Historic Trinity Lutheran Church
1345 Gratiot Avenue
Detroit, Michigan 48207
Phone: (800) 268-3058 (Michigan Only) or call (313) 567-3100
send email to Historic Trinity Lutheran Church.
Trinity Sunday -- First Sunday After Pentecost
The observance of Trinity Sunday, in honor of the Trinity,
seems to have originated early in the 10th century. But, it was not made obligatory on the
whole Church until the first half of the 14th century. In keeping with ancient Church usage,
the Athanasian Creed is used in church services on Trinity
Sunday. The liturgical color for the Trinity season is green. Green
is the color of living plants. Green is a liturgical color
depicting a living God -- the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
The Trinity
The Christian doctrine of the Holy Trinity , Father, Son, and Holy Spirit - Three-in-One,
is one of the mysteries of faith. The intellectual issues raised by the illumination of the
Trinity were to have perennial interest and become major subjects of thought, and, sad to say,
of controversy.
The Trinity could never be adequately expressed in words, although some of
the creeds or symbols (which were devised in an attempt to do so), gained wide, indeed, almost
universal acceptance among those who bore the Christian name. Nor could all the questions
about the Trinity be answered with entire satisfaction. Always there was mystery, yet belief
in the Trinity, based upon early and continuing experience, which became a distinguishing
characteristic of Christianity.
THE ECUMENICAL CREEDS
CREEDS
A creed is a confession of faith for public use or a form of words setting forth with
authority certain articles of belief. Creeds do not precede faith, but follow it, expressing
the convictions of the believer towards Christ and His Word.
A Creed outlines and preserves, in balanced proportion, Christianity's fundamental beliefs; it witnesses to the perpetuity,
unity, and universality of the Christian faith; it binds Christians to one another and to
the faithful of all centuries. Creeds or Symbols were used as summaries of doctrine, bonds
of union, safeguards against error, and means of instruction. Creeds
incorporate the basic principles of their confessors, they are the major verbal expressions
of the Christian faith.
Many platforms and statements are formulated in modern times, though none has attained the
same paramount importance as The Ecumenical Creeds:
- The Apostles' Creed
- The Nicene Creed
- The Athanasian Creed
The Ecumenical Creeds have remained standards for the majority of
Christians since the early years of the Church. The creeds put in verbal form the Church's central convictions.
The use of the creeds in the worship service enables the
congregation to view and review the whole horizon of the Church's belief.
APOSTLES CREED
The tradition that the Apostles' Creed was composed on the Day of Pentecost (or shortly
thereafter) by the twelve Apostles, each contributing an article beginning with Peter, was
proven false by later religious scholars. Also, the Apostles' Creed was not formulated by Councils of
theologians, but rather grew spontaneously out of the needs of a living church.
The Apostles' Creed grew in early New Testament times from the confession of Peter (Matthew 16:16),
and an elaboration of a primitive baptismal formula of Christ (Matthew 29:19):
"Baptizing in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of
the Holy Ghost".
Early traces of its articles are found in Ignatius and Justin Martyr's teachings. The creed
was usually memorized, but not written, and it was explained to the cathecumens in the last
stages of their preparation for baptism.
The Apostles Creed probably had its inception in Rome. A brief form of the Apostles Creed
was know as the Roman Symbol, and was in use in the Church in Rome in the fourth century.
The Roman Symbol creed was an elaboration of the earlier primitive baptismal formula,
modified in such a fashion as to make it clear that the candidate for baptism did not adhere
to the beliefs of Marcion who had a strong following in Rome. Marcion taught that the world is
the creation of Demiurge not God the Father, and that Christ was a phantom. The term "symbol"
comes from a word which in one of its usages meant "as a watchword, or a password in a
military camp". As applied to a creed, it was a sign or test of membership in the Church.
Assent to the symbol or creed was required of those who
were being baptized.
The development of the Apostles Creed was due in-part to the conflict with the Marcionites,
although several generations were still to elapse before all phrases were added -- which makes
it as its stands today.
It must not be forgotten that the Apostles Creed had as its nucleus,
words going back to the first century, and the first words explicitly stated in the
post-resurrection command of Jesus to the Apostles.
Thus it clearly is an expression of what was taught by the apostles, and thus the designation
"Apostles Creed".
The Apostles' Creed assumed its present form about 750 AD. In
theory, by the 800's, all Christians were to know the Lord's Prayer and the
Apostles Creed.
NICENE CREED
The original Nicene Creed in 325 grew out of the immediate necessity of safeguarding the
apostolic teachings concerning the deity of Christ against the Arian heresy. Emperor
Constantine called for the First Ecumenical Council to meet in Nicaea in Asia Minor in 325
to deal with these concerns.
The calling of a Council was an accepted method for seeking
accord on major divisive issues and other urgent problems which concerned the whole
Church.
The Arians presented a statement on their positions, but their positions aroused violent
opposition. Eusebius of Caesarea took a middle position and suggested as a statement to
which all might agree, the creed was in use in his own episcopal-see and had come
down from his predecessors in the Caesarean episcopate, was taught to cathecumens, and
required assent at baptism.
There was general agreement,including
endorsement from the Emperor. It became the basis of what has since been known as the
Nicene Creed.
Christians of that day were working their way through statements for a clarification of what
was presented to the world by the tremendous historical fact of the Christ.
At Nicaea, it was becoming more and more apparent that God must also be the
Redeemer, and yet, by a seeming paradox, the Redeemer must also be man. The distinguishing
affirmation of Christianity was that Jesus Christ was "true God and from true God",
or put in more familiar language of the day, "very God of very God", who
"was made man".
A century later in 451, the Council of Chalcedon accepted changes made by an earlier
Constantinopolitan Creed -- ascribed to by 150 bishops brought together by Theodosius at
Constantinople in 381. The Council of Chalcedon made minor changes to the Nicene Creed of
325 and made an extension of the 3rd article by asserting the true divinity of the Holy
Spirit.
The 3rd form of the Nicene creed differs by the inclusion of the word filioque
emphasizing the Holy Spirit proceeding from the Father and the Son (filioque), not
just proceeding from the Father.
When the Roman Church added the word filioque to the
Nicene Creed in the 11th century, the permanent schism occurred between the Roman Catholic Church
and the Eastern Orthodox Church.
The Nicene Creed which is used today is thus a further development from the one
which was adopted at Nicaea in 325.
ATHANASIAN CREED
The precise date, author, and place-of-origin of the Athanasian Creed have not been
indisputably determined. It appears to have originated in the West, perhaps in Gaul or
North Africa, and possibly as early as the fifth century.
The creed serves as a commentary on the first four Ecumenical Councils. It also seeks to
state the doctrine of the Trinity in Augustianian paradoxes. The Athanasian Creed was
popular among the monks of the Middle Ages who considered it well adopted to meditation
and memorizing.
In the days of Charlemagne it came to be used as a canticle (hymn) of worship service called
Prime. The Athanasian Creed details the divinity of Christ in full, to combat those
who thought of Him only as a total man.
The Catholic Latin clergy, in order to state their position as against the Arians, supposedly
framed a creed (originally a hymn) which was commonly given the name Athanasian, because the
Arians called the Catholics "athanasians".
The Atanasian creed was first used at Toledo in Spain in 589 or 653, while at
St. Peter's Cathedral in Rome, the Popes did not use it in-full until the 11th century. The
creed had gradually spread through the West, and in 809 under Charlemagne, a Synod at Aachen
had given its approval.
In keeping with ancient Church usage, probably since the 5th century, the Athanasian Creed
is used in worship services on Trinity Sunday.
Historic Trinity Lutheran Church
1345 Gratiot Avenue
Detroit, Michigan 48207
Phone: (800) 268-3058 (Michigan Only) or call (313) 567-3100
send email to Historic Trinity Lutheran Church.