To Be a Christian - A New Catechism by the ACNA

[Semper Fidelis]

Got a note from a dear brother who pointed me to this. The Anglican Church of North America has just released a new catechism:
Anglican Church in North America

An excerpt for their vision:

Because the Anglican Church has had an excellent synthesis of Word and Sacrament over its history,
both before and after the Reformation, the task of catechesis can best be viewed through that
classical Anglican lens. It is a catholic lens using the Church’s best examples of that synthesis
throughout the centuries, and a reformed lens as manifested by the English Church in her
reformation.

“The church of God will never be preserved without catechesis.” So said John Calvin. True of the
church at large, it is also true of our branch of it, the Anglican Church of North America. The
ACNA must formulate and implement a plan for successful catechesis if she wants to see her desire
for many faithful children come to fruition. The plan outlined here, albeit briefly, can be seen to
have several merits:

1. It is ancient, not based on contemporary whim.
2. It is in keeping with realities of the Faith—it encompasses sacraments, doctrine, worship,
practical life.
3. It takes into account the Christian’s progress in the Faith, from the inquirer to the faithful.
4. It is tested & proven.

 

[Philip]

Thoughts after my (cursory) reading:

It's actually pretty good. The statements on soteriology are sound (as one would expect when J.I. Packer is heading up the committee) and while most of us would have issues with church polity and the number of sacraments (2+5 rather than seven, it should be noted) we already knew about those, given its Anglican provenance. All in all, apart from the Anglican distinctives, it's a solid middle-of-the-road "mere Christianity" type of document, with Protestant distinctives.