The Nicean Creed is 1700 Year’s Old this Year…and it still matters!
A historic moment for the church took place 1,700 years ago this year when, at the First Council of Nicaea in AD 325, the Nicene Creed was originally formulated and later expanded at the First Council of Constantinople in AD 381. It is one of the most important and foundational creeds in Christianity, used by many denominations as a declaration of faith.
It was called by Emperor Constantine the Great to address divisions within the Church, particularly over the nature of Christ’s divinity. The council is one of the most significant events in Church history because it established foundational Christian doctrines and set a precedent for resolving theological disputes through ecumenical councils.
Councils were first established by the Apostles, as recorded in Acts 15. These gatherings of church leaders (bishops, theologians, and sometimes laypeople) were convened to address doctrinal, disciplinary, or administrative issues within Christianity.
The Nicene Creed was developed to address and combat heresies, particularly Arianism, which denied the full divinity of Jesus Christ and asserted that Jesus was created by God. “It was proposed early in the 4th century by the Alexandrian presbyter Arius and was popular throughout much of the Eastern and Western Roman empires, even after it was denounced as a heresy by the Council of Nicaea (325).”
The Nicene Creed affirmed the doctrine of the Trinity, the belief that God exists as three persons—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—in one divine essence.
The Nicene Creed (Modern English Version)
We believe in one God,
the Father Almighty,
Maker of heaven and earth,
and of all things visible and invisible.
And in one Lord Jesus Christ,
the only-begotten Son of God,
begotten of the Father before all worlds,
Light of Light, very God of very God,
begotten, not made,
being of one substance with the Father,
by whom all things were made;
who, for us men and for our salvation,
came down from heaven,
and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary,
and was made man;
and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate;
He suffered and was buried,
and the third day He rose again,
according to the Scriptures;
and ascended into heaven,
and sits at the right hand of the Father;
and He shall come again, with glory,
to judge the living and the dead;
whose kingdom shall have no end.
And we believe in the Holy Spirit,
the Lord and Giver of Life,
who proceeds from the Father [and the Son];
who with the Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorified;
who spoke by the prophets.
And we believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church.
We acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins.
And we look for the resurrection of the dead,
and the life of the world to come. Amen.
Written By Paul Romano New Life Faith News
