Why an Anglican catechism? Anglicans are heirs of a rich tradition
of Christian faith and life. That tradition stretches from
today’s worldwide Anglican Communion of millions of believers
on six continents back centuries to laymen like William
Wilberforce, who led the abolition of the slave trade in England,
to the bishops and martyrs of the English Reformation
like Thomas Cranmer, and to missionaries like Augustine of
Canterbury and Saint Patrick, who spread the Gospel throughout
the British Isles.
Throughout these centuries, Anglicans have articulated their
faith in reference to classic sources of doctrine and worship. All
true doctrine, Anglicans believe, is derived from Holy Scripture,
which is the wellspring and ground for testing all that is taught
in the Church. Saint Paul instructs the Church, “All Scripture is
breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for
correction, and for training in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16).
Further, Article 6 of the Articles of Religion states, “Whatever
is not read therein, nor may be proved thereby, is not to be
required of any man that it should be believed as an article of
the Faith.”
Classic sources for the explication and elucidation of scriptural
doctrine include the following:
• The Early Church. Anglicans have always held in high regard
“such teachings of the ancient Fathers and Councils
of the Church as are agreeable to the Scriptures,” and
which are summarized in the Apostles’ Creed, Nicene-
Constantinopolitan Creed, and Athanasian Creed.
• The Articles of Religion (1571). The Articles, also known as
the “Thirty-Nine Articles,” summarize the biblical faith
recovered at the Reformation and have become the doctrinal
norm for Anglicans around the world.
• The King James Bible (1611). The translation of the Bible
into English, begun in the sixteenth century by William
Tyndale, achieved its classic form in the 1611 translation
under King James I and remains the basis for many modern
versions, such as the Revised Standard Version and the
English Standard Version. In keeping with the principles
of the English Reformation that promote worship in language
that the people understand (Articles of Religion, 24),
the Bible has since been translated into many languages.
Anglican Christianity has now spread to encompass people
of many races and languages all over the world.
• The Book of Common Prayer (1549–1662). The Anglican
Prayer Book is known worldwide as one of the finest expressions
of Christian prayer and worship. The 1662 Prayer
Book is predominantly composed of Scriptures formulated
into prayer. It has been the standard for Anglican doctrine,
discipline, and worship, and for subsequent revisions in
many languages.
• Music and hymnody. Hymns, from writers like Isaac Watts,
Charles Wesley, John Mason Neale, and Graham Kendrick,
have formed the spirituality of En glish-speaking
Anglicans around the world. Today, composers in many
languages continue in this powerful tradition of catechesis
through music.
• The Lambeth Quadrilateral. Resolution 11 of the Lambeth
Conference (1888) affirmed four marks of Church identity
required for genuine unity and fellowship. These are the
Holy Scriptures containing “all things necessary for salvation,”
the Apostles’ and Nicene Creeds as “the sufficient
statement of the Christian faith,” two sacraments ordained
by Christ—Baptism and the Eucharist—and “the historic
Episcopate, locally adapted.” These serve as a basis of Anglican
identity, as well as instruments for ecumenical dialogue
with other church traditions.
• The Jerusalem Declaration (2008). This statement from the
Global Anglican Future Conference in 2008 has become
the theological basis for the Global Fellowship of Confessing
Anglicans, of which the Anglican Church in North
America is a part.
In keeping with this rich, diverse, and historic tradition of
doctrine and worship, we receive this catechism and commend its
use for the building up of the Church today.
We envision this catechism being used for courses, shorter or
longer, based on groups of questions and answers. The degree to
which it is used directly for instruction and the amount of memorization
asked of individual catechumens are left to the catechist
to determine by context and circumstance. What is more, the
resources of modern technology open up multiple possibilities for
its use in creative new ways.
A catechism is ideally to be used in the context of a relationship
between the catechist (the discipleship instructor) and the
catechumen (the one being instructed) to foster the process of
catechesis (disciple-making). The catechumen is invited by the
catechist to a new identity in Christ and into a new community,
to the praise of God’s glory, to the practice of stewardship, and to
sharing in the ministry of making disciples of all nations.
Building on the 2014 working edition of the catechism, this
edition (approved 2018) has been enriched by feedback from
hundreds of laypersons, clergy, bishops, and theologians of the
Church. This input helped create a catechism we trust will be
useful, especially for those raised with limited exposure to the
Christian faith.
We give thanks for the sacrificial work and scholarship of those
listed below, who have served the Church in the creation of the
two editions of this catechism.
We pray that this book will be an effective instrument to disciple
believers in the truth of the Gospel, so that they may serve
Jesus Christ throughout the world (2 Timothy 2:15). May this catechism
serve to build up the Body of Christ by grounding Christian
believers in the Gospel.
On behalf of the College of Bishops
of the Anglican Church in North America
The Most Reverend Foley Beach
Archbishop and Primate
The Most Reverend Robert Duncan
Archbishop and Primate, 2009–2014
of Christian faith and life. That tradition stretches from
today’s worldwide Anglican Communion of millions of believers
on six continents back centuries to laymen like William
Wilberforce, who led the abolition of the slave trade in England,
to the bishops and martyrs of the English Reformation
like Thomas Cranmer, and to missionaries like Augustine of
Canterbury and Saint Patrick, who spread the Gospel throughout
the British Isles.
Throughout these centuries, Anglicans have articulated their
faith in reference to classic sources of doctrine and worship. All
true doctrine, Anglicans believe, is derived from Holy Scripture,
which is the wellspring and ground for testing all that is taught
in the Church. Saint Paul instructs the Church, “All Scripture is
breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for
correction, and for training in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16).
Further, Article 6 of the Articles of Religion states, “Whatever
is not read therein, nor may be proved thereby, is not to be
required of any man that it should be believed as an article of
the Faith.”
Classic sources for the explication and elucidation of scriptural
doctrine include the following:
• The Early Church. Anglicans have always held in high regard
“such teachings of the ancient Fathers and Councils
of the Church as are agreeable to the Scriptures,” and
which are summarized in the Apostles’ Creed, Nicene-
Constantinopolitan Creed, and Athanasian Creed.
• The Articles of Religion (1571). The Articles, also known as
the “Thirty-Nine Articles,” summarize the biblical faith
recovered at the Reformation and have become the doctrinal
norm for Anglicans around the world.
• The King James Bible (1611). The translation of the Bible
into English, begun in the sixteenth century by William
Tyndale, achieved its classic form in the 1611 translation
under King James I and remains the basis for many modern
versions, such as the Revised Standard Version and the
English Standard Version. In keeping with the principles
of the English Reformation that promote worship in language
that the people understand (Articles of Religion, 24),
the Bible has since been translated into many languages.
Anglican Christianity has now spread to encompass people
of many races and languages all over the world.
• The Book of Common Prayer (1549–1662). The Anglican
Prayer Book is known worldwide as one of the finest expressions
of Christian prayer and worship. The 1662 Prayer
Book is predominantly composed of Scriptures formulated
into prayer. It has been the standard for Anglican doctrine,
discipline, and worship, and for subsequent revisions in
many languages.
• Music and hymnody. Hymns, from writers like Isaac Watts,
Charles Wesley, John Mason Neale, and Graham Kendrick,
have formed the spirituality of En glish-speaking
Anglicans around the world. Today, composers in many
languages continue in this powerful tradition of catechesis
through music.
• The Lambeth Quadrilateral. Resolution 11 of the Lambeth
Conference (1888) affirmed four marks of Church identity
required for genuine unity and fellowship. These are the
Holy Scriptures containing “all things necessary for salvation,”
the Apostles’ and Nicene Creeds as “the sufficient
statement of the Christian faith,” two sacraments ordained
by Christ—Baptism and the Eucharist—and “the historic
Episcopate, locally adapted.” These serve as a basis of Anglican
identity, as well as instruments for ecumenical dialogue
with other church traditions.
• The Jerusalem Declaration (2008). This statement from the
Global Anglican Future Conference in 2008 has become
the theological basis for the Global Fellowship of Confessing
Anglicans, of which the Anglican Church in North
America is a part.
In keeping with this rich, diverse, and historic tradition of
doctrine and worship, we receive this catechism and commend its
use for the building up of the Church today.
We envision this catechism being used for courses, shorter or
longer, based on groups of questions and answers. The degree to
which it is used directly for instruction and the amount of memorization
asked of individual catechumens are left to the catechist
to determine by context and circumstance. What is more, the
resources of modern technology open up multiple possibilities for
its use in creative new ways.
A catechism is ideally to be used in the context of a relationship
between the catechist (the discipleship instructor) and the
catechumen (the one being instructed) to foster the process of
catechesis (disciple-making). The catechumen is invited by the
catechist to a new identity in Christ and into a new community,
to the praise of God’s glory, to the practice of stewardship, and to
sharing in the ministry of making disciples of all nations.
Building on the 2014 working edition of the catechism, this
edition (approved 2018) has been enriched by feedback from
hundreds of laypersons, clergy, bishops, and theologians of the
Church. This input helped create a catechism we trust will be
useful, especially for those raised with limited exposure to the
Christian faith.
We give thanks for the sacrificial work and scholarship of those
listed below, who have served the Church in the creation of the
two editions of this catechism.
We pray that this book will be an effective instrument to disciple
believers in the truth of the Gospel, so that they may serve
Jesus Christ throughout the world (2 Timothy 2:15). May this catechism
serve to build up the Body of Christ by grounding Christian
believers in the Gospel.
On behalf of the College of Bishops
of the Anglican Church in North America
The Most Reverend Foley Beach
Archbishop and Primate
The Most Reverend Robert Duncan
Archbishop and Primate, 2009–2014
© 2020 Church of the Resurrection
Church of the Resurrection is a member of the Diocese of the Mid-Atlantic in the Anglican Church in North America
Church of the Resurrection is a member of the Diocese of the Mid-Atlantic in the Anglican Church in North America