Tag: Nicene Creed

• We Do Not Believe in the Nicene Creed

  October 3, 2012

  “One night the Master led his disciples into the open fields and a star-studded sky. Then, pointing toward the stars, he looked at the disciples and said, ‘Now concentrate on my finger, everyone.’ They got the point.” (Anthony DeMello, One Minute Nonsense, 135) In another story DeMello is less subtle about his meaning: “When the sage Read more
• Believing in the Giver of Life

  September 28, 2012

  For most of us, I suspect, there are moments when the existential questions of life can no longer be answered, ignored, or denied by focusing on our careers, jobs, marriages, families, acquisitions, or accomplishments. Who am I? What is my purpose? What have I really accomplished? How will I be remembered? Will I even be Read more
• The Scandal of Being Human

  September 21, 2012

  Every time we say the Nicene Creed we profess the world’s greatest scandal. God chose to become human. God chose to reveal himself through flesh and blood. God chose to enter this world in the usual way, to be born of a human mother the same as you and I were. God chose to live Read more
• Five Things We Believe About God

  September 13, 2012

  “We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is, seen and unseen.” With just twenty-one words the Nicene Creed describes God. Twenty-one words? That’s it? Surely there is more that can be said about God. I suspect there is. Maybe, however, that’s not the question. Maybe the better question Read more
• Communal Believing – The Nicene Creed, Part 3

  September 5, 2012

  Someone once asked an old hermit, “Is Jesus your personal Lord and Savior?” “No,” he said. “I prefer to share him with others.” There is wisdom in the hermit’s words. The Christian life is not about “me and my Jesus.” That’s too small, too easy, and too risky. It can quickly degenerate into “Sheilaism.” In Read more
• Who Believes? The Nicene Creed, Part 2

  August 29, 2012

  The following article was originally written for Reflections Online and published by the Episcopal Diocese of West Texas. It is the second in a series on the Nicene Creed. Part 1 may be found here. The earliest creedal statements were short professions of faith, often reflected local concerns, and were not necessarily concerned with uniformity Read more
• Repetitious Believing – The Nicene Creed, Part 1

  August 22, 2012

  I can believe a thousand different things by lunchtime on any given day. “I believe the world is round.” “I believe the sky is falling.” “I believe I’ll have the enchilada plate, thank you.” Some of my beliefs are grounded in facts and reality. Others are based on fears, wounds, and losses. And still others Read more