AN INTRODUCTION TO THE CREEDS i\N INTRODUCTION TO THE CREEDS AND TO THE TE DEUM BY A. E. BURN, B.D. TRINITY COLLEGE, CAMBRIDGE RECTOR OF KVNNERSLEV, WELLINGTON, SALOP EXAMINING CHAPLAIN TO THE LORD BISHOP OF LICHFIELD METHUEN & CO. 36 ESSEX STREET, W.C. LONDON 1899 PREFACE --+- THE following Introduction to the Creeds· and to the Early History of the Te Deum has been designed, in the first instance, for the use of students reading for the Cambridge Theological Tripos. I have edited all the Creed-forms set for that examination, with the exception of three lengthy formularies, which belong rather to a history of doctrine than to my present subject. These are-the letter of Cyril to N estorius, the letter of Leo to Flavian, and the Definition of the Council of Chalcedon. At the same time, I hope that the book may be useful to a wider circle of readers-to clergy and candidates for Holy Orders. The subject is of supreme importance to all teachers of Church doctrine ; and the only excuse for adding to the number of books which already deal with it, is the desire to enable others to gather the first-fruits of many writers and of recent researches in England and abroad. During the past three years I have had the privilege, with the aid of the Managers of the Hort Memorial Fund at Cambridge, of visiting many libraries to collate MSS., and have endeavoured to make good use of the opportunities so kindly offered. In 1896 I visited Leiden, Cologne, Wiirzburg, Munich, S. Gallen, Karlsruhe, Heidelberg, W olfenbi.ittel; in vii viii PREFACE 1897, .Amiens, Rouen, Chartres, Orleans, Paris (Bibliotheque Nationale), Troyes (the Town Library and the Treasury of the Cathedral), Rheims; in 1898, Rome (the Vatican Library and the Library of Prince Chigi), the .Ambrosian Library at Milan, and the Chapter Library at Vercelli. I desire to express my gratitude for the unfailing courtesy and frequent personal kindness of the Librarians in all these towns. I have published some of my collations in The Guardian, and I beg to thank the proprietors for permission to use articles contributed to their paper on the .Athanasian Creed and the Te JJeum. I have published some "Sermons on the .Apostles' Creed" and other notes on creed-forms in the Zeitschrift fitr Kirchengeschwkte, xix. Band, 2 Heft, July 1898. I desire to thank Prof. F. Kattenbusch of Giessen for his kind help in translating my English notes into German, as for much information at various times. The net results of such journeys are not to be measured by the mere storage of new collations in notebooks. So many new avenues of thought are opened out, the imagina­ tion is stimulated by the sight of historic buildings and the everlasting hills, knowledge is increased by opportunities of conversation with distinguished scholars. I must also express my indebtedness to Prof. J. A. Robinson as editor of th'e Texts and Studies, and to the Syndics of the Cambridge University Press for leave to reprint certain pages from my book, Tke Athanasian Creed and its Early Commentaries, on pp. 191 seq., 298-307. My thanks are also due to the Rev. Dr. Robertson, editor of this series ; to the Revs. R. Burn, S. C. Freer, J . .A. Kemp­ thorne, and J. R. Pyle, for help with the MS. or proofs; and in particular to the Rev. W. G. Clark Maxwell, who has read PREFACE IX the proofs throughout. My Chapter on the Te Deurn is mainly founded on the learned articles of Dom. G. Morin, O.S.B., to whom I am indebted for much information and some valuable collations. I have also acknowledged some in­ teresting suggestions from the Revs. Dr. Gibson and F. E. Brightman. A kindly French critic 1 of my former book took me to task for " somewhat rash hypotheses." I must plead guilty to the charge of repeating some of those hypotheses, and even of adding to them. Surely it is not possible to make any progress without new hypotheses. The one thing needful is to state the evidence fully enough to serve the critic, who has a better hypothesis to suggest. Such criticism may succeed in altering the historical point of view from which we regard a particular creed ; it may change our opinion as to its date or authorship. But it cannot claim to control our conviction as to the truth of the teaching recorded in the Creed, which must rest upon the better foundation of faith. "Eadem tamen qure didicisti ita doce ut cum dicas noue non dicas noua." 2 1 Revu,e Critique, 18th Oct. 189i. 2 Vincentius, Oomrnonitorium, xxvii. CONTENTS CHAPTER I INTRODUCTORY HEC, PAGE I. Of Method 1 II. Of Faith 3 CHAPTER II "THE l!'AITH" IN APOSTOLIC TIMES I. What we look for in the Epistles of the New Testament 8 11. Four Admitted Epistles of S. Paul 10 III. The Epistles of his Captivity 13 IV. The Acts and Pastoral Epistles 14 V. S. John's Epistles , 17 VI. The Baptismal Formula 20 VII. Types of Preaching 25 VIII. The Apostolic Fathers 26 IX. Conclusions 31 CHAPTER III THE HISTORIC FAITH IN THE SECOND AND THIRD CENTURIES I. A Theory of Growth 33 II. The Apologists 35 III. Witnesses to the Old Roman Creed 45 IV. Was the Old Roman Creed ever Revised 1 • 57 Y. The Date of the Old Roman Creed 64 VI. The Old Creed of Jerusalem 66 VII. Conclusions 70 xi XII CONTENTS CHAPTER IV THE THEOLOGICAL FAITH OF THE FOURTH CENTURY SEC. PAGE I. Of Theological Creeds 72 II. Arius and Arianism 74 III. The Council of Nicrea in 325 76 IV. "The Fight in the Dark" . 81 V. The Council of the Dedication (Second and Fourth Creeds of Antioch) • 83 VI. Arianism Supreme 91 VII. Victory in sight 95 VIII. Conclusion 96 CHAPTER V OUR NICENE CREED I. The Council of Alexandria • 98 II. The Revised Creed of Jerusalem 101 III. The Council of Constantinople 106 IV. The Council of Chalcedon • 110 V. Later History : the Filioqite Clause 114 VI. Conclusions 120 CHAPTER VI THE ATHANASIAN CREED I I. Athanasian Faith in the Fifth Century 124 II. Contemporary Professions of Faith 129 III. The Brotherhood of Lerins 134 IV. The Internal Evidence of the Quicunq11e 137 V. Priscillianism 142 VI. Date and Authorship 145 CHAPTER VII THE ATHANASIAN CREED II I. The Sermons of Auitus, Cresarius, and others 150 II. The Canons of Toledo and Au tun . 153 III. The Treves Fragment 157 IV. Of Eighth and Ninth Century Quotations . 160 CONTENTS xiii SEC, PAGE V. The Early Commentaries • 162 VI. Rival Theories of Origin 172 VII. The Later History of the Creed 182 VIII. The Text and a Translation of the Quicimque 185 CHAPTER VIII THE APOSTLES' CREED IN THE FOURTH CENTURY I. The Old Roman Creed 198 II. .Aquileia 201 III. Milan 205 IV. Africa 209 V. Spain 214 VI. Gaul 214 CHAPTER IX OUR APOSTLES' CREED I. Gallican Creeds in the Fifth, Sixth, and Seventh Centuries : Salvianus, Faustus, Cresarius, Cyprian of Toulon, Gregory of Tours, Eligius 221 II. Creeds of the British Church: Pelagius, Bangor Antiphonary 228 III. Roman and Italian Creeds: Turin, Ravenna, Rome 230 IV. The Origin of the Textiis i·eceptiis (T) 233 CHAPTER X UNSOLVED PROBLEMS I. Bratke's Berne MS. 241 II. The Sermon A ~tscultate expositionern 243 III. The Creed of Damasus 244 IV. The Rhythm of the Te Deurn and the Quicunque 248 V. The Creed of Niceta of Remesiana . 252 CHAPTER XI THE "TE DEUM " I. MSS. and Quotations 257 II. The Authorship 258 III. The Sources upon which the Author may have drawn 265 IV. The Text 272 XIV CONTENTS CHAPTER XII OF THE USE OF CREEDS f!EC. PAGE I. Of the Ea.rly Use of a Baptismal Creed 280 II. The History of the term Symbolum 282 III. Our Use of our Apostles' and Nicene Creeds 286 IV. Our Use of the Atha.na.sian Creed . 289 CHAPTER I INTRODUCTORY § I. Of Method. § II. Of Faith. § I. OF METHOD IT is a question whether the time has yet come when a complete history of the .Apostles' Creed can be written. .A standard work on the subject is much needed by our genera­ tion. But, in the opinion of some thoughtful writers, the time is not yet ripe. There is much conflicting evidence with respect to the early years of its eventful existence which has to be weighed in the balance. During the past few years great progress has been made. .A mass of new material has been collected, and to some extent sifted. We may hope that there is more to come. The third edition of Hahn's Bibliotkek der Symbole,1 to name one book only, is a standing monument to the fruitfulness of the labours of Caspari, Heurtley, Katten­ busch, and Swainson. The notes include .references to the work of Baumer and Zahn, while Harnack contributes a valuable appendix in the shape of a revised edition of his treatise on the materials for the history and exposition of the Old Roman Creed from the literature of the two first centuries. Thus this single volume is in itself a vast store­ house of information, tabulated and ready to the hand of the future historian. The task will not be easy, for the mere physical labour of reading the literature on the subject will be appalling. In this respect future students will owe a debt of gratitude to Kattenbusch, whose history of the creed will 1 Bresla.u, 1897.