ABSTRACT
In 1654 the States of Holland sent a remarkable letter to the provincial synod and each of the classes of Holland. In this letter they notified the ministers in their jurisdiction of their earnest wish that in every church on Sunday afternoons, after the sermon, ministers would catechise their congregations. Although in most cities this was already the case, rural areas were lagging. All ministers, in the cities as well as in rural villages, should show greater zeal and industriousness in teaching the tenets of the pure religion not only from the pulpit, but also in private homes, for groups or individuals, to everyone who was willing to listen, including ‘simple’ – probably to be understood as: amenable – Catholics. Rather than rely on the effectiveness of government policy, expressed in stern plakkaten, Reformed ministers should direct all and sundry upon the road to salvation. The letter ended with the pious expectation that God would certainly bless this endeavour. 1
