by the tenth commandment, “You shall not covet anything that is your neighbor’s”?
We should be fully content with our status, circumstances, possessions, and achievements. God forbids all discontented and ungrateful attitudes, such as pride, envy, jealousy, rivalry, grumbling, and materialism.
Q. 25. Have you perfectly kept all of God’s commandments, as his law and holiness requires?
I have sinned against God by doing what should never be done and leaving undone what God has commanded, falling short of his glory in my words, thoughts, and deeds.
Q. 26. What are the just consequences of our sin and rebellion?
Every sin deserves God’s wrath and curse, and makes us liable to all the miseries of this life, to death itself, and to the pains of hell forever.
Chapter 3: The Son of God & Redemption (Apostles’ Creed, Article II)
Q. 27. Who is Jesus Christ?
Jesus Christ is the Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father—not made or created. He is of one substance with the Father, true and eternal God.
Q. 28. What is the gospel?
The gospel is the good news that God loves the world and sent his only Son, Jesus Christ, to save us from our sin and reign as Lord over all things. Through his incarnate life, death, burial, resurrection, ascension, and coming judgment, Christ serves as our Savior and Mediator, Prophet, Priest, and King.
Q. 29. How did God prepare the world for the coming of his Son?
God began to reveal the gospel already in Eden, proclaimed it by the holy patriarchs and prophets, and foreshadowed it by the sacrifices and other ceremonies of the law.
Q. 30. How did the Son of God become human for us and for our salvation?
Without ceasing to be God, the Son of God took human nature in the womb of the blessed virgin Mary, so that there is one Christ, truly God and truly man. Two whole and perfect natures—the Godhead and manhood—were joined together in one person, never to be divided.
Q. 31. Why did Christ suffer and die on the cross?
Christ endured the cursed and shameful death of the cross to fully pay for all my sins, reconcile me to God, and set me free from the power of the devil. The offering of Christ, once made, is a perfect redemption, propitiation, and satisfaction for all the sins of the whole world, and there is no other atonement for sin but that alone.
Q. 32. Why did Christ descend to the dead?
While Christ’s body rested in the grave, his human soul departed to the place of the dead, not to be punished for sin, but to defeat death and Hades by virtue of his divinity, that we may no longer fear to go where he has been.
Q. 33. Why was Christ raised from the dead?
Christ truly rose again from the dead, taking back his body, with flesh, bones, and all things pertaining to the perfection of human nature, to overcome death, declare his Lordship, and begin the restoration of the whole creation. Because he lives, we may be raised by his power to a new life, share in the righteousness which he obtained for us by his death, and enjoy the sure pledge that our bodies shall also be raised in glory.
Q. 34. Why did Christ ascend into heaven to sit at the right hand of the Father?
With the same body in which he was raised, Christ ascended to sit and reign as Lord of heaven and earth, intercede as our Advocate before the Father, and build his Church through his Spirit until he returns to judge all people on the last day.
Q. 35. Why will Christ come again to judge the living and the dead?
Christ will return in glory to reward the righteous, punish the wicked, and establish his unending kingdom of peace and justice on the earth. God’s glory will dwell with us in a restored creation, free of sin, death, mourning, crying, and pain.
Chapter 4: The Holy Spirit & The Church (Apostles’ Creed, Article III)
Q. 36. Who is the Holy Spirit?
The Holy Spirit is the third person of the Trinity, who proceeds from the Father and the Son. He is of one substance, majesty, and glory with the Father and the Son, true and eternal God.
Q. 37. Why was the Holy Spirit poured out at Pentecost?
God poured out the Holy Spirit at Pentecost to apply the benefits of Christ’s redemption by uniting us to Christ by faith and to one another in love as a people out of every nation, tribe, and tongue. Through his Spirit, Christ calls, convicts, comforts, guides, sanctifies, defends, and gives gifts to the Church.
Q. 38. What is the Church?
The catholic or universal Church is the people of God in all times and places, united in Christ to be his bride and body, the house and temple of the Holy Spirit.
Q. 39. Where is the true Church visible on earth?
The true Church of Christ is visible in a congregation of believers where the pure gospel is preached, the sacraments are properly administered, and church discipline is practiced for the correction of faults.
Q. 40. What authority does the Church have from Christ in matters of salvation?
The Church has the keys of the kingdom to declare the terms of pardon from sin, receive those who believe into its number, gently restore sinning members, and exclude those who persist in sin without repentance, not admitting them to the Lord’s Supper until they reform their lives. In the holy assembly of the Church, believers are nurtured as by a mother and carried as in an ark to their final salvation.
Q. 41. Is everyone obliged to become a member of some particular local church?
Since the Church is the holy assembly of those who are saved, outside of which there is no ordinary possibility of salvation, people should not withdraw from it, content to be by themselves, but are obliged to join and submit to it, keeping the unity of the Church.
Q. 42. To whom has Christ entrusted the government of the local Church?
The Church is governed by faithful Elders, also called Pastors and Overseers, who are duly called and qualified to teach the word and administer the sacraments. Deacons assist the Elders and labor as servants to those in need. In some churches, the title of Bishop is reserved for chief pastors or regional overseers.
Q. 43. What is a sacrament?
A sacrament is an outward and visible sign of an inward and spiritual grace, given by Christ as a means to receive that grace in faith, and as a pledge of God to assure us thereof. There are two sacraments ordained of Christ our Lord in the gospel: baptism and the Lord’s Supper.
Q. 44. What is baptism?
Baptism is washing with water in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, as a sign of regeneration or the new birth, and of entrance into Christ’s body the Church.
Q. 45. Why has the Church baptized infants throughout its history?
Since God commanded that infants be received into his covenant people by giving them a pledge of his promises, and recognized them as heirs of his kingdom, covered by Christ’s atonement, the Church has welcomed the children of believers into its number through baptism, and nurtured them to faith from within the safety of God’s family. Nevertheless, the decision of parents to delay their children’s baptism should be respected, so long as it is a matter of sincere conviction, and not of neglect or negligence to study the Scriptures.
Q. 46. What is the Lord’s Supper?
The Lord’s Supper is sharing a meal of bread and wine as a sign of redemption by Christ’s body and blood, and of the Church’s unity in him. To those who receive it rightly and with faith, the bread which we break is a partaking of the body of Christ, and the cup of blessing is a partaking of the blood of Christ, yet only after a spiritual and heavenly manner.
Chapter 5: Justification & New Life (Apostles’ Creed, Article III, cont.)
Q. 47. How can you be saved from sin and begin your new life in the Church?
To be saved from sin and begin my new life in the Church, I must repent, believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and be baptized in his name.
Q. 48. What are repentance and saving faith?
Repentance is turning from sin unto God, with grief and hatred for sin, and the full intention of new obedience. Faith is receiving and resting upon Christ alone for salvation.
Q. 49. Can anyone repent or believe without the help of the Holy Spirit?
In our fallen and corrupt condition, we cannot turn to God, or begin to have faith, by our own natural strength or works. Only by the grace of Christ, which goes before us by the Holy Spirit, are we able to exercise the faith necessary for salvation.
Q. 50. What is justification?
Justification is an act of God’s free grace in which he pardons all our sins and accepts us as righteous in his sight, only for the righteousness of Christ, received by faith alone, and not for our own works or merit.
Q. 51. If we are justified by faith alone, are good works unnecessary?
Good works are commanded by God and spring from a true and living faith, as good fruit gives evidence of a healthy tree. By these works, we show ourselves grateful to God, strengthen our assurance before him, and grow in his grace unto final salvation.
Q. 52. What is adoption?
Adoption is an act of God’s free grace by which those born of God’s Spirit are received into the number of his children through union with his only begotten Son, and given a right to all the privileges of sonship.
Q. 53. What is sanctification?
Sanctification is the work of God’s free grace by which our whole nature is renewed after the image of God, and we are enabled to die unto sin and live unto righteousness and true holiness.
Q. 54. What are the primary outward and ordinary means by which God gives his saving and sanctifying grace?
The primary means of grace are the reading and exposition of God’s Word, prayer, baptism, and the Lord’s Supper. God also gives grace through the works of mercy which he has commanded, such as helping the poor, visiting the sick, reaching the lost, strengthening the weak, and restoring the fallen.
Q. 55. If you persevere in faith and holiness to the end, what benefits will you receive from Christ at death?
If I persevere in faith and holiness to the end, safely kept in the ark of Christ’s Church, my soul will pass into glory at the moment of death, and my body will rest in the grave until the resurrection.
Q. 56. What benefits will the saints receive from Christ at the resurrection of the dead?
At the general resurrection on the last day, the saints will be raised up in glory, openly acknowledged and acquitted in the day of judgment, and made perfectly blessed in the full enjoyment of God for all eternity.
Chapter 6: The Word of God & Prayer (The Lord’s Prayer)
Q. 57. How should we read and hear the Word of God?
We should attend to the Word with diligence, preparation, and prayer, receive it with faith and love, lay it up in our hearts, and practice it in our lives.
Q. 58. What is prayer?
Prayer is communion with God—drawing near to God, in the name of Christ, to seek God’s face and ask for things agreeable to his will. God has given us his whole Word as a rule of direction in prayer, especially that form of prayer which Christ taught his disciples, commonly called the Lord’s Prayer.
Q. 59. What are we taught in the preface of the Lord’s Prayer, “Our Father, who is in heaven”?
We should pray with and for others, turning our hearts toward God with reverence and confidence, as children to a father able and ready to help us.
Q. 60. What do we pray for in the first petition of the Lord’s Prayer, “hallowed be your name”?
We pray that God would be truly known, honored, and praised by all his creatures, and that he would order all things to his glory.
Q. 61. What do we pray for in the second petition of the Lord’s Prayer, “your kingdom come”?
We pray that Satan’s kingdom would be destroyed, the kingdom of grace advanced—ourselves and others brought into it, and kept in it—and the kingdom of glory hastened.
Q. 62. What do we pray for in the third petition of the Lord’s Prayer, “your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven”?
We pray that God, by his grace, would make us able and willing to know, obey, and submit to his will in all things, as do the angels in heaven.
Q. 63. What do we pray for in the fourth petition of the Lord’s Prayer, “Give us this day our daily bread”?
We pray that by God’s free gift we may receive all things needed for our souls and bodies— not only the food that perishes, but also God’s Word and grace, the food that endures to everlasting life.
Q. 64. What do we pray for in the fifth petition of the Lord’s Prayer, “forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us”?
We pray that, because of Christ’s blood, God would freely pardon all our sins, just as we are fully determined to forgive our neighbors from the heart as evidence of God’s grace within us.
Q. 65. What do we pray for in the sixth petition of the Lord’s Prayer, “lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil”?
We pray that God would either keep us from being tempted or support and deliver us when we are tempted.
Q. 66. What are we taught in the conclusion of the Lord’s Prayer, “For yours is the kingdom, the power, and the glory, for ever and ever, Amen”?
We should worship when we pray, and take our confidence in prayer from God alone. And in testimony of our desire and assurance to be heard, we say, “Amen.”
