Do we need creeds?

88% of human beings believe in ‘god.’ Jews believe that “the LORD is one.” Muslims believe that “there is no God but Allah.” The Bible says “You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.” (James 2:19)

So what do Christians believe? Do all Christians believe the same thing? Does it really matter or are there more important things to worry about?

A statement of the shared beliefs of a religious community is called a ‘Creed,’ from the Latin word ‘credo’ which means ‘I believe.’ These words are connected with ideas of trust (credit), love, value and where we put our heart.

The most widely used creeds in Christianity, the Apostles’ and the Nicene, were not formalised until the 4th century AD. The split in the Church between Catholic (meaning ‘universal’) and Orthodox (meaning ‘correct’) in 11th century was – at least officially – over a single word in the creed.

So how important are creeds? Are they unifying or divisive? Are they the same as dogma, doctrine or opinion?

This is the subject and these are some of the questions that Tim Nash will be encouraging us to explore at this week’s CHOW, 1-2pm tomorrow in Church House. Do come and join us!

Teaser before leading CHOW session tomorrow for Business Connect.