Alekaey Vital’evich Kargaltsev PhD in History, senior lecturer, Herzen State Pedagogical University of Russia (R. Moika nab., 48/20a, Saint-Petersburg, Russia, 191186)
akargaltsev@herzen.spb.ru
Karagaltsev A.V. Philip Melanchthon’s Catechesis puerilis of 1558 in the Context of Protestant Education, Religiya. Tserkov’. Obshchestvo. Issledovaniya i publikatsii po teologii i religii [Religion. Church. Society: Research and publications in the field of theology and religious studies], pp. 102–115.
doi: 10.24412/2308-0698-2025-14-98-111
Language: Russian
Philip Melanchthon began work on his catechism in the 1520s, almost simultaneously with Martin Luther. However, it was intended for a different audience: pupils and students at evangelical educational institutions in Germany. The work was completed with the publication of the final edition in 1558. All editions were used as teaching aids for Latin and rhetoric, as well as serving as simple textbooks on Christian dogmatics. While the sections of Luther’s catechism begin with the well-known phrase ‘We must fear and love God’, Melanchthon asks, «Why are we certain that God exists?» As a humanist and educator, Melanchthon not only adapted Martin Luther’s teachings to suit school education, but also developed what appears to be the ideal form of a school catechism through trial and error. All sections of the catechism explain biblical texts and examine them from the perspective of the embodiment of the Law and the Gospel in Holy Scripture as the fundamental elements of the relationship between God and humanity. This is supplemented by numerous examples from ancient and sacred history. References to heroes from classical antiquity, treated on a par with Old Testament figures, play a special role in the text. This paper will analyse this pedagogical approach, which is characteristic of 16th century German humanists, and draw conclusions regarding the nature of school education during that era.
Key words: humanism, Reformation, education, gymnasiums, didactics, commandments, Decalogue
URL: https://rcs-almanac.ru/karagaltsev2025-en/
