The Creed

The word Creed means I believe (latin: credo).
The content of the Creed is the understanding we believe to have gained about Christianity.

In the last three centuries people have been taught the Creed by the church as something to be accepted in faith even if the mind could not grasp it.

This led to people rejecting the Creed as an invention, not important for ordinary life.

In the early church people either knew Christ or knew people who had known him.

Even those who had not known him in his life on the earth could feel his resurrected presence when the words of the gospel were read.

The possibility for this experience faded through the centuries. Thinking evolved and acquired a more scientific sense, with which to assess spiritual ideas in a freer way. It became less inclined to accept anything (except scientific dogma) on faith. For the modern person therefore, the Creed can be expressed in a way that lends itself to being thought about, rather than being accepted blindly.

It therefore no longer begins with the words, “I believe”. In the Communion Service it is read by somebody who has convinced themself of its reality and truth and so says at the end, “Yea, so it is”.

In this way listeners are given time to come to an understanding of what is being said. At the same time, God is receiving from us a declaration and confession of understanding of his being and his working.

Roger Druitt

Scroll to Top