A Christian Directory, Part 2: Christian EconomicsBaxter, Richard
Religion
A Christian Directory, Part 2: Christian Economics
Baxter, Richard
Casuistry; Christian sociology
_Direct._ X. When you have opened the baptismal covenant to them,
and the essentials of christianity, cause them to learn the creed, the
Lord's prayer, and the ten commandments. And tell them the uses of
them; that man having three powers of soul, his understanding, his
will, and his obediential or executive power, all these must be
sanctified, and therefore there must be a rule for each; and that
accordingly the creed is the summary rule to tell us what our
understandings must believe; and the Lord's prayer is the summary rule
to direct us what our wills must desire and our tongues must ask; and
the ten commandments are the summary rules of our practice: and that
the holy Scripture, in general, is the more large and perfect rule of
all; and that all that will be taken for true christians, must have a
general, implicit belief of all the holy Scriptures, and a particular,
explicit belief, desire, and sincere practice, according to the
creeds, Lord's prayer, and ten commandments.
_Direct._ XI. Next teach them a short catechism (by memory) which
openeth these a little more fully, and then a larger catechism. The
shorter and larger catechisms of the Assembly are very well fitted to
this use. I have published a very brief one myself, which in eight
articles or answers containeth all the essential points of belief, and
in one answer, the covenant consent, and in four articles or answers
more, containeth all the substantial parts of christian duty; the
answers are some of them long for children;[52] but if I knew of any
other that had so much in so few words, I would not offer this to you,
because I am conscious of its imperfections. But there are very few
catechisms that differ in the substance; whichever they learn, let
them as they go have your help to understand it, and let them keep it
in memory to the last.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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