In our Creed we say,
“I believe in God, the Father almighty…”
and “I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ,
the Only Begotten Son of God…”
and “I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the Lord, the giver of life.”
Notice that we do not say,
“I believe that God is the Father almighty…”
or “I believe that the one Lord Jesus Christ,
is the Only Begotten Son of God…”
or “I believe that the Holy Spirit
is the Lord, the giver of life.”
In the Creed we profess at Mass
we do not simply state the content of our belief—
what we hold to be the case about God—
but we make an act of personal commitment.
It is about believing in
as much, if not more,
than it is about believing that.
and “I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ,
the Only Begotten Son of God…”
and “I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the Lord, the giver of life.”
Notice that we do not say,
“I believe that God is the Father almighty…”
or “I believe that the one Lord Jesus Christ,
is the Only Begotten Son of God…”
or “I believe that the Holy Spirit
is the Lord, the giver of life.”
In the Creed we profess at Mass
we do not simply state the content of our belief—
what we hold to be the case about God—
but we make an act of personal commitment.
It is about believing in
as much, if not more,
than it is about believing that.
Of course, the Creed does state
what it is that we believe
about the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
In particular, it states that we believe
that the Son, and by implication the Holy Spirit,
are “consubstantial with the Father”—
that is to say, the Son and the Holy Spirit,
while being distinct from each other
and from the Father,
are just as much God as the Father is,
and everything that is true of the Father as God—
eternity, omnipotence, omnipresence, and so forth—
is true of the Son and the Spirit as well.
We most definitely believe that this is the case,
and this is what we call the doctrine of the Trinity.
what it is that we believe
about the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
In particular, it states that we believe
that the Son, and by implication the Holy Spirit,
are “consubstantial with the Father”—
that is to say, the Son and the Holy Spirit,
while being distinct from each other
and from the Father,
are just as much God as the Father is,
and everything that is true of the Father as God—
eternity, omnipotence, omnipresence, and so forth—
is true of the Son and the Spirit as well.
We most definitely believe that this is the case,
and this is what we call the doctrine of the Trinity.
But saying the Creed,
like the rest of our lives as Christians,
is not ultimately a matter of
accepting facts about God.
To say the Creed is not
to recite the answer to a puzzle
but rather it is to let ourselves be drawn
into the mystery that is
at the very heart of existence,
the mystery that we call “God.”
like the rest of our lives as Christians,
is not ultimately a matter of
accepting facts about God.
To say the Creed is not
to recite the answer to a puzzle
but rather it is to let ourselves be drawn
into the mystery that is
at the very heart of existence,
the mystery that we call “God.”
Saint Augustine distinguished three different ways
we might speak about believing (Tractates on John, 29).
First, there is what he calls in Latin credere Deum,
that is, affirming that there is a God
in the way that we might affirm
that there is grass on the ground
or clouds in the sky.
We assent to the fact of God’s existence,
though, of course, even the devil does that.
Second, there is what he calls credere Deo—
a change of a mere two letters—
and this is to “believe God,”
that is, to accept something
because God has revealed it.
Finally, there is credere in Deum,
that is, to believe in God.
This is not simply to affirm
that there is a God,
or to affirm what God has revealed,
but is to make God the object of our love
and the goal of our living.
This is to promise ourselves to God:
to ask God to be our God
and to commit ourselves to be God’s people.
And this is what we do when we say the Creed.
St. Thomas Aquinas says that faith
weds the soul to God (Exp. in Symb. Apost. a. 1),
so we might think of saying the Creed
as something like speaking wedding vows.
When a couple marries, the vows they make
involve both a belief that and a belief in.
I vow myself to you because I believe
that you are a good person, a loving person,
an honest and steadfast person.
But more than that, my vows are the sign
that I believe in you:
I profess my faith that you will be good to me,
and I will be good to you;
that you will be loving to me,
and I will be loving to you;
that you will be honest and steadfast to me
and I will be honest and steadfast to you.
In believing in you, I join my life to yours,
I join my fate to yours,
I say, wherever you go, I will go,
until the day I die.
In making this vow,
I come to dwell in our shared love.
And when we say the Creed,
we certainly say that God is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
But more than that, we entrust ourselves,
when the world seems empty of meaning,
to the God who made all things good,
who plays upon the surface of his earth
and finds delight in the human race.
We entrust ourselves, when we have sinned,
to the God who has made peace with us
through Jesus Christ
and in whose grace we stand.
We entrust ourselves, when the future is uncertain,
to the God who has promised to us the Spirit of truth,
who will guide us into all truth.
we might speak about believing (Tractates on John, 29).
First, there is what he calls in Latin credere Deum,
that is, affirming that there is a God
in the way that we might affirm
that there is grass on the ground
or clouds in the sky.
We assent to the fact of God’s existence,
though, of course, even the devil does that.
Second, there is what he calls credere Deo—
a change of a mere two letters—
and this is to “believe God,”
that is, to accept something
because God has revealed it.
Finally, there is credere in Deum,
that is, to believe in God.
This is not simply to affirm
that there is a God,
or to affirm what God has revealed,
but is to make God the object of our love
and the goal of our living.
This is to promise ourselves to God:
to ask God to be our God
and to commit ourselves to be God’s people.
And this is what we do when we say the Creed.
St. Thomas Aquinas says that faith
weds the soul to God (Exp. in Symb. Apost. a. 1),
so we might think of saying the Creed
as something like speaking wedding vows.
When a couple marries, the vows they make
involve both a belief that and a belief in.
I vow myself to you because I believe
that you are a good person, a loving person,
an honest and steadfast person.
But more than that, my vows are the sign
that I believe in you:
I profess my faith that you will be good to me,
and I will be good to you;
that you will be loving to me,
and I will be loving to you;
that you will be honest and steadfast to me
and I will be honest and steadfast to you.
In believing in you, I join my life to yours,
I join my fate to yours,
I say, wherever you go, I will go,
until the day I die.
In making this vow,
I come to dwell in our shared love.
And when we say the Creed,
we certainly say that God is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
But more than that, we entrust ourselves,
when the world seems empty of meaning,
to the God who made all things good,
who plays upon the surface of his earth
and finds delight in the human race.
We entrust ourselves, when we have sinned,
to the God who has made peace with us
through Jesus Christ
and in whose grace we stand.
We entrust ourselves, when the future is uncertain,
to the God who has promised to us the Spirit of truth,
who will guide us into all truth.
And in so entrusting ourselves,
our soul comes to dwell in the eternal mystery of love,
the love that existed before the world was made:
“when there were no depths…
when there were no fountains
or springs of water;
before the mountains
were settled into place,
before the hills.”
To believe, not simply that there is a God,
but to believe in God,
is to dwell in the mystery of timeless love
that we call the Trinity,
not because of anything that we do,
but because God
has taken delight in the human race,
because God has made peace with us
through Jesus Christ,
“because the love of God
has been poured out into our hearts
through the Holy Spirit
that has been given to us.”
our soul comes to dwell in the eternal mystery of love,
the love that existed before the world was made:
“when there were no depths…
when there were no fountains
or springs of water;
before the mountains
were settled into place,
before the hills.”
To believe, not simply that there is a God,
but to believe in God,
is to dwell in the mystery of timeless love
that we call the Trinity,
not because of anything that we do,
but because God
has taken delight in the human race,
because God has made peace with us
through Jesus Christ,
“because the love of God
has been poured out into our hearts
through the Holy Spirit
that has been given to us.”
I believe in one God:
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
the mystery of love
to whom our soul is wed in faith.
May this merciful God
have mercy on us all.
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
the mystery of love
to whom our soul is wed in faith.
May this merciful God
have mercy on us all.
