Creed

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Protestant confessions of faith
)
Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed of 381

A creed, also known as a confession of faith, a symbol, or a statement of faith, is a statement of the shared beliefs

of a community (often a religious community) in a form which is structured by subjects which summarize its core tenets.

History

The earliest known creed in Christianity, "Jesus is Lord", originated in the writings of Paul the Apostle.[1] One of the most significant and widely used Christian creeds is the Nicene Creed, first formulated in AD 325 at the First Council of Nicaea[2] to affirm the deity of Christ and revised at the First Council of Constantinople in AD 381 to affirm the trinity as a whole.[3] The creed was further affirmed in 431 by the Chalcedonian Definition, which clarified the doctrine of Christ.[3] Affirmation of this creed, which describes the Trinity, is often taken as a fundamental test of orthodoxy by many Christian denominations, and was historically purposed against Arianism.[4] The Apostles Creed, another early creed which concisely details the trinity, virgin birth, crucifixion, and resurrection, is most popular within western Christianity, and is widely used in Christian church services.

Some Christian denominations do not use any of those creeds.

In

ʿaqīdah (عقيدة).[5]

Terminology

The word creed is particularly used for a concise statement which is recited as part of

Late Middle English in this sense), after Latin symbolum "creed" (as in Symbolum Apostolorum = the "Apostles' Creed", a shorter version of the traditional Nicene Creed), after Greek symbolon "token, watchword".[6]

Some longer statements of faith in the

]

The term creed is sometimes extended to comparable concepts in non-Christian theologies; thus the Islamic concept of

ʿaqīdah (literally "bond, tie") is often rendered as "creed".[who?
]

Christianity

The first confession of faith established within

Christian denominations from Protestantism and Evangelical Christianity have published confession of faith as a basis for fellowship among churches of the same denomination.[8][9]

Many

First London Baptist Confession (Revised edition, 1646):[11]

Also we confess that we now know but in part and that are ignorant of many things which we desire to and seek to know: and if any shall do us that friendly part to show us from the Word of God that we see not, we shall have cause to be thankful to God and to them.

Excommunication

Christian denominations and is intended to protect against the consequences of heretics' teachings and apostasy.[13]

Christians without creeds

Some Christian denominations do not profess a creed. This stance is often referred to as "non-creedalism".

The

Religious Society of Friends, the group known as the Quakers, was founded in the 17th century and is similarly non-creedal. They believe that such formal structures, “be they written words, steeple-houses or a clerical hierarchy,” cannot take the place of communal relationships and a shared connection with God.[17]

Similar reservations about the use of creeds can be found in the Restoration Movement and its descendants, the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), the Churches of Christ, and the Christian churches and churches of Christ. Restorationists profess "no creed but Christ".[18]

Jehovah's Witnesses contrast "memorizing or repeating creeds" with acting to "do what Jesus said".[19]

Christian creeds

Several creeds originated in Christianity.

Christian confessions of faith

Protestant denominations are usually associated with confessions of faith, which are similar to creeds but usually longer.

Controversies

In the

Swiss Reformed Churches, there was a quarrel about the Apostles' Creed in the mid-19th century. As a result, most cantonal reformed churches stopped prescribing any particular creed.[29]

In 2005, Bishop

Episcopal Bishop of Newark, has written that dogmas and creeds were merely "a stage in our development" and "part of our religious childhood." In his book, Sins of the Scripture, Spong wrote that "Jesus seemed to understand that no one can finally fit the holy God into his or her creeds or doctrines. That is idolatry."[30]

Similar concepts in other religions

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Within the

]

Islamic aqīdah

In Islamic theology, the term most closely corresponding to "creed" is

Iman (

the six articles of faith
, known as arkān al-īmān.

  1. Belief in God
  2. Belief in the Angels
  3. Belief in Divine Books
  4. Belief in the Prophets
  5. Belief in the Day of Judgement
  6. Belief in God's predestination

Jewish Shema Yisreal

Rabbi Milton Steinberg wrote that "By its nature Judaism is averse to formal creeds which of necessity limit and restrain thought"[36] and asserted in his book Basic Judaism (1947) that "Judaism has never arrived at a creed."[36] The 1976 Centenary Platform of the Central Conference of American Rabbis, an organization of Reform rabbis, agrees that "Judaism emphasizes action rather than creed as the primary expression of a religious life."[37]

Still, the opening lines of the prayer

Shema Yisrael can be read as a creedal statement of strict monotheism: "Hear O Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord is One" (Hebrew: שמע ישראל אדני אלהינו אדני אחד; transliterated Shema Yisrael Adonai Eloheinu Adonai Echad).[38][39][40]

A notable statement of

Religions without creeds

Following a debate that lasted more than twenty years, the National Conference of the American Unitarian Association passed a resolution in 1894 that established the denomination as non-creedal.[42] The Unitarians later merged with the Universalist Church of America to form the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA). Instead of a creed, the UUA abides by a set of principles, such as “a free and responsible search for truth and meaning”.[43] It cites diverse sources of inspiration, including Christianity, Judaism, Humanism, and Earth-centered traditions.[44]

See also

References

  1. .
  2. .
  3. ^ .
  4. ^ Johnson, Phillip R. "The Nicene Creed." Archived 2009-03-14 at the Wayback Machine Accessed 17 May 2009
  5. .
  6. ^ Justo L. Gonzalez, The Story of Christianity, 2nd ed., Vol. 1, p. 77.
  7. ^ Everett Ferguson, Encyclopedia of Early Christianity, Routledge, Abingdon-on-Thames, 2013, p. 418
  8. ^ J. Gordon Melton, Encyclopedia of Protestantism, Infobase Publishing, USA, 2005, p. 170
  9. ^ Walter A. Elwell, Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, Baker Academic, USA, 2001, p. 286-289
  10. ^ Walter A. Elwell, Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, Baker Academic, USA, 2001, p. 289
  11. ^ Barrington Raymond White, Pilgrim Pathways: Essays in Baptist History, Mercer University Press, USA, 1999, p. 275
  12. ^ Ronald F. Youngblood, Nelson's Illustrated Bible Dictionary: New and Enhanced Edition, Thomas Nelson Inc, USA, 2014, p. 378
  13. ^ Chad Brand, Eric Mitchell, Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary, B&H Publishing Group, USA, 2015, p. 521-522
  14. ^ Biblical Inspiration and Authority 1979 Church of the Brethren Statement
  15. ^ Swora, Mathew (24 April 2019). "Of creeds and confessions". Retrieved 11 March 2023.
  16. ^ "Creeds".
  17. ^ "Creeds and Quakers". quaker.org. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
  18. ^ Scott, Harp. "George A. Klingman". Restoration History. Buford Church of Christ. Retrieved 2015-09-19.
  19. ^ "Creeds—Any Place in True Worship?", Awake!, October 8, 1985, ©Watch Tower, page 23, "The opening words of a creed invariably are, “I believe” or, “We believe.” This expression is translated from the Latin word “credo,” from which comes the word “creed.” ...What do we learn from Jesus’ words? That it is valueless in God’s eyes for one merely to repeat what one claims to believe. ...Thus, rather than memorizing or repeating creeds, we must do what Jesus said"
  20. ^ see Wolfhart Pannenberg, Jesus—God and Man translated Lewis Wilkins and Duane Pribe (Philadelphia: Westminster, 1968) p. 90; Oscar Cullmann, The Early church: Studies in Early Christian History and Theology, ed. A. J. B. Higgins (Philadelphia: Westminster, 1966) p. 66; R. E. Brown, The Virginal Conception and Bodily Resurrection of Jesus (New York: Paulist Press, 1973) p. 81; Thomas Sheehan, First Coming: How the Kingdom of God Became Christianity (New York: Random House, 1986) pp. 110, 118; Ulrich Wilckens, Resurrection translated A. M. Stewart (Edinburgh: Saint Andrew, 1977) p. 2; Hans Grass, Ostergeschen und Osterberichte, Second Edition (Gottingen: Vandenhoeck und Ruprecht, 1962) p. 96; Grass favors the origin in Damascus.
  21. ^ Kiefer, James E. "The Nicene Creed." Archived 2009-03-14 at the Wayback Machine Accessed 17 May 2009
  22. ^ "The Belgic Confession". Reformed.org. Archived from the original on November 9, 2020. Retrieved 2013-01-23.
  23. ^ "Guido de Bres". Prca.org. 2000-04-20. Archived from the original on October 6, 2020. Retrieved 2013-01-23.
  24. ISBN 9780199274444. Retrieved November 19, 2020. {{cite book}}: |website= ignored (help
    )
  25. ^ "The Savoy Declaration 1658 – Contents". Reformed.org. Archived from the original on May 26, 2020. Retrieved 2013-01-23.
  26. ^ .
  27. ^ "Confession of Faith of the Calvinistic Methodists or Presbyterians of Wales". Archived from the original on 2018-07-06. Retrieved 2013-07-18.
  28. .
  29. ^ Rudolf Gebhard: Apostolikumsstreit in German, French and Italian in the online Historical Dictionary of Switzerland, 2011-01-27.
  30. ^ John Shelby Spong, The Sins of Scripture: Exposing the Bible's Texts of Hate to Reveal the God of Love, Harper Collins, USA, 2005, p. 227
  31. ^ a b Glasse, Cyril (2001). New Encyclopedia of Islam (Revised ed.). Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. p. 105.
  32. ^ Abu Hanifah An-Nu^man. "Al- Fiqh Al-Akbar" (PDF). aicp.org. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2009-08-16. Retrieved 14 March 2014.
  33. ^ "Al-Fiqh Al-Akbar II With Commentary by Al-Ninowy". Archived from the original on 2014-03-15. Retrieved 2017-09-08.
  34. ^ Farāhī, Majmū‘ah Tafāsīr, 2nd ed. (Faran Foundation, 1998), 347.
  35. ^ Frederick M. Denny, An Introduction to Islam, 3rd ed., p. 405
  36. ^
    ISBN 978-0-15-610698-6.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link
    )
  37. ^ "The Tenets of Reform Judaism". www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org. Retrieved 2020-11-19.
  38. ^ "Shema - Judaism 101 (JewFAQ)". www.jewfaq.org. Retrieved 2023-11-14.
  39. ^ "The Shema". www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org. Retrieved 2023-11-14.
  40. ^ "The Opening of the Shema Prayer Explained". www.brandeis.edu. Retrieved 2023-11-14.
  41. ^ "Maimonides' Principles: The Fundamentals of Jewish Faith", in The Aryeh Kaplan Anthology, Volume I, Mesorah Publications, 1994
  42. . Retrieved February 23, 2023.
  43. ^ "Principles". Unitarian Universalist Association. Retrieved February 23, 2023.
  44. ^ "Sources of Our Living Tradition". Unitarian Universalist Association. Retrieved February 23, 2023.

Further reading

External links