Creeds

A creed is a formal statement of the beliefs or guiding principles of a person, group, or organization. The term comes from the Latin credo, “I believe,” and is used widely in religious contexts as well as in secular settings to articulate core values.

In Christian contexts, creeds are concise summaries of faith used in teaching, worship, and baptism. Early Christian leaders produced creeds to settle doctrinal disputes, leading to several enduring statements. The Apostles’ Creed is a traditional summary of apostolic teaching; the Nicene Creed, established at the Council of Nicaea (325) and revised at Constantinople (381), clarifies the doctrine of the Trinity. The Athanasian Creed, though likely not written by Athanasius, is a longer, more detailed statement of Trinitarian and Christological belief. Creeds function as shared benchmarks for belief and are often recited in liturgy to express unity.

Content and distinctions: Most creeds address the nature of God, the person and work of Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit, creation, salvation, and the church. They are typically brief and propositional rather than comprehensive theology. The term creed is sometimes distinguished from confessions, which may be longer and address ethics, church order, or discipline, and from dogma, which denotes binding religious teachings regarded as authoritative.

Beyond Christianity, other traditions have analogous statements of faith, such as the shahada in Islam, or the Shema in Judaism, though these are not always labeled as creeds. In modern usage, “creed” can also refer to secular mission statements or personal guiding principles, used to articulate the values of organizations or individuals.

Historically, creeds have played a key role in defining orthodoxy and promoting unity, but they have also been sources of conflict when groups differ over doctrinal definitions. Today, creeds remain central in some traditions and are invoked in ecumenical dialogue to identify common ground while recognizing differences in interpretation and language.