SECTION TWO
I. THE CREEDS
185 Whoever says "I believe" says "I pledge myself to what we believe." Communion in
faith needs a common language of faith, normative for all and uniting all in the same
confession of faith.
186 From the beginning, the apostolic Church expressed and handed on her faith in
brief formulae normative for all.[1] But already very early on, the Church also wanted to
gather the essential elements of her faith into organic and articulated summaries,
intended especially for candidates for Baptism:
This synthesis of faith was not made to accord with human opinions, but rather what
was of the greatest importance was gathered from all the Scriptures, to present the one
teaching of the faith in its entirety. And just as the mustard seed contains a great number
of branches in a tiny grain, so too this summary of faith encompassed in a few words the
whole knowledge of the true religion contained in the Old and the New Testaments.[2]
187 Such syntheses are called "professions of faith" since they summarize the faith that
Christians profess. They are called "creeds" on account of what is usually their first word
in Latin: credo ("I believe"). They are also called "symbols of faith".
188 The Greek word symbolon meant half of a broken object, for example, a seal
presented as a token of recognition. The broken parts were placed together to verify the
bearer's identity. The symbol of faith, then, is a sign of recognition and communion
between believers. Symbolon also means a gathering, collection or summary. A symbol
of faith is a summary of the principal truths of the faith and therefore serves as the first
and fundamental point of reference for catechesis.
189 The first "profession of faith" is made during Baptism. The symbol of faith is first
and foremost the baptismal creed. Since Baptism is given "in the name of the Father and
of the Son and of the Holy Spirit",[3] the truths of faith professed during Baptism are
articulated in terms of their reference to the three persons of the Holy Trinity.
190 And so the Creed is divided into three parts: "the first part speaks of the first divine
Person and the wonderful work of creation; the next speaks of the second divine Person
and the mystery of his redemption of men; the final part speaks of the third divine
Person, the origin and source of our sanctification."[4] These are "the three chapters of
our [baptismal] seal".[5]
191 "These three parts are distinct although connected with one another. According to a
comparison often used by the Fathers, we call them articles. Indeed, just as in our bodily
members there are certain articulations which distinguish and separate them, so too in
this profession of faith, the name "articles" has justly and rightly been given to the truths
we must believe particularly and distinctly."[6] In accordance with an ancient tradition,
already attested to by St. Ambrose, it is also customary to reckon the articles of the
Creed as twelve, thus symbolizing the fullness of the apostolic faith by the number of
the apostles.[7]
192 Through the centuries many professions or symbols of faith have been articulated in
response to the needs of the different eras: the creeds of the different apostolic and
ancient Churches,[8] e.g., the Quicumque, also called the Athanasian Creed;[9] the
professions of faith of certain Councils, such as Toledo, Lateran, Lyons, Trent;[10] or
the symbols of certain popes, e.g., the Fides Damasi[11] or the Credo of the People of
God of Paul VI.[12]
193 None of the creeds from the different stages in the Church's life can be considered
superseded or irrelevant. They help us today to attain and deepen the faith of all times by
means of the different summaries made of it.
Among all the creeds, two occupy a special place in the Church's life:
194 The Apostles' Creed is so called because it is rightly considered to be a faithful
summary of the apostles' faith. It is the ancient baptismal symbol of the Church of
Rome. Its great authority arises from this fact: it is "the Creed of the Roman Church, the
See of Peter the first of the apostles, to which he brought the common faith".[13]
195 The Niceno-Constantinopolitan or Nicene Creed draws its great authority from the
fact that it stems from the first two ecumenical Councils (in 325 and 381). It remains
common to all the great Churches of both East and West to this day.
196 Our presentation of the faith will follow the Apostles' Creed, which constitutes, as it
were, "the oldest Roman catechism". The presentation will be completed however by
constant references to the Nicene Creed, which is often more explicit and more detailed.
197 As on the day of our Baptism, when our whole life was entrusted to the "standard of
teaching",[14] let us embrace the Creed of our life-giving faith. To say the Credo with
faith is to enter into communion with God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and also with
the whole Church which transmits the faith to us and in whose midst we believe:
This Creed is the spiritual seal, our heart's meditation and an ever-present guardian; it is,
unquestionably, the treasure of our soul.[15]
ENDNOTES
1 Cf. Rom 10:9; I Cor 15:3-5, etc.
2 St. Cyril of Jerusalem, Catech. illum. 5, 12: PG 33, 521-524.
3 Mt 28:19.
4 Roman Catechism I, 1, 3.
5 St. Irenaeus, Dem. ap. 100: SCh 62, 170.
6 Roman Catechism I, I, 4.
7 Cf. St. Ambrose, Expl. symb. 8: PL 17, 1196.
8 Cf. DS 1-64.
9 Cf. DS 75-76.
10 Cf. DS 525-541; 800-802; 851-861; 1862-1870.
11 Cf. DS 71-72.
12 Paul VI, CPG (1968).
13 St. Ambrose, Expl. symb. 7: PL 17, 1196.
14 Rom 6:17.
15 St. Ambrose, Expl. symb. I: PL 17, 1193.
CHAPTER ONE - I BELIEVE IN GOD THE
FATHER
198 Our profession of faith begins with God, for God is the First and the Last,[1] the
beginning and the end of everything. The Credo begins with God the Father, for the
Father is the first divine person of the Most Holy Trinity; our Creed begins with the
creation of heaven and earth, for creation is the beginning and the foundation of all
God's works.
ARTICLE I
"I BELIEVE IN GOD THE FATHER
ALMIGHTY, CREATOR OF HEAVEN
AND EARTH"
Paragraph I. I Believe in God
199 "I believe in God": this first affirmation of the Apostles' Creed is also the most
fundamental. The whole Creed speaks of God, and when it also speaks of man and of
the world it does so in relation to God. The other articles of the Creed all depend on the
first, just as the remaining Commandments make the first explicit. The other articles
help us to know God better as he revealed himself progressively to men. "The faithful
first profess their belief in God."[2]
I. "I BELIEVE IN ONE GOD"
200 These are the words with which the Niceno- Constantinopolitan Creed begins. The
confession of God's oneness, which has its roots in the divine revelation of the Old
Covenant, is inseparable from the profession of God's existence and is equally
fundamental. God is unique; there is only one God: "The Christian faith confesses that
God is one in nature, substance and essence."[3]
201 To Israel, his chosen, God revealed himself as the only One: "Hear, O Israel: The
LORD our God is one LORD; and you shall love the LORD your God with all your
heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might."[4] Through the prophets, God
calls Israel and all nations to turn to him, the one and only God: "Turn to me and be
saved, all the ends of the earth! For I am God, and there is no other.. . To me every knee
shall bow, every tongue shall swear. 'Only in the LORD, it shall be said of me, are
righteousness and strength.'"[5]
202 Jesus himself affirms that God is "the one Lord" whom you must love "with all your
heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength".[6] At
the same time Jesus gives us to understand that he himself is "the Lord".[7] To confess
that Jesus is Lord is distinctive of Christian faith. This is not contrary to belief in the
One God. Nor does believing in the Holy Spirit as "Lord and giver of life" introduce any
division into the One God:
We firmly believe and confess without reservation that there is only one true God,
eternal infinite (immensus) and unchangeable, incomprehensible, almighty and ineffable,
the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit; three persons indeed, but one essence,
substance or nature entirely simple.
II. GOD REVEALS HIS NAME
203 God revealed himself to his people Israel by making his name known to them. A
name expresses a person's essence and identity and the meaning of this person's life.
God has a name; he is not an anonymous force. To disclose one's name is to make
oneself known to others; in a way it is to hand oneself over by becoming accessible,
capable of being known more intimately and addressed personally.
204 God revealed himself progressively and under different names to his people, but the
revelation that proved to be the fundamental one for both the Old and the New
Covenants was the revelation of the divine name to Moses in the theophany of the
burning bush, on the threshold of the Exodus and of the covenant on Sinai.
The living God
205 God calls Moses from the midst of a bush that bums without being consumed: "I
am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of
Jacob."[9] God is the God of the fathers, the One who had called and guided the
patriarchs in their wanderings. He is the faithful and compassionate God who
remembers them and his promises; he comes to free their descendants from slavery. He
is the God who, from beyond space and time, can do this and wills to do it, the God
who will put his almighty power to work for this plan.
"I Am who I Am" Moses said to God, "If I come to the people of Israel and say to
them, 'The God of your fathers has sent me to you', and they ask me, 'What is his name?'
what shall I say to them?" God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM." And he said, "Say
this to the people of Israel, 'I AM has sent me to you'. . . this is my name for ever, and
thus I am to be remembered throughout all generations."[10]
206 In revealing his mysterious name, YHWH ("I AM HE WHO IS", "I AM WHO
AM" or "I AM WHO I AM"), God says who he is and by what name he is to be called.
This divine name is mysterious just as God is mystery. It is at once a name revealed and
something like the refusal of a name, and hence it better expresses God as what he is -
infinitely above everything that we can understand or say: he is the "hidden God", his
name is ineffable, and he is the God who makes himself close to men.[11]
207 By revealing his name God at the same time reveals his faithfulness which is from
everlasting to everlasting, valid for the past ("I am the God of your father"), as for the
future ("I will be with you").[12] God, who reveals his name as "I AM", reveals himself
as the God who is always there, present to his people in order to save them.
208 Faced with God's fascinating and mysterious presence, man discovers his own
insignificance. Before the burning bush, Moses takes off his sandals and veils his face in
the presence of God's holiness.[13] Before the glory of the thrice-holy God, Isaiah cries
out: "Woe is me! I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips."[14] Before the divine signs
wrought by Jesus, Peter exclaims: "Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord."[15]
But because God is holy, he can forgive the man who realizes that he is a sinner before
him: "I will not execute my fierce anger. . . for I am God and not man, the Holy One in
your midst."[16] The apostle John says likewise: "We shall. . . reassure our hearts before
him whenever our hearts condemn us; for God is greater than our hearts, and he knows
everything."[17]
209 Out of respect for the holiness of God, the people of Israel do not pronounce his
name. In the reading of Sacred Scripture, the revealed name (YHWH) is replaced by the
divine title "LORD" (in Hebrew Adonai, in Greek Kyrios). It is under this title that the
divinity of Jesus will be acclaimed: "Jesus is LORD." "A God merciful and gracious"
210 After Israel's sin, when the people had turned away from God to worship the golden
calf, God hears Moses' prayer of intercession and agrees to walk in the midst of an
unfaithful people, thus demonstrating his love.[18] When Moses asks to see his glory,
God responds "I will make all my goodness pass before you, and will proclaim before
you my name "the LORD" [YHWH]."[19] Then the LORD passes before Moses and
proclaims, "YHWH,
YHWH, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love
and faithfulness"; Moses then confesses that the LORD is a forgiving God.[20]
211 The divine name, "I Am" or "He Is", expresses God's faithfulness: despite the
faithlessness of men's sin and the punishment it deserves, he keeps "steadfast love for
thousands".[21] By going so far as to give up his own Son for us, God reveals that he is
"rich in mercy".[22] By giving his life to free us from sin, Jesus reveals that he himself
bears the divine name: "When you have lifted up the Son of man, then you will realize
that "I AM"."[23]
God alone IS
212 Over the centuries, Israel's faith was able to manifest and deepen realization of the
riches contained in the revelation of the divine name. God is unique; there are no other
gods besides him.[24]
He transcends the world and history. He made heaven and earth: "They will perish, but
you endure; they will all wear out like a garment....but you are the same, and your years
have no end."[25]
In God "there is no variation or shadow due to change."[26] God is "HE WHO IS",
from everlasting to everlasting, and as such remains ever faithful to himself and to his
promises.
213 The revelation of the ineffable name "I AM WHO AM" contains then the truth that
God alone IS. The Greek Septuagint translation of the Hebrew Scriptures, and following
it the Church's Tradition, understood the divine name in this sense: God is the fullness
of Being and of every perfection, without origin and without end. All creatures receive
all that they are and have from him; but he alone is his very being, and he is of himself
everything that he is.
III. GOD, "HE WHO IS", IS TRUTH AND LOVE
214 God, "HE WHO IS", revealed himself to Israel as the one "abounding in steadfast
love and faithfulness".[27] These two terms express summarily the riches of the divine
name. In all his works God displays, not only his kindness, goodness, grace and steadfast
love, but also his trustworthiness, constancy, faithfulness and truth. "I give thanks to
your name for your steadfast love and your faithfulness."[28] He is the Truth, for "God
is light and in him there is no darkness"; "God is love", as the apostle John teaches.[29]
God is Truth
215 "The sum of your word is truth; and every one of your righteous ordinances endures
forever."[30] "And now, O LORD God, you are God, and your words are true";[31] this
is why God's promises always come true.[32] God is Truth itself, whose words cannot
deceive. This is why one can abandon oneself in full trust to the truth and faithfulness of
his word in all things. The beginning of sin and of man's fall was due to a lie of the
tempter who induced doubt of God's word, kindness and faithfulness.
216 God's truth is his wisdom, which commands the whole created order and governs
the world.[33] God, who alone made heaven and earth, can alone impart true knowledge
of every created thing in relation to himself.[34]
217 God is also truthful when he reveals himself - the teaching that comes from God is
"true instruction".[35] When he sends his Son into the world it will be "to bear witness
to the truth":[36] "We know that the Son of God has come and has given us
understanding, to know him who is true."[37]
God is Love
218 In the course of its history, Israel was able to discover that God had only one reason
to reveal himself to them, a single motive for choosing them from among all peoples as
his special possession: his sheer gratuitous love.[38] And thanks to the prophets Israel
understood that it was again out of love that God never stopped saving them and
pardoning their unfaithfulness and sins.[39]
219 God's love for Israel is compared to a father's love for his son. His love for his
people is stronger than a mother's for her children. God loves his people more than a
bridegroom his beloved; his love will be victorious over even the worst infidelities and
will extend to his most precious gift: "God so loved the world that he gave his only
Son."[40]
220 God's love is "everlasting":[41] "For the mountains may depart and the hills be
removed, but my steadfast love shall not depart from you."[42] Through Jeremiah, God
declares to his people, "I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore I have
continued my faithfulness to you."[43]
221 But St. John goes even further when he affirms that "God is love":[44] God's very
being is love. By sending his only Son and the Spirit of Love in the fullness of time, God
has revealed his innermost secret:[45] God himself is an eternal exchange of love,
Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and he has destined us to share in that exchange.
IV. THE IMPLICATIONS OF FAITH IN ONE
GOD
222 Believing in God, the only One, and loving him with all our being has enormous
consequences for our whole life.
223 It means coming to know God's greatness and majesty: "Behold, God is great, and
we know him not."[46] Therefore, we must "serve God first".[47]
224 It means living in thanksgiving: if God is the only One, everything we are and have
comes from him: "What have you that you did not receive?"[48] "What shall I render to
the LORD for all his bounty to me?"[49]
225 It means knowing the unity and true dignity of all men: everyone is made in the
image and likeness of God.[50]
226 It means making good use of created things: faith in God, the only One, leads us to
use everything that is not God only insofar as it brings us closer to him, and to detach
ourselves from it insofar as it turns us away from him:
My Lord and my God, take from me everything that distances me from you.
My Lord and my God, give me everything that brings me closer to you
My Lord and my God, detach me from myself to give my all to you.[51]
227 It means trusting God in every circumstance, even in adversity. A prayer of St.
Teresa of Jesus wonderfully expresses this trust:
Let nothing trouble you / Let nothing frighten you Everything passes / God never
changes Patience / Obtains all Whoever has God / Wants for nothing God alone is
enough.[52]
IN BRIEF
228 "Hear, O Israel, the LORD our God is one LORD..." (Dt 6:4; Mk 12:29). "The
supreme being must be unique, without equal. . . If God is not one, he is not God"
(Tertullian, Adv. Marc., 1, 3, 5: PL 2, 274).
229 Faith in God leads us to turn to him alone as our first origin and our ultimate goal,
and neither to prefer anything to him nor to substitute anything for him.
230 Even when he reveals himself, God remains a mystery beyond words: "If you
understood him, it would not be God" (St. Augustine, Sermo 52, 6, 16: PL 38, 360 and
Sermo 117, 3, 5: PL 38, 663).
231 The God of our faith has revealed himself as HE WHO IS; and he has made himself
known as "abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness" (Ex 34:6). God's very being is
Truth and Love.
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