Creeds

Creeds (Lat. credo, I believe), formal confessions of the chief articles of the Christian faith, perhaps alluded to in 2 Timothy i. 13, and elsewhere in St. Paul's Epistles. Whether they are traceable in the Apostolic age or not, forms of Apostolic doctrine which have some resemblance to them are found in Irenaeus, Origen, and Tertullian. The Apostles' Creed (q.v.) is given by Rufinus of Aquileia (390 A.D.) in two forms, one in use at Aquileia, the other at Rome. Its present form dates back to the eighth century. The Nicene Creed (q.v.) was put forth by the General Council of Nicena in 325 A.D., and supplemented by a Council of Constantinople, A.D. 381, in a manner not recognised by the Western Church. The Athanasian Creed (q.v.) was probably composed early in the fourth century A.D. Primarily the creeds were repeated by catechumens at their baptism, but not used otherwise in public worship. The Nicene Creed was introduced into the daily offices of the Greek Church about 450 A.D., into those of the Western Church in 589 A.D. Turning to the east at the creed is probably connected with the idea of the east as the source of light and place of the sunrise.