PILKO Jan - Acta PATRISTICA, volume 14, issue 29/2023
TAGES OF EARLY CHRISTIAN CATECHIZATION
/ETAPY RANOKRESŤANSKEJ KATECHIZÁCIE/
Jan PILKO
assistant professor, Faculty of Orthodox Theology, University of Presov, Masarykova 15, 08001 Presov, Slovakia, jan.pilko@unipo.sk, 00421517724729, ORCID: 0000-0001-8167-5170
Abstract
This present article discusses the various stages of early Christian catechization. It will attempt to outline the perspectives of some selected ecclesiastical writers of the first three centuries. In the apostolic age, the division of catechesis into stages can only be spoken of in a very broad sense. Christian teachers made sure that adults received baptism consciously. For baptism was meant to signify a great change in a person's life: it was the putting on of Christ, the burial with Christ, and the resurrection to new life, a new birth.
Keywords
Catechization, Christian faith, paganism, baptism
SUMMARY
The history of the catechesis of the early Christian Church is very rich in various events that have been indelibly inscribed in the history of Christianity. The catechetical writings of the early Church give us an insight into a period that was not easy for Christians, who had to face severe persecution. The period of the first three centuries gives us an insight into the brilliant thinking of teachers, catechists and theologians, as well as their way of catechetical work. Thanks to these writings, we can form an idea of the way in which this catechesis was carried out.
Christian apologists led a fierce polemic against traditional paganism, exposing its immorality, claiming that idol worship was a form of worship unworthy of God. While a visitor to a pagan temple was required to pay an entrance fee, donations in Christian communities were voluntary.
The most prominent figure among Christian apologists was Justin Philosopher, a martyr who understood that Christianity and contemporary Platonism were too closely linked to achieve abstract neutrality and respectful coexistence. They had to love or hate each other. Therefore, pagans who were interested in becoming Christians not only had to go through various degrees of catechization, but their occupation was also an important issue for admission to the catechumenate.
(Language: slovak)