’n Vergelyking tussen die teologie van die Nederlandse Geloofsbelydenis en die Heidelbergse Kategismus

Abstract

A comparison between the theology of the Belgian Confession and the Catechism of Heidelberg The history of its origins shows that both emerge from the same mainstream of the calvinistic reformation and that both, in a certain sense, go back to Calvin himself. Their main differences therefore do not lie in their contents but in their form, determined by the circumstances in which they were born and by their intentions. The main motive of the Belgian Confession is polemic with the emphasis on doctrine; that of the Catechism of Heidelberg is catechetic with the emphasis on instruction aiming on consolation and the founding of faith. This article expounds and compares both the corresponding material and the ‘own’ material of each Confession.