The Nicene Creed
Council of Nicaea, 325 AD (expanded at Constantinople, 381 AD)
The Nicene Creed is the most widely shared statement of Christian faith, produced by the Council of Nicaea in 325 and expanded at the Council of Constantinople in 381, which confesses one God the Father, Jesus Christ as "true God from true God, begotten, not made," and the Holy Spirit as Lord and giver of life.
Full text of the Nicene Creed
We believe in one God, the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all things visible and invisible. And 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. And 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. And one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church. We confess one Baptism for the forgiveness of sins and we look forward to the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come. Amen.
History and background
The Nicene Creed was formulated to address the Arian heresy, which denied the full divinity of Christ. The Council of Nicaea in 325 AD produced the original version, and the Council of Constantinople in 381 AD expanded it. It remains the most universally accepted statement of Christian faith, used in Catholic, Orthodox, Anglican, and many Protestant liturgies.
How the traditions differ
The text above is the Western form. It contains the *filioque* — the phrase "and the Son" in the clause on the Holy Spirit — which was not in the creed agreed at Constantinople in 381. It spread through the Latin West from the sixth century and was in use at Rome by 1014. Eastern Orthodox churches confess the creed without it, holding that the Spirit proceeds from the Father, and regard the unilateral addition as both a doctrinal and a procedural error. The dispute was one of the causes of the East–West Schism of 1054 and remains unresolved, though several modern Western liturgies now print the clause in brackets or omit it in ecumenical settings.
Common questions
What is the filioque, and why is it controversial?
*Filioque* is Latin for "and the Son." It is the phrase Western churches added to the creed’s statement that the Holy Spirit "proceeds from the Father," making it "proceeds from the Father and the Son." Eastern Orthodox churches object on two grounds: that it misstates the relationship within the Trinity, and that the West added it to an ecumenical creed without an ecumenical council. It was a significant factor in the schism of 1054 and is still a live point of disagreement.
Why was the Nicene Creed written?
To settle whether Jesus Christ is fully God. Arius, a presbyter of Alexandria, taught that the Son was the highest of creatures but had a beginning and was not of the same being as the Father. The Council of Nicaea in 325 rejected this, confessing the Son as "consubstantial with the Father" — *homoousios*, of the same substance. The Council of Constantinople in 381 expanded the creed’s brief clause on the Holy Spirit into the fuller statement used today.
What does "consubstantial with the Father" mean?
It translates the Greek *homoousios*: of the same being or substance. The claim is that the Son is not a lesser or created divine figure but shares the one being of God with the Father. Older English translations render the same word "of one Being with the Father"; the meaning is identical.
Which churches use the Nicene Creed?
It is the most broadly used creed in Christianity. Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Anglican, Lutheran, Methodist, Presbyterian, and Reformed churches all confess it, and most recite it at the Sunday eucharistic liturgy. The main variation between them is the presence or absence of the filioque.