The Nicene Creed~ Part 1

In our last post, we concluded our look at the Apostles’ Creed. In this post, we begin to examine the Nicene Creed.

Introduction

The Nicene Creed was originally the result of the Council of Nicea in 325 CE. While there are similarities between the text of the Nicene Creed and the text of the Apostles’ Creed, the Nicene Creed is more definite and explicit than the Apostles’ Creed in the statement of the divinity of the Messiah and the Ruach HaKodesh. The Nicene Creed provided the needed clarification to combat the heresies developed in the Fourth Century and is useful to combat those same heresies today that invariably reoccur in differing forms.

The Nicene Creed [1]

We believe in one God,

the Father, the Almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all that is, seen and unseen.

We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ,

the only Son of God,
eternally begotten of the Father,
God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made,
of one Being with the Father.
Through Him, all things were made.
For us and for our salvation
He came down from heaven:
by the power of the Holy Spirit
He became incarnate from the Virgin Mary,
and was made man.
For our sake, He was crucified under Pontius Pilate;
He suffered death and was buried.
On the third day He rose again
in accordance with the Scriptures;
He ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead,
and His kingdom will have no end.

We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life,

who proceeds from the Father and the Son.
With the Father and the Son, He is worshiped and glorified.
He has spoken through the Prophets.
We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church.
We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.
We look for the resurrection of the dead,
and the life of the world to come. Amen.

As you can see, the Nicene Creed follows the order of the Apostles’ Creed in affirming what we believe in God the Father Almighty, in God the Son, and in God the Ruach HaKodesh.

In my next post, we dig a little deeper into the background of the Nicene Creed.

Click here for the PDF version.

[1] As stated in my previous post, I am using the version that appears in the Book of Common Prayer, 1979 of the Episcopal Church.