Nicene Creed

== History ==
[[File:Rylands Nicene Creed papyrus.jpg|thumb|The oldest extant manuscript of the Nicene Creed, dated to the 6th century]]
[[File:Nicaea icon (cropped Greek text homoousion tooi p(a)tri, Of one Being with the Father).jpg|thumb|Crucial formulation in the Greek of the creed shown in the icon above: {{transliteration|grc|homoousion tooi p(a)tri}} ('of one Being with the Father').]]
The purpose of a [[creed]] is to provide a doctrinal statement of correct belief among Christians amid controversy.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last=Lamberts |first=Jozef |title=With One Spirit: The Roman Missal and Active Participation |publisher=Liturgical Press |year=2020 |isbn=978-0-8146-6556-5 |location=Collegeville, Minnesota |pages=86 |language=ar}}</ref> The creeds of Christianity have been drawn up at times of conflict about doctrine: acceptance or rejection of a creed served to distinguish believers and heretics, particularly the adherents of [[Arianism]].<ref name=":0" /> For that reason, a creed was called in Greek a {{lang-grc|σύμβολον|symbolon|label=none}}, which originally meant half of a broken object which, when fitted to the other half, verified the bearer's identity.<ref>[https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.04.0057:entry=su/mbolon Liddell and Scott: σύμβολον] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201111230625/http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.04.0057%3Aentry%3Dsu%2Fmbolon |date=11 November 2020 }}; cf. [[split tally]]</ref> The Greek word passed through Latin {{lang|la|symbolum}} into English "symbol", which only later took on the meaning of an outward sign of something.<ref>Symbol: early 15c., "creed, summary, religious belief," from Late Latin symbolum "creed, token, mark," from Greek symbol "token, watchword, sign by which one infers; ticket, a permit, licence" (the word was applied c. 250 by Cyprian of Carthage to the Apostles' Creed, on the notion of the "mark" that distinguishes Christians from pagans), literally "that which is thrown or cast together," from assimilated form of syn- "together" (see syn-) + bole "a throwing, a casting, the stroke of a missile, bolt, beam," from bol-, nominative stem of ballein "to throw" (from PIE root *gwele- "to throw, reach"). The sense evolution in Greek is from "throwing things together" to "contrasting" to "comparing" to "token used in comparisons to determine if something is genuine." Hence, the "outward sign" of something. The meaning "something which stands for something else" was first recorded in 1590 (in "Faerie Queene"). As a written character, 1610s. ({{Cite web |url=https://www.etymonline.com/word/symbol#etymonline_v_22514 |title=Symbol |date=2023 |access-date=26 February 2023| publisher=Etymology Online |first=Douglas| last=Harper |archive-date=26 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230226213055/https://www.etymonline.com/word/symbol |url-status=live }}</ref>

The Nicene Creed was adopted to resolve the [[Arianism|Arian]] controversy, whose leader, [[Arius]], a clergyman of Alexandria, "objected to [[Pope Alexander I of Alexandria|Alexander's]] (the bishop of the time) apparent carelessness in blurring the distinction of nature between the Father and the Son by his emphasis on eternal generation".<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://online.manchester.ac.uk/bbcswebdav/pid-3688527-dt-content-rid-12460921_1/courses/I3088-RELT-10131-1151-1SE-013172/J.%20Rebecca%20Lyman.pdf |title=The Invention of 'Heresy' and 'Schism' |date=2010 |access-date=30 November 2015 |publisher=The Cambridge History of Christianity |last=Lyman |first=J. Rebecca |archive-date=22 May 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200522170537/https://online.manchester.ac.uk/bbcswebdav/pid-3688527-dt-content-rid-12460921_1/courses/I3088-RELT-10131-1151-1SE-013172/J.%20Rebecca%20Lyman.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref> Emperor [[Constantine the Great|Constantine]] called the Council at Nicaea to resolve the dispute in the church which resulted from the widespread adoption of Arius' teachings, which threatened to destabilize the entire empire. Following the formulation of the Nicene Creed, Arius' teachings were henceforth marked as [[Heresy in Christianity|heresy]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Wickham |first1=Chris |title=The Inheritance of Rome: A History of Europe from 400 to 1000 |date=2009 |publisher=Viking |location=New York |isbn=978-0-670-02098-0 |edition=1st |pages=61–62}}</ref>

The Nicene Creed of 325 explicitly affirms the Father as the "one God" and as the "Almighty," and Jesus Christ as "the Son of God", as "begotten of{{nbsp}}[...] the essence of the Father," and therefore as "consubstantial with the Father," meaning, "of the same substance"<ref>{{Cite web |title=Definition of HOMOOUSIAN |url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/homoousian |access-date=2021-09-07 |website=www.merriam-webster.com |language=en |archive-date=6 September 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210906163110/https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/homoousian |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Citation |title=homousian |url=https://www.thefreedictionary.com/homousian |work=The Free Dictionary |access-date=2021-09-07 |archive-date=6 September 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210906151832/https://www.thefreedictionary.com/homousian |url-status=live }}</ref> as the Father; "very God of very God." The Creed of 325 does mention the [[Holy Spirit in Christianity|Holy Spirit]] but not as "God" or as "consubstantial with the Father." The 381 revision of the creed at Constantinople (i.e., the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed), which is often simply referred to as the "Nicene Creed," speaks of the Holy Spirit as worshipped and glorified with the Father and the Son.<ref name="The Sources of Catholic Dogma">{{cite book |last1=Denzinger |first1=Henry |title=The Sources of Catholic Dogma |date=1957 |publisher=B. Herder Book Co |page=3 |edition=30th}}</ref>

The [[Athanasian Creed]], formulated about a century later, which was not the product of any known church council and not used in Eastern Christianity, describes in much greater detail the relationship between Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The earlier [[Apostles' Creed]], apparently formulated before the Arian controversy arose in the fourth century, does not describe the Son or the Holy Spirit as "God" or as "consubstantial with the Father."<ref name="The Sources of Catholic Dogma"/>

[[Thomas Aquinas]] stated that the phrase ''for us men, and for our salvation'' was to refute the error of [[Origen]], "who alleged that by the power of Christ's Passion even the devils were to be set free." He also stated that the phrases stating Jesus was made ''incarnate by the Holy Spirit'' was to refute the [[Manichaeism|Manicheans]] "so that we may believe that He assumed true flesh and not a phantastic body," and ''He came down from Heaven'' was to refute the error of [[Photios I of Constantinople|Photius]], "who asserted that Christ was no more than a man." Furthermore, the phrase ''and He was made man'' was to "exclude the error of [[Nestorius]], according to whose contention the Son of God ... would be said to dwell in man [rather] than to be man."<ref>{{cite book |last1=Aquinas |first1=Thomas |author-link=Thomas Aquinas |title=Light of Faith: The Compendium of Theology |date=1993 |publisher=Sophia Institute Press |pages=273–274}}</ref>

=== Original Nicene Creed of 325 ===
The original Nicene Creed was first adopted at the [[First Council of Nicaea]], which opened on 19 June 325. The text ends with [[anathema]]s against Arian propositions, preceded by the words: "We believe in the [[Holy Spirit in Christianity|Holy Spirit]]" which terminates the statements of belief.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=njdGAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA275 |title=A History of the Christian Councils: From the Original Documents, to the Close of the Council of Nicaea, A.D. 325 |last=Hefele |first=Karl Joseph von |date=1894 |publisher=T. & T. Clark |pages=275 |via=[[Google Books]] |access-date=29 May 2019 |archive-date=14 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230114000830/https://books.google.com/books?id=njdGAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA275 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |first=John H. |last=Leith |title=Creeds of the Churches: A Reader in Christian Doctrine, from the Bible to the Present |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=saFgJRjaPwcC |date=1982 |publisher=Westminster John Knox Press |isbn=978-0-8042-0526-9 |pages=28–31 |via=[[Google Books]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |first=David M. |last=Gwynn |title=Christianity in the Later Roman Empire: A Sourcebook |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UaNOBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA68 |date=2014 |publisher=[[Bloomsbury Publishing]] |isbn=978-1-4411-3735-7 |page=68 |via=[[Google Books]] |access-date=7 June 2020 |archive-date=14 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230114000830/https://books.google.com/books?id=UaNOBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA68 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.papalencyclicals.net/councils/ecum01.htm |title=First Council of Nicaea – 325 AD |date=20 May 0325 |access-date=7 June 2020 |archive-date=10 February 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210210030831/https://www.papalencyclicals.net/councils/ecum01.htm |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>Bindley, T. Herbert. ''The Oecumenical Documents of the Faith'' Methuen & Co 4th edn. 1950 revised by Green, F.W. pp.&nbsp;15, 26–27</ref>

[[Fenton John Anthony Hort|F. J. A. Hort]] and [[Adolf von Harnack]] argued that the Nicene Creed was the local creed of [[Caesarea Maritima|Caesarea]] ([[Early centers of Christianity#Caesarea|an important center of Early Christianity]])<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/creeds2.iii.i.x.html |title=Creeds of Christendom, with a History and Critical notes. Volume II. The History of Creeds |publisher=Christian Classics Ethereal Library |website=Ccel.org |access-date=10 January 2017 |archive-date=3 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200803175900/https://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/creeds2.iii.i.x.html |url-status=live }}</ref> recited in the council by [[Eusebius of Caesarea]]. Their case relied largely on a very specific interpretation of Eusebius' own account of the council's proceedings.<ref>Kelly J.N.D. ''Early Christian Creeds'' Longmans (1963) pp. 217–218</ref> More recent scholarship has not been convinced by their arguments.<ref>Williams, Rowan. ''Arius'' SCM (2nd Edn 2001) pp. 69–70</ref> The large number of secondary divergences from the text of the creed quoted by Eusebius make it unlikely that it was used as a starting point by those who drafted the conciliar creed.<ref>{{cite book |last=Kelly |first=J.N.D. |title=Early Christian Creeds |publisher=Longmans |date=1963 |pages=218ff}}</ref> Their initial text was probably a local creed from a Syro-Palestinian source into which they inserted phrases to define the Nicene theology.<ref>Kelly J.N.D. ''Early Christian Creeds'' Longmans (1963) pp. 22–30</ref> The Eusebian Creed may thus have been either a second or one of many nominations for the Nicene Creed.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Denzinger |first1=Henry |title=The Sources of Catholic Dogma |date=1957 |publisher=B. Herder Book Co |page=9 |edition=30th}}</ref>

The 1911 ''[[Catholic Encyclopedia]]'' says that, soon after the Council of Nicaea, the church composed new formulae of faith, most of them variations of the Nicene Symbol, to meet new phases of [[Arianism]], of which there were at least four before the [[Archbishopric of Sardica#Council of Sardica|Council of Sardica]] (341), at which a new form was presented and inserted in its acts, although the council did not accept it.<ref>{{Catholic |inline=1 |prescript= |first=Joseph |last=Wilhelm |wstitle=The Nicene Creed |volume=11}}</ref>

=== Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed ===
What is known as the "Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed" or the "Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed",{{efn|Both names are common. Instances of the former are in the ''Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church'' and in the ''[[Roman Missal]]'', while the latter is used consistently by the [[Faith and Order Commission]]. "Constantinopolitan Creed" can also be found, but very rarely.}} received this name because it was adopted at the [[Second Ecumenical Council]] held in Constantinople in 381 as a modification of the original Nicene Creed of 325. In that light, it also came to be very commonly known simply as the "Nicene Creed". It is the only authoritative ''[[wikt:ecumenical|ecumenical]]'' statement of the Christian faith accepted by the [[Catholic Church]] (with the addition of the [[Filioque]]), the [[Eastern Orthodox Church]], [[Oriental Orthodoxy]], the [[Church of the East]], and much of [[Protestantism]] including the [[Anglican communion]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Religion Facts, four of the five Protestant denominations studied agree with the Nicene Creed and the fifth may as well, they just don't do creeds in general |url=http://www.religionfacts.com/christianity/charts/denominations_beliefs.htm |access-date=29 October 2014 |archive-date=19 March 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150319051531/http://www.religionfacts.com/christianity/charts/denominations_beliefs.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Christianity Today reports on a study that shows most evangelicals believe the basic Nicene formulation |date=28 October 2014 |url=http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2014/october-web-only/new-poll-finds-evangelicals-favorite-heresies.html |access-date=29 October 2014 |archive-date=11 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201111220327/https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2014/october-web-only/new-poll-finds-evangelicals-favorite-heresies.html |url-status=live }}</ref> (The Apostles' and Athanasian creeds are not as widely accepted.)<ref name="Britannica">{{cite encyclopedia |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/413955/Nicene-Creed |title=Nicene Creed |access-date=16 June 2013 |archive-date=13 June 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130613192032/http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/413955/Nicene-Creed |url-status=live }}</ref>

It differs in a number of respects, both by addition and omission, from the creed adopted at the First Council of Nicaea. The most notable difference is the additional section:

{{blockquote|And [we believe] in the Holy Ghost, the Lord and Giver-of-Life, who proceedeth from the Father, who with the Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorified, who spake by the prophets.

And [we believe] in one, holy, catholic and Apostolic Church. We acknowledge one Baptism for the remission of sins, [and] we look for the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come. Amen.<ref>Schaff's [http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/npnf214.ix.iii.html ''Seven Ecumenical Councils: Second Ecumenical: The Holy Creed Which the 150 Holy Fathers Set Forth...''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201205225410/https://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/npnf214.ix.iii.html |date=5 December 2020 }}</ref>}}

Since the end of the 19th century,<ref name="Kelly1">Kelly, J.N.D. ''Early Christian Creeds'' Longmans (1960{{sup|2}}) pp. 305, 307, 322–331 respectively</ref> scholars have questioned the traditional explanation of the origin of this creed, which has been passed down in the name of the council, whose official acts have been lost over time. A local council of Constantinople in 382 and the Third Ecumenical Council ([[First Council of Ephesus|Council of Ephesus]] of 431) made no mention of it,<ref name=davis>Davis, Leo Donald S.J., ''The First Seven Ecumenical Councils'', The Liturgical Press, Collegeville, Minnesota, 1990, {{ISBN|0-8146-5616-1}}, pp. 120–122, 185</ref> with the latter affirming the 325 creed of Nicaea as a valid statement of the faith and using it to denounce [[Nestorianism]]. Though some scholarship claims that hints of the later creed's existence are discernible in some writings,<ref name="Kelly2">Kelly, J.N.D. ''Early Christian Creeds'' London, 1973</ref> no extant document gives its text or makes explicit mention of it earlier than the Fourth Ecumenical Council at Chalcedon in 451.<ref name="Kelly1" /><ref name=davis /><ref name=Chalcedon /> Many of the bishops of the 451 council themselves had never heard of it and initially greeted it skeptically, but it was then produced from the episcopal archives of Constantinople, and the council accepted it "not as supplying any omission but as an authentic interpretation of the faith of Nicaea".<ref name=davis /> In spite of the questions raised, it is considered most likely that this creed was in fact introduced at the 381 Second Ecumenical Council.<ref name="Britannica" />

On the basis of evidence both internal and external to the text, it has been argued that this creed originated not as an editing of the original Creed proposed at Nicaea in 325, but as an independent creed (probably an older baptismal creed) modified to make it more like the Nicene Creed.<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.ccel.org/s/schaff/encyc/encyc03/htm/ii.10.ii.htm| title = Philip Schaff, The New Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia of Religious Knowledge, Vol. III: article ''Constantinopolitan Creed''| access-date = 12 January 2010| archive-date = 24 February 2020| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200224171155/https://www.ccel.org/s/schaff/encyc/encyc03/htm/ii.10.ii.htm| url-status = live}}</ref> Some scholars have argued that the creed may have been presented at Chalcedon as "a precedent for drawing up new creeds and definitions to supplement the Creed of Nicaea, as a way of getting round the ban on new creeds in Canon 7 of Ephesus".<ref name=Chalcedon>[https://books.google.com/books?id=6IUaOOT1G3UC&pg=RA1-PA3 Richard Price, Michael Gaddis (editors), ''The Acts of the Council of Chalcedon'' (Liverpool University Press 2005] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230108062044/https://books.google.com/books?id=6IUaOOT1G3UC&pg=RA1-PA3 |date=8 January 2023 }} {{ISBN|978-0-85323-039-7}}), p. 3</ref> It is generally agreed that the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed is not simply an expansion of the Creed of Nicaea, and was probably based on another traditional creed independent of the one from Nicaea.<ref name="Britannica" /><ref name="Kelly1" />

The Third Ecumenical Council (Ephesus) reaffirmed the original 325 version{{efn|It was the original 325 creed, not the one that is attributed to the Second Ecumenical Council in 381, that was recited at the Council of Ephesus.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/basis/ephesus.html |title=The Third Ecumenical Council. The Council of Ephesus, p. 202 |access-date=11 January 2009 |archive-date=16 August 2000 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20000816024110/http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/basis/ephesus.html |url-status=live }}</ref>}} of the Nicene Creed and declared that "it is unlawful for any man to bring forward, or to write, or to compose a different ({{lang|grc|ἑτέραν}}) faith as a rival to that established by the holy Fathers assembled with the Holy Ghost in Nicaea" (i.e., the 325 creed). The word {{lang|grc|ἑτέραν}} is more accurately translated as used by the council to mean "different", "contradictory", rather than "another".<ref name=Ethereal>{{cite web |url=http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/npnf214.x.xvi.xi.html |title=NPNF2-14. The Seven Ecumenical Councils |publisher=Christian Classics Ethereal Library |website=Ccel.org |access-date=29 November 2006 |archive-date=21 July 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150721224314/http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/npnf214.x.xvi.xi.html |url-status=live }}</ref> This statement has been interpreted as a prohibition against changing this creed or composing others, but not all accept this interpretation.<ref name=Ethereal/> This question is connected with the controversy whether a creed proclaimed by an [[ecumenical council]] is definitive in excluding not only excisions from its text but also additions to it.{{citation needed|date=June 2022}}

In one respect, the Eastern Orthodox Church's [[textus receptus|received text]] of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed differs from the earliest text,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/creeds2.iv.i.ii.i.html|title=Creeds of Christendom, with a History and Critical notes. Volume II. The History of Creeds|publisher=Christian Classics Ethereal Library|website=Ccel.org|access-date=29 November 2006|archive-date=8 December 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061208170255/http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/creeds2.iv.i.ii.i.html|url-status=live}}</ref> which is included in the acts of the [[Council of Chalcedon]] of 451: The Eastern Orthodox Church uses the singular forms of verbs such as "I believe", in place of the plural form ("we believe") used by the council. [[Byzantine Rite]] [[Eastern Catholic Churches]] use exactly the same form of the creed, since the Catholic Church teaches that it is wrong to add "[[Filioque|and the Son]]" to the [[Greek language|Greek]] verb "{{lang|grc|ἐκπορευόμενον}}", though correct to add it to the [[Latin]] {{lang|la|"qui procedit"}}, which does not have precisely the same meaning.<ref name="Catholic Greek-Latin">{{cite web|url=http://www.ewtn.com/library/CURIA/PCCUFILQ.HTM|title=Greek and Latin Traditions on Holy Spirit|website=Ewtn.com|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181228015533/http://www.ewtn.com:80/library/CURIA/PCCUFILQ.HTM |archive-date=28 December 2018|url-status=dead}}</ref> The form generally used in Western churches does add "and the Son" and also the phrase "God from God", which is found in the original 325 Creed.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/creeds2.iv.i.ii.ii.html|title=Creeds of Christendom, with a History and Critical notes. Volume II. The History of Creeds|publisher=Christian Classics Ethereal Library|website=Ccel.org|access-date=29 November 2006|archive-date=9 December 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061209123328/http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/creeds2.iv.i.ii.ii.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

=== Comparison between creed of 325 and creed of 381 ===
The following table, which indicates by square brackets the portions of the 325 text that were omitted or moved in 381, and uses {{em|italics}} to indicate what phrases, absent in the 325 text, were added in 381, juxtaposes the earlier (AD 325) and later (AD 381) forms of this creed in the English translation given in [[Philip Schaff]]'s compilation ''The Creeds of Christendom'' (1877).<ref>{{cite book |title=The Creeds of Christendom, with a History and Critical Notes |volume=i |location=New York |publisher=Harper & Brothers |year=1877 |first=Philip |last=Schaff |pages=[https://archive.org/details/creedsofchriste01scha/page/28 28]–29 |url=https://archive.org/details/creedsofchriste01scha}}. See also [http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/creeds1.iv.iii.html Creeds of Christendom] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210827000401/https://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/creeds1.iv.iii.html |date=27 August 2021 }}.</ref>

{| class="wikitable"
|- Valign=top
! width=50% |First Council of Nicaea (325)
! width=50% |First Council of Constantinople (381)
|-
| We [[God in Christianity|believe in one God]], [[God the Father|the Father Almighty]], Maker of all things visible and invisible. || We believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker {{em|of [[Heaven (Christianity)|heaven]] and earth, and}} of all things visible and invisible.
|-
| And in one [[Kyrios (biblical term)|Lord]] Jesus Christ, the [[Son of God]], begotten of the Father [the [[monogenes|only-begotten]]; that is, of the essence of the Father, God of God,] Light of Light, very God of very God, begotten, not made, [[consubstantial|consubstantial with the Father]]; || And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the {{em|only-begotten}} Son of God, begotten of the Father {{em|[[Pre-existence of Christ|before all worlds]] (æons)}}, Light of Light, very God of very God, begotten, not made, consubstantial with the Father;
|-
| By whom all things were made [both in heaven and on earth]; || by whom all things were made;
|-
| Who for us men, and for our [[Salvation in Christianity|salvation]], came down and was [[Incarnation (Christianity)|incarnate]] and was made man; || who for us men, and for our salvation, came down {{em|from heaven}}, and was incarnate {{em|by the Holy Ghost and of the Virgin Mary}}, and was made man;
|-
| [[Passion (Christianity)|He suffered]], and the third day [[Resurrection of Jesus|he rose again]], ascended into heaven; || he {{em|was [[Crucifixion of Jesus|crucified]] for us under [[Pontius Pilate]], and}} suffered, {{em|and was [[Entombment of Christ|buried]]}}, and the third day he rose again, {{em|according to the Scriptures, and}} [[Ascension of Christ|ascended into heaven]], {{em|and [[Session of Christ|sitteth]] on the [[Right Hand of God|right hand of the Father]]}};
|-
| From thence he shall [[Second Coming of Christ|come]] to [[Final Judgement#Christianity|judge]] [[The quick and the dead (idiom)|the quick and the dead]]. || from thence he shall come {{em|again, with glory}}, to judge [[The quick and the dead (idiom)|the quick and the dead]];
|-
| || {{em|[[Kingdom of God (Christianity)|whose kingdom]] shall have no end}}.
|-
| And in the [[Holy Spirit in Christianity|Holy Ghost]]. || And in the Holy Ghost, {{em|the Lord and Giver of life, who proceedeth from the Father, who with the Father and the Son together is worshiped and glorified, who spake by the prophets.}}
|-
| || {{em|In [[Four Marks of the Church|one holy catholic and apostolic Church]]; we acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins; we look for the [[resurrection of the dead]], and the life of the [[world to come]]. Amen.}}
|-
| |[But those who say: 'There was a time when he was not;' and 'He was not before he was made;' and 'He was made out of nothing,' or 'He is of another substance' or 'essence,' or 'The Son of God is created,' or 'changeable,' or 'alterable'— they are condemned by the holy catholic and apostolic Church.]
|
|-
| bgcolor=white colspan=2 | The differences between the actual wordings (in Greek) adopted in 325<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.earlychurchtexts.com/public/creed_of_nicaea_325.htm|title=Creed of Nicaea 325 – Greek and Latin Text with English translation|website=Earlychurchtexts.com|access-date=31 December 2017|archive-date=12 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201112015917/https://earlychurchtexts.com/public/creed_of_nicaea_325.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> and in 381<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.earlychurchtexts.com/public/nicene_creed.htm|title=Nicene Creed Greek Text with English translation|website=Earlychurchtexts.com|access-date=31 December 2017|archive-date=26 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210126185946/https://earlychurchtexts.com/public/nicene_creed.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> can be presented in a similar way, as follows:
|-
! First Council of Nicaea (325)
! First Council of Constantinople (381)
|-
| {{lang|grc|Πιστεύομεν εἰς ἕνα Θεὸν Πατέρα παντοκράτορα, πάντων ὁρατῶν τε καὶ ἀοράτων ποιητήν·}} || {{lang|grc|Πιστεύομεν εἰς ἕνα Θεὸν Πατέρα παντοκράτορα, ποιητὴν '''{{em|οὐρανοῦ καὶ γῆς,}}''' ὁρατῶν τε πάντων καὶ ἀοράτων.}}
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| {{lang|grc|καὶ εἰς ἕνα Κύριον Ἰησοῦν Χριστόν τὸν Υἱὸν τοῦ Θεοῦ, γεννηθέντα ἐκ τοῦ Πατρὸς [μονογενῆ, τοὐτέστιν ἐκ τῆς οὐσίας τοῦ Πατρός, Θεὸν ἐκ Θεοῦ,] Φῶς ἐκ Φωτός, Θεὸν ἀληθινὸν ἐκ Θεοῦ ἀληθινοῦ, γεννηθέντα, οὐ ποιηθέντα, ὁμοούσιον τῷ Πατρί,}} || {{lang|grc|Καὶ εἰς ἕνα Κύριον Ἰησοῦν Χριστόν, τὸν Υἱὸν τοῦ Θεοῦ '''{{em|τὸν μονογενῆ}}''', τὸν ἐκ τοῦ Πατρὸς γεννηθέντα '''{{em|πρὸ πάντων τῶν αἰώνων}}''', φῶς ἐκ φωτός, Θεὸν ἀληθινὸν ἐκ Θεοῦ ἀληθινοῦ, γεννηθέντα οὐ ποιηθέντα, ὁμοούσιον τῷ Πατρί·}}
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| {{lang|grc|δι' οὗ τὰ πάντα ἐγένετο, [τά τε ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ καὶ τὰ ἐν τῇ γῇ,]}} || {{lang|grc|δι' οὗ τὰ πάντα ἐγένετο·}}
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| {{lang|grc|τὸν δι' ἡμᾶς τοὺς ἀνθρώπους καὶ διὰ τὴν ἡμετέραν σωτηρίαν κατελθόντα καὶ σαρκωθέντα καὶ ἐνανθρωπήσαντα,}} || {{lang|grc|τὸν δι' ἡμᾶς τοὺς ἀνθρώπους καὶ διὰ τὴν ἡμετέραν σωτηρίαν κατελθόντα '''{{em|ἐκ τῶν οὐρανῶν}}''' καὶ σαρκωθέντα '''{{em|ἐκ Πνεύματος Ἁγίου καὶ Μαρίας τῆς παρθένου}}''' καὶ ἐνανθρωπήσαντα,}}
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| {{lang|grc|παθόντα, καὶ ἀναστάντα τῇ τρίτῃ ἡμέρᾳ, ἀνελθόντα εἰς τοὺς οὐρανούς,}} ||
{{lang|grc|'''{{em|σταυρωθέντα τε ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν ἐπὶ Ποντίου Πιλάτου, καὶ}}''' παθόντα '''{{em|καὶ ταφέντα}}''', καὶ ἀναστάντα τῇ τρίτῃ ἡμέρᾳ '''{{em|κατὰ τὰς γραφάς}}''', καὶ ἀνελθόντα εἰς τοὺς οὐρανούς, '''{{em|καὶ καθεζόμενον ἐκ δεξιῶν τοῦ Πατρός}}'''}},
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| {{lang|grc|ἐρχόμενον κρῖναι ζῶντας καὶ νεκρούς.}} || {{lang|grc|καὶ '''{{em|πάλιν}}''' ἐρχόμενον '''{{em|μετὰ δόξης}}''' κρῖναι ζῶντας καὶ νεκρούς·}}
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| || {{lang|grc|οὗ τῆς βασιλείας οὐκ ἔσται τέλος}}.
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| {{lang|grc|Καὶ εἰς τὸ Ἅγιον Πνεῦμα.}} || {{lang|grc|Καὶ εἰς τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ Ἅγιον, '''{{em|τὸ Κύριον, τὸ ζῳοποιόν, τὸ ἐκ τοῦ Πατρὸς ἐκπορευόμενον, τὸ σὺν Πατρὶ καὶ Υἱῷ συμπροσκυνούμενον καὶ συνδοξαζόμενον, τὸ λαλῆσαν διὰ τῶν προφητῶν. Εἰς μίαν, ἁγίαν, καθολικὴν καὶ ἀποστολικὴν Ἐκκλησίαν· ὁμολογοῦμεν ἓν βάπτισμα εἰς ἄφεσιν ἁμαρτιῶν· προσδοκοῦμεν ἀνάστασιν νεκρῶν, καὶ ζωὴν τοῦ μέλλοντος αἰῶνος. Ἀμήν}}'''.}}
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| {{lang|grc|[Τοὺς δὲ λέγοντας, Ἦν ποτε ὅτε οὐκ ἦν, καὶ Πρὶν γεννηθῆναι οὐκ ἦν, καὶ ὅτι Ἐξ οὐκ ὄντων εγένετο, ἢ Ἐξ ἑτέρας ὑποστάσεως ἢ οὐσίας φάσκοντας εἶναι, ἢ κτιστόν, ἢ τρεπτόν, ἢ ἀλλοιωτὸν τὸν Υἱὸν τοῦ Θεοῦ, τούτους ἀναθεματίζει ἡ ἁγία καθολικὴ καὶ ἀποστολικὴ ἐκκλησία].}} ||
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=== Filioque controversy ===
{{Main article|Filioque}}
In the late 6th century, some Latin-speaking churches added the word {{lang|la|Filioque}} ("and the Son") to the description of the procession of the Holy Spirit, in what many Eastern Orthodox Christians have at a later stage argued is a violation of Canon VII<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/npnf214.x.xvi.x.html |title=Canon VII |access-date=29 November 2006 |archive-date=18 October 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121018095736/http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/npnf214.x.xvi.x.html |url-status=live }}</ref> of the [[Council of Ephesus|Third Ecumenical Council]], since the words were not included in the text by either the [[First Council of Nicaea|Council of Nicaea]] or [[First Council of Constantinople|that of Constantinople.]]<ref>For a different view, see e.g. [http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/npnf214.x.xvi.xi.html Excursus on the Words πίστιν ἑτέραν] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150721224314/http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/npnf214.x.xvi.xi.html |date=21 July 2015 }}</ref> This was incorporated into the liturgical practice of Rome in 1014.<ref name="Catholic Greek-Latin" /> {{lang|la|Filioque}} eventually became one of the main causes for the [[East-West Schism]] in 1054, and the failures of the repeated union attempts.

=== Views on the importance of this creed ===
The view that the Nicene Creed can serve as a touchstone of true Christian faith is reflected in the name "symbol of faith", which was given to it in Greek and Latin, when in those languages the word "symbol" meant a "token for identification (by comparison with a counterpart)".<ref>See etymology given in {{cite encyclopedia |url=https://ahdictionary.com/word/search.html?q=symbol |title=Symbol |dictionary=The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language |edition=Fifth |date=2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200101141736/https://ahdictionary.com/word/search.html?q=symbol |archive-date=1 January 2020}}</ref>

In the [[Roman Rite]] [[Mass (liturgy)|mass]], the Latin text of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed, with {{lang|la|"Deum de Deo"}} (God from God) and {{lang|la|"[[Filioque]]"}} (and from the Son), phrases absent in the original text, was previously the only form used for the "profession of faith". The [[Roman Missal]] now refers to it jointly with the [[Apostles' Creed]] as "the Symbol or Profession of Faith or Creed", describing the second as "the baptismal Symbol of the Roman Church, known as the Apostles' Creed".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.usccb.org/liturgy/missalformation/OrdoMissaeWhiteBook.pdf|title=''Ordo Missae'', 18–19|website=Usccb.org|access-date=11 February 2009|archive-date=10 August 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090810221840/http://www.usccb.org/liturgy/missalformation/OrdoMissaeWhiteBook.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>

Some [[evangelicalism|evangelical]] and other Christians consider the Nicene Creed helpful and to a certain extent authoritative, but not infallibly so in view of their belief that [[sola scriptura|only Scripture is truly authoritative]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Kehn |first1=N. R. |title=Restoring the Restoration Movement: A look under the Hood at the Doctrines that Divide |date=2009 |publisher=Xulon Press |location=LaVergne, TN |isbn=978-1-60791-358-0 |chapter=Sola Scriptura |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6MNUIyB37jgC&pg=PA103 |access-date=30 July 2021 |archive-date=14 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230114000831/https://books.google.com/books?id=6MNUIyB37jgC&pg=PA103 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=Credo Meditations on Thenicene Creed |publisher=Chalice Press |isbn=978-0-8272-0592-5 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kFaqzAHPg1cC |access-date=30 July 2021 |pages=xiv–xv |archive-date=14 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230114000831/https://books.google.com/books?id=kFaqzAHPg1cC |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Non-Trinitarian]] groups, such as the [[The New Church (Swedenborgian)|Church of the New Jerusalem]], [[The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]] and the [[Jehovah's Witnesses]], explicitly reject some of the statements in the Nicene Creed.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=vlmXBe0RPxYC&pg=PA4 Timothy Larsen, Daniel J. Treier, ''The Cambridge Companion to Evangelical Theology''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230108062045/https://books.google.com/books?id=vlmXBe0RPxYC&pg=PA4 |date=8 January 2023 }} (Cambridge University Press 2007 {{ISBN|978-0-521-84698-1}}, p. 4</ref><ref>Oaks, Dallin H. (May 1995). [https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/ensign/1995/05/apostasy-and-restoration?lang=eng Apostasy And Restoration] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200922153901/https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/ensign/1995/05/apostasy-and-restoration?lang=eng |date=22 September 2020 }}. ''[[Ensign (LDS magazine)|Ensign]]''. Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.</ref><ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=0GuWbJhYIccC&pg=PA48 Stephen Hunt, ''Alternative Religions'' (Ashgate 2003] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230108062053/https://books.google.com/books?id=0GuWbJhYIccC&pg=PA48 |date=8 January 2023 }} {{ISBN|978-0-7546-3410-2}}), p. 48</ref><ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=2OZ40dLil9wC&pg=PA133 Charles Simpson, ''Inside the Churches of Christ'' (Arthurhouse 2009] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230108062055/https://books.google.com/books?id=2OZ40dLil9wC&pg=PA133 |date=8 January 2023 }} {{ISBN|978-1-4389-0140-4}}), p. 133</ref>