The firstborn was John Luther. The next was a daughter, Elizabeth; but Elizabeth died when she was just eight months old, and Luther wrote in a letter, "My little daughter Elizabeth is taken from me, and hath left me with a bleeding and almost womanly heart, so sad am I on her account. I never thought the heart of a father was so tender towards his children. Pray the Lord for me." A third child, Magdalene, also died young. After Magdalene came Martin, then Paul, and finally Margaret. It was for his children that Luther wrote the Small Catechism - a book showing the basics of Lutheran beliefs.