A History of the Catechumenate

A History of the Catechumenate
The Jewish Practices

The religious currents that flourished during the New Testament epoch, especially Judaism and Essenism, can also contribute to our study to the degree that some of their customs could have influenced Christian institutions around the years 70-100, that is, when the Church was compelled to adopt more structured forms.

The Essenes
Some authors such as A. Benoit think that the Essenes exercised an influence on Christianity but less on its origins than on its subsequent evolution. ¹¹ If a rather large number of Essenes did indeed convert to Christianity after the catastrophe of 70, they could well have contributed some of the principles of organization of their community to the Church. I shall point out here only some of the striking analogies between the stages of initiation in the Qumran community and those in the first Christian communities.

The recent discoveries at Qumran have confirmed and augmented what was known already from Josephus about their system of admission, which consisted of the following stages:

1. The postulant is first subjected to one year of probation, during which he practices the new lifestyle, but outside the community:

A candidate anxious to join their sect is not immediately admitted. For one year, during which he remains outside the fraternity, they prescribe for him their own rule of life, presenting him with a small hatchet, the loincloth already mentioned, and white raiment.

2. He then does a novitiate of two years during which he can participate progressively in certain rites, but not yet in all of them:

Having given proof of his temperance during the probationary period, he is brought into closer touch with the rule and is allowed to share the purer kind of holy water, but is not yet received into the meetings of the community. For after this exhibition of endurance, his character is tested for two years more, and only then, if found worthy, is he enrolled in the society. ¹²

This information suggests two important observations. First, we are dealing here with a progressive initiation that reminds one of the catechumenal stages that are reported by Hippolytus of Rome, as we shall soon see. In addition, each of these stages is considered as a time of formation and experimentation. To be admitted to them, one had to submit to "tests," particularly with regard to morals and life-style.

The Qumran documents complete the description given by Flavius Josephus. ¹³ They specify that the passage from the postulancy to the novitiate was subject to the approval of the entire community. Each of the two years of the novitiate ended with an examination of the candidate, the passage to the superior degree depending on the opinion of the members who were charged with judging his aptitude.

Absolute sincerity of conversion was considered to be a sine qua non. As Tertullian and Origen would later state, the bathing with water is inefficacious when the individual refuses to live according to the law of God. And with regard to hypocrites, the rule of the Qumran community is severe: "Let such a man not enter the water to proceed to the purification of the men of Sanctity, for one is not purified if he is not converted from his evil, since he is impure among all the transgressors of His word." ¹⁴

The Admission of Proselytes
Since some elements of our Christian baptismal rite could have been affected by Jewish customs, it is useful to consider how the converted pagans were admitted to the community of the Old Covenant. ¹⁵

Baptism of proselytes, written codification of which dates from the first half of the second century, was already in force at the end of the first century. The rite mentions a very serious entrance examination during which three rabbis tried to ascertain why the pagan wanted to join the Chosen People. They tested the quality of the conversion and even tried to discourage the convert by reminding him of the persecution of the Jews throughout the world.

If in these days a man arrives to become a proselyte, he must be addressed as follows: "For what reason do you want to become a proselyte? Do you not know that Israel in this time is persecuted, oppressed, humiliated, and crushed, and that the suffering overwhelms her?" If he answers: "I know and I am not worthy," he is accepted forthwith. ¹⁶

If the candidate remains firm in his decision, he is admitted to instruction. It is only when he knew God's commandments and the punishments associated with them as well as the prospect of the world to come that he could be circumcised and baptized in the presence of two or three witnesses.

If he has accepted, he is circumcised immediately . . . As soon as he is healed, he is baptized. Then, two knowledgeable men must stay by his side and inform him of some minor and major commandments. When he emerges from the immersion, he is considered in all respects as an Israelite. ¹⁷

In this first period, the Church, which remained faithful to Jewish customs and to the Jewish community (Acts 3-15), was steeped in these rites and customs. It is not surprising that traces of them should have been left.

Some authors hesitate to admit an influence of Jewish rites on Christian rites. Still, it seems to me that there must have been such an influence, at least in Judeo-Christian milieux, both in the West and in the East. One indication of this is the appellation "proselyte of Christ " that is applied to catechumens in some texts of the second and even the third century. ¹⁸

Still more than entrance into the Old Covenant, entrance into the New Covenant is a gift of God to which one must respond in all sincerity.

This brief survey of the New Testament has shown that the primitive Church only admitted to the sacraments of initiation those in whom it observed the faith of conversion and whose manner of life it had tested throughout the period of catechesis. It did not admit anyone without preparation, without tests, without guarantees. Thus entry into Christianity was not done in a way that departed from the customs of the contemporary religious communities of Judaism even though, during the initial years, the prospect of an imminent Parousia led the first Christians to accelerate the stages.

In the New Testament, there are probably more indications of a progressive initiation than the study of the admission of proselytes and of the novitiate of the Essenes allows us to identify.

At the end of the first century, the catechumenate did not yet exist as a settled institution, but the catechumenal reality was lived. From Pentecost on, the same requirements remained in force and, to preserve the purity of the community, they were soon translated into more clearly defined pastoral practices. The fruit to be harvested can already be seen in the seeds that were being sown. Growth began and maturity would be attained in the first half of the third century.

Footnotes, Part 1

An Abiding Concern for Pastoral Authencity, the next chapter of A History of the Catechumenate, will be posted next Thursday. For information about ordering this book, please see Sadlier's Religion Catalog.

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