The Filioque Clause (1990)
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The Creeds, Confessions and Liturgical Forms of the Reformed
THE CREEDS, CONFESSIONS AND LITURGICAL FORMS OF THE REFORMED CHURCHES OF NEW ZEALAND THE CREEDS, CONFESSIONS AND LITURGICAL FORMS OF THE REFORMED CHURCHES OF NEW ZEALAND Published in 2015 by the Forms and Confessions Committee in conjunction with the National Publications Committee of the Reformed Churches of New Zealand. This book is not copyrighted. Any part of it is freely available for use by anyone interested. Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Bible Publishers. ISBN 978-0-473-28109-0 Contents Ecumenical Creeds The Apostles’ Creed ................................................................................................................ 8 The Nicene Creed.................................................................................................................... 9 The Athanasian Creed ........................................................................................................... 10 Confessions The Heidelberg Catechism .................................................................................................... 13 The Belgic Confession .......................................................................................................... 57 The Canons of Dort ............................................................................................................... 75 The Westminster Confession of Faith .................................................................................. -
21.05.30 the Holy Trinity
TRINITY SUNDAY 135 NE Randolph Avenue, Peoria, Illinois 61606 Online: www.trinitypeoria.com ~ (309) 676-4609 The Holy Trinity May 30, 2021 Sunday Worship 8:00, 9:30 and 11:00 a.m. WELCOME IN THE NAME OF OUR RISEN LORD Welcome to Trinity! Today in the Divine Service God proclaims to us through Word and Sacrament the forgiveness, love, and salvation that He has won for us through the death and resurrection of His Son Jesus Christ. LARGE PRINT BULLETINS are available from an usher for persons with vision difficulties. WORSHIPPING WITH OUR CHILDREN This week we celebrate God as the Trinity. The word “Trinity” means “three.” For Christians the word helps us understand that God shows Himself to us as “Father, Son and Holy Spirit.” He is three persons in one God. Only He can do that! It is hard for us to understand exactly how God works but the one thing we know for sure is that God the Father loves us so much that God the Son, Jesus, was sent to give His life to pay for our sins and then rose to life again so that we could live forever. God the Holy Spirit, many times shown as a dove, gives us faith to believe that God loves us this much! See how many triangles you can find in church. Ideas adapted from Kids in the Divine Service by Christopher I. Thoma. ©2000 by the Commission on Worship of The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod. All rights reserved. Divine Service - Setting Two + We Come Into God’s Presence + In celebration of Trinity Sunday, we will confess the Athanasian Creed separated into four parts throughout our liturgy. -
WEEK 2 the Apostle's Creed
WEEK 2 The Apostle’s Creed: Embracing Creedal Faith in the Midst of Pluralism The Catechetical lectures are given to those who are to be enlightened in baptism or confirmation and also to believers who are already baptized for edification. 1. What is a Creed? A creed is a statement of faith or belief from the Latin word credo, meaning “I believe.” Latin root= ‘to place one’s heart in’; ‘to trust with the heart.’ 2. Why does the Church use Creeds? a. Distinction. The first object of the earliest Christian creeds was to distinguish the Church from the world, from Jews and heathen, afterwards orthodoxy from heresy, and finally denomination from denomination.5 b. Catechism. To instruct converts and baptized disciples as well. c. Safeguard. The Church’s creeds correct ancient and modern heresies, declaring and safeguarding God’s truth in Holy Scripture about Himself, ourselves, and the whole creation (1 Ths 2; 2 Tim 2; Jude 3). The faith is something to be jealously guarded, something that people might fall away to their spiritual peril.6 3. The Importance of Creeds. a. Creeds are necessary for at least 5 reasons: i. Creeds are summaries of what the apostles taught and what the Bible teaches. The Creeds, therefore, are both biblical and apostolic. ii. Creeds proclaim the essentials of the faith. 1. The Vincentian Canon (AD445), written by St Vincent of Lérins, lays out the test of catholicity: that “which has been believed everywhere, at all times, and by all.” iii. Because Christians hold the essentials of the faith in the Creeds in common, Creeds also create Christian unity. -
The Athanasian Creed
The Athanasian Creed So likewise the Father is almighty, For the right faith is that we believe the Son almighty, and the Holy and confess that our Lord Jesus Christianity constantly struggles to keep the Faith free from false Spirit almighty. Christ, the Son of God, philosophies. And yet They are not three is God and man; In Fourth Century Alexandria, Egypt, a persuasive preacher with a logical almighties but One Almighty. God of the substance of the Father, mind used a philosophical concept foreign to the Scriptures in order to explain So the Father is God, the Son is begotten before the worlds; the connection between Jesus and his Father. Arius borrowed from the popular God, and the Holy Spirit is God. and man of the substance of His And yet They are not three mother, born in the world. Greek concept that a “god,” by nature, had to be high, distant and almighty; Gods but one God. Perfect God and perfect man, of a reason- and that humans, consequently, had to be low, spatial and inferior. So likewise the Father is Lord, the able soul and human flesh subsisting. Arius taught that only the Father was really a proper God. Because Jesus Son Lord, and the Holy Spirit Lord. Equal to the Father as touching was human, he was therefore only a creature (created by God) and therefore And yet They are not three His Godhead and inferior to the did not really possess any divine qualities. Lords but One Lord. Father as touching His The problem: when Arius denied the divinity of Christ, he destroyed God’s For as we are compelled by the manhood; role in accomplishing our salvation. -
Invigorating Our Confessions of Faith (Creeds) with the Assistance of Romans JUSTIN J
Word & World Volume 39, Number 3 Summer 2019 Invigorating Our Confessions of Faith (Creeds) with the Assistance of Romans JUSTIN J. LIND-AYRES Dusting Off the Church’s Treasures Recently I was worshiping with area pastors and deacons at a conference event. The host church had in its pew-rack hymnals that were over forty years old. Yet, they were still being employed by the congregation in its weekly worship. Despite the publication of newer denominational hymnals over the span of four decades, this congregation continued its allegiance to the “green book” with its tattered edges and fraying spine. My hunch is it has as much to do with the congregation’s fru- gality as it does to its faithfulness to the liturgical practices codified in the 1970s. When the time came in our conference worship to sing a hymn, we were instructed to turn to the hymnals in our pews. Before I could grab the book in front of me, my dear friend and pastor colleague reached for it. With a smirk on her face, she delicately opened its pages, took a slight intake of breath, and pre- tended to blow the dust out from the pages of the hymnal. I’m not sure if it was the Almost from the beginning, Christians have publicly and corporately con- fessed their faith in common statements, the most universally accepted being the three ecumenical creeds. But perhaps new contexts in our contemporary world call for the addition of new statements of faith alongside the classic ones. 246 Invigorating Our Confessions of Faith (Creeds) with the Assistance of Romans morning light playing tricks on my eyes or my own imagination sparked by her joke, but I thought I saw a cloud of dust waft up from that green book. -
The Person of the Holy Spirit
The WORK of the Holy Spirit David J. Engelsma Herman Hanko Published by the British Reformed Fellowship, 2010 www.britishreformedfellowship.org.uk Printed in Muskegon, MI, USA Scripture quotations are taken from the Authorized (King James) Version Quotations from the ecumenical creeds, the Three Forms of Unity (except for the Rejection of Errors sections of the Canons of Dordt) and the Westminster Confession are taken from Philip Schaff, The Creeds of Christendom, 3 vols. (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, 1966) Distributed by: Covenant Protestant Reformed Church 7 Lislunnan Road, Kells Ballymena, N. Ireland BT42 3NR Phone: (028) 25 891851 Website: www.cprc.co.uk E-mail: [email protected] South Holland Protestant Reformed Church 1777 East Richton Road Crete, IL 60417 USA Phone: (708) 333-1314 Website: www.southhollandprc.org E-mail: [email protected] Faith Protestant Reformed Church 7194 20th Avenue Jenison, MI 49418 USA Phone: (616) 457-5848 Website: www.faithprc.org Email: [email protected] Contents Foreword v PART I Chapter 1: The Person of the Holy Spirit 1 Chapter 2: The Outpouring of the Holy Spirit 27 Chapter 3: The Holy Spirit and the Covenant of Grace 41 Chapter 4: The Spirit as the Spirit of Truth 69 Chapter 5: The Holy Spirit and Assurance 84 Chapter 6: The Holy Spirit and the Church 131 PART II Chapter 7: The Out-Flowing Spirit of Jesus 147 Chapter 8: The Bride’s Prayer for the Bridegroom’s Coming 161 APPENDIX About the British Reformed Fellowship 174 iii Foreword “My Father worketh hitherto, and I work,” Jesus once declared to the unbelieving Jews at a feast in Jerusalem ( John 5:17). -
1 Trinity, Filioque and Semantic Ascent Christians Believe That The
Trinity, Filioque and Semantic Ascent1 Christians believe that the Persons of the Trinity are distinct but in every respect equal. We believe also that the Son and Holy Spirit proceed from the Father. It is difficult to reconcile claims about the Father’s role as the progenitor of Trinitarian Persons with commitment to the equality of the persons, a problem that is especially acute for Social Trinitarians. I propose a metatheological account of the doctrine of the Trinity that facilitates the reconciliation of these two claims. On the proposed account, “Father” is systematically ambiguous. Within economic contexts, those which characterize God’s relation to the world, “Father” refers to the First Person of the Trinity; within theological contexts, which purport to describe intra-Trinitarian relations, it refers to the Trinity in toto-- thus in holding that the Son and Holy Spirit proceed from the Father we affirm that the Trinity is the source and unifying principle of Trinitarian Persons. While this account solves a nagging problem for Social Trinitarians it is theologically minimalist to the extent that it is compatible with both Social Trinitarianism and Latin Trinitarianism, and with heterodox Modalist and Tri-theist doctrines as well. Its only theological cost is incompatibility with the Filioque Clause, the doctrine that the Holy Spirit proceeds from both the Father and the Son—and arguably that may be a benefit. 1. Problem: the equality of Persons and asymmetry of processions In addition to the usual logical worries about apparent violations of transitivity of identity, the doctrine of the Trinity poses theological problems because it commits us to holding that there are asymmetrical quasi-causal relations amongst the Persons: the Father “begets” the Son and “spirates” the Holy Spirit. -
Millennialism and the Three Ecumenical Creeds by Kristofer Carlson October 2007
Millennialism and the Three Ecumenical Creeds by Kristofer Carlson October 2007 The three Ecumenical Christian Creeds1 are a witness to the universal faith of all Christians. The three Ecumenical Christian Creeds serve to define content and boundaries of the Christian faith. Therefore any teaching that is at variance with the three Ecumenical Creeds is by definition outside the boundaries of Orthodox Christianity. The Athanasian Creed defines the seriousness with which the church fathers took these doctrinal matters. The Athanasian Creed begins by stating: “Whoever wishes to be saved must, above all else, hold the true Christian [in the Latin, “catholic”] faith. Whoever does not keep it whole and undefiled will without doubt perish for eternity.” The Athanasian Creed ends in similar fashion: “This is the true Christian [in the Latin, “catholic”] faith. Unless a man believe this firmly and faithfully, he cannot be saved.” With these words, the error of those who believe doctrine does not matter is laid bare. The Athanasian Creed stands firmly over and against those who would separate the Word from doctrine; those who make experience the arbiter of faith; and those for whom faith is a matter of good works instead of an orthodox doctrinal confession. The Athanasian Creed clearly states that one’s salvation depends upon holding to the Christian faith, whole and undefiled. Those who fail to hold firmly and faithfully to the Christian faith, as confessed in the Creed, cannot be saved and will without doubt perish for eternity. Therefore the stakes are high. Eternal destiny is at stake, and it is therefore imperative for us to understand what the Creeds have to say regarding Last Things. -
"And the Son" in Regard to the Eastern
ON THE CLAUSE “AND THE SON,” IN REGARD TO THE EASTERN CHURCH AND THE BONN CONFERENCE. A LETTER TO THE REV. H. P. LIDDON, D.D. IRELAND PROFESSOR OF EXEGESIS, CANON OF S. PAUL’S. BY THE REV. E. B. PUSEY, D.D. REGIUS PROFESSOR OF HEBREW, AND CANON OF CHRIST CHURCH. SOLD BY JAMES PARKER & CO., OXFORD, AND 377, STRAND, LONDON; RIVINGTONS, LONDON, OXFORD AND CAMBRIDGE; AND POTT, YOUNG & CO., NEW YORK. 1876. Project Canterbury edition AD 2002 On the Clause “And the Son,” by Edward Bouverie Pusey. (1876) MY DEAREST FRIEND, YOU wish me to state briefly my thoughts, as to the restoration of intercommunion with the Greek Church, and, as bearing on this, what I desiderate in the propositions adopted at the Bonn Conference, and how they could be modified, so that I could myself accept them. This I do the more readily, because it was partly at my instance that you undertook that journey to Bonn, at much inconvenience, I believe, to yourself, and because I know that we are substantially of one mind on this subject, as on others. I hope that I may do this less unsatisfactorily, if I embody in it, what I wrote, two years ago on this, the saddest of all our sad controversies. For it is, in the end, a controversy as to the Being of God, among those who really believe in God, who prize right and true belief in God above all things, who, each, doubt not that they have the right belief, and who do believe the same one with the other, if they could but look calmly at each other’s mode of speech. -
The Social Creed and Methodism Through Eighty Years 215
At/ethodist History, 26:4 (July 1988) i ' , . i THE SOCIAL CREED AND METHODISM I ~ ; THROUGH EIGHTY YEARS ! . DONALD K. GORRELL In May 1988 the United Methodist Church celebrates the eightieth anniversary of the Social Creed. But most persons know little about the role and function of this distinctive document, or its varied forms. Nor do they appreciate the unique relationship of this literary genre to Methodism. My purpose here is to describe the origin and evolution of the Social Creed, with special attention to its ties to Methodism through eight decades. American religious historians generally have accepted HarryF. Ward's evaluation that the adoption of the Social Creed in 1908 constituted "a significant fact in the history of religion" because it marked "the deliberate and conscious entrance of the Church upon the field of social action." 1 But few of them have bothered to explain the development of the social pronouncement beyond the acknowledgement that "it stands as one of the great symbols of the Social Gospel." 2 Typically, the interpretation of most historians emphasizes four essen tial ingredients: the Social Creed first was adopted by the Methodist Episcopal Church in May 1908; then it was approved in modified form by the Federal Council of Churches in December 1908; four years later it was supplemented, revised, and reaffirmed by the Federal Council; and it remained unchanged for twenty years until the ecumenical organiza tion again revised and enlarged it as the Social Ideals of the Churches in 1932. And then it virtually disappears from history. In most narratives the context of the Social Gospel and of ecumenical Protestantism is the primary emphasis. -
Session #2: What We Believe We Are a Creedal Church
The Distinctiveness of the Episcopal Tradition Session #2: What We Believe We Are a Creedal Church • A creed is an authoritative statement of doctrinal belief. • Examples: • Old Roman Creed: references to it in 2nd century. • Apostles’ Creed: a fuller version of the Roman one, earliest text in 390 BCE. • Nicene - Constantinople Creed: First draft in 325 CE, final form 381 CE. • Athanasian Creed: earliest text in 8th c. Contains “anathemas.” • Called “symbolon” in Gk, “symbolum” in Lt. A “symbol” of the faith. • A symbol points to a reality greater than itself. Not a comprehensive or final statement. • Creeds are part of Tradition, the “deposit of faith.” What is a “Creedal Church?” • Not a clear-cut issue. • Ancient differences over the Nicene Creed: “two natures” of Jesus Christ, relationship of Father and Son, relationship of the Holy Spirit to Father and Son. • In modern times, issue is one of authority of Creeds compared to the Scriptures. • “Sola Scriptura,” “Sola Fides”: Creeds not very important. • Anglicanism’s “three-legged stool” of Scripture, Tradition and Reason • All three given equal weight. • TEC is a creedal church, BUT…creeds are neither comprehensive nor definitive. Reinterpretation with respect to Tradition and reason. Nicene Creed uses 3rd c. language and concepts. We Are a Church of Word and Sacrament • The Word = Scripture. Tradition of Scriptural interpretation is contextual, not literal. • Sacraments illustrate the Incarnational Principle: • God is present in creation so the material world communicates and mediates the spiritual world. • Anglicanism is profoundly incarnational. Emphasis on beauty. What is a Sacrament? • A symbolic sign that points to a greater reality. -
Karl Barth's Reflections on the Filioque
Page 1 of 2 Book Review Karl Barth’s reflections on the Filioque Karl Barth (1886–1968) is not only one of the greatest theologians of all times, but he is surely also Book Title: Karl Barth on the Filioque a theologian who leaves you to think twice and indeed with so much to ponder about. This book opens new insights into Barth’s thinking, and contributes to the renewed interest in Barth studies. Book Cover: David Guretzki’s book focuses on how the Filioque, a problem of the Early Church, functions in the theological reflection of Karl Barth. Many critics fail to distinguish between Barth’s position and that of the Western Tradition of the early church, and then unfairly jump to easy conclusions. Guretzki follows the line of how Barth, without compromising himself to either the Western or the Eastern traditions of the early church, was critically engaged in a study of the Filioque. He explains how the unfolding of the Trinity and the Filioque is drawn into Barth’s understanding of the self-revelation of God in Jesus Christ. Guretzki argues that Barth’s teaching on Seinsweise (a term which Barth sometimes prefer, rather Author: David Guretzki than person), thus on the divine modes of being, can not be identified with the Western tradition’s teaching of the Holy Spirit’s double procession from the persons of the Father and the Son. Barth ISBN: treats this as a single procession from the common being of the one God. The reason for this lies 978–0–7546–6704–9 at least partly in Barth’s understanding of the perichoretic relations of the Trinity, and this, of Publisher: course affects his depiction of Filioque.