The Nicene Creed
I believe in one God,
the Father almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all things visible and invisible.
the Father almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all things visible and invisible.
I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ,
the Only Begotten Son of God,
born of the Father before all ages.
God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made, consubstantial with the Father;
through him all things were made.
For us men and for our salvation
he came down from heaven,
and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary,
and became man.
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate,
he suffered death and was buried,
and rose again on the third day
in accordance with the Scriptures.
He ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory
to judge the living and the dead
and his kingdom will have no end.
the Only Begotten Son of God,
born of the Father before all ages.
God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made, consubstantial with the Father;
through him all things were made.
For us men and for our salvation
he came down from heaven,
and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary,
and became man.
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate,
he suffered death and was buried,
and rose again on the third day
in accordance with the Scriptures.
He ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory
to judge the living and the dead
and his kingdom will have no end.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father and the Son,
who with the Father and the Son is adored and glorified,
who has spoken through the prophets.
who proceeds from the Father and the Son,
who with the Father and the Son is adored and glorified,
who has spoken through the prophets.
I believe in one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church.
I confess one Baptism for the forgiveness of sins
and I look forward to the resurrection of the dead
and the life of the world to come. Amen.
I confess one Baptism for the forgiveness of sins
and I look forward to the resurrection of the dead
and the life of the world to come. Amen.
My Improved Version: The Nicene-Coughlin Creed
We believe in one God,[Let's follow the Jewish ideal of communal prayer--"we believe . . ."]
the Father almighty, [Not also the "Mother"?]
maker and sustainer of heaven and earth, ["Sustainer" has ecological implications! God makes, and cares for and about the earth]
of all things visible and invisible.["Seen and unseen" would make me and Walt Whitman happier.]
the Father almighty, [Not also the "Mother"?]
maker and sustainer of heaven and earth, ["Sustainer" has ecological implications! God makes, and cares for and about the earth]
of all things visible and invisible.["Seen and unseen" would make me and Walt Whitman happier.]
We believe in one Lord Jesus Christ,
the Only Begotten Son of God, [any better ideas for "begotten"?]
born of the Father before all ages.
God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten,[that strange word again!] not made, one in substance with the Father; ["Consubstantial" is not an English word. Any better ideas?]
through him all things were made.
For us [delete "men"; absolutely unneeded, and an insult!] and for our salvation
he came down from heaven,
and by the Holy Spirit was born of the Virgin Mary, ["incarnate" is ridiculously uncommon and does nothing but obfuscate]
and became human. [Do I have to justify that???]
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate,
he suffered death and was buried,
and rose again on the third day
in accordance with the Scriptures.
He ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory
to judge the living and the dead
and his kingdom will have no end.
the Only Begotten Son of God, [any better ideas for "begotten"?]
born of the Father before all ages.
God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten,[that strange word again!] not made, one in substance with the Father; ["Consubstantial" is not an English word. Any better ideas?]
through him all things were made.
For us [delete "men"; absolutely unneeded, and an insult!] and for our salvation
he came down from heaven,
and by the Holy Spirit was born of the Virgin Mary, ["incarnate" is ridiculously uncommon and does nothing but obfuscate]
and became human. [Do I have to justify that???]
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate,
he suffered death and was buried,
and rose again on the third day
in accordance with the Scriptures.
He ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory
to judge the living and the dead
and his kingdom will have no end.
We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father and the Son,
who with the Father and the Son is adored and glorified,
who has spoken through the prophets.
who proceeds from the Father and the Son,
who with the Father and the Son is adored and glorified,
who has spoken through the prophets.
We believe in one, holy, catholic,[insert a comma here; all American grammars call for a comma in this location] and apostolic Church.
We confess one Baptism for the forgiveness of sins [I'll accept "confess," but the meaning intended here is not widely known]
and [delete "I" here] look forward to the resurrection of the dead
and the life of the world to come. Amen.
We confess one Baptism for the forgiveness of sins [I'll accept "confess," but the meaning intended here is not widely known]
and [delete "I" here] look forward to the resurrection of the dead
and the life of the world to come. Amen.
Finally, I would include some lines in this new creed that would acknowledge Jesus's commitment to the poor and to the Works of Mercy and the Sermon on the Mount. How could the central focus of his life be left out of our creed? I'll think about these lines and include them eventually. Thanks to Mike Rivage-Seul for this idea.
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