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We believe “in one holy catholic and apostolic church” appears in what is today known as the Nicene Creed, compiled at the First Council of Constantinople in AD 381. It was there that the Trinitarian controversy was resolved after having raged through most of the fourth century. Among its declarations concerning the Son and the Holy Spirit, the indivisible Trinity, came statements on the church and the sacraments. This creed received ecumenical approval, originating in the Greek church, received and approved also by the Latins and consequently acknowledged and confessed down through the centuries ever since.
This creed was based on an earlier one issued by the Council of Nicaea in AD 325, which had met to counter Arius and his sympathizers, who asserted that the Son was not coeternal with the Father but was a creature—a superior creature, of course, since He was God’s primary agent in the creation of the universe, but a creature nonetheless. The original creed of Nicaea, which should be distinguished from our Nicene Creed, said nothing about the church and sacraments and little about the Holy Spirit, whose status had not yet come up for discussion. What the Council of Constantinople did, in inserting claims about the church, was to recognize that ecclesiology is connected to the heart of the gospel, an outflow of the revelation of God as Trinity.
The Nicene Creed asserted that the church is one. There is only one people of God throughout all times. The church is holy, since it belongs to God. It is catholic, found throughout the world, not merely in Israel. It is Apostolic, founded on the ministry and teaching of the Apostles. Some might balk at giving credence to a statement devised by man, thinking that its particular claims are external to the gospel itself. Why should allegiance be requested to a confession of bishops when the Scriptures are the very Word of God and sufficient for all purposes in this life?
Such an objection misses the point that the product of the Council of Constantinople was the result of the accumulated biblical exegesis of the early church and of its bishops, who themselves were pastors, engaged in preaching several times a week to their parishioners. Moreover, this exegesis was integrally connected with the gospel, as borne out by the assertion earlier in the creed that God’s revelation was “for us men and for our salvation.” It follows the biblical example of Apostolic preaching in Acts, where in each case of reported sermons by Peter, the Apostle mentions the Apostolic witness to Christ’s resurrection, thereby including the witness of the foundational leaders of the church, as integral to the gospel message (Acts 2:32; 3:15; 5:32; 10:40–41).
Moreover, the statement “one holy catholic and apostolic church” is based on Paul’s discussion in Ephesians 2. There he maintains that the church of Jesus Christ is one body. Not even the division between Jew and gentile can breach it, for by His death on the cross, Jesus broke down the dividing wall of hostility, evidenced in the law of commandments, and made the two into one new man in Christ (Eph. 2:14–16). The church is holy, since it belongs to God, its Head and Ruler is Christ the Son, and it is indwelt by the Holy Spirit as His temple (vv. 21–22). It is catholic, for catholic literally means “universal”—the church is found throughout the world, in accordance with God’s eternal plan and in fulfillment of Christ’s commission to make the nations of the world His disciples (Matt. 28:19–20; Eph. 2:17). It is Apostolic, since it is founded on the Apostles and prophets, their teaching being its bedrock, their authority delegated by Christ Himself and thus equivalent to His own (Eph. 2:20). Hence, a repudiation of the Constantinopolitan formula is effectively a rejection of the biblical portrayal of the church of Jesus Christ and of the authority of Christ, its Head.
These four attributes—unity, holiness, catholicity, Apostolicity—must be held together in tension. In the light of the present divided church, it can be hard to see this and harder still to do it. At present, these four attributes are largely aspirational, for in so many ways the church is a mess, torn by division, soured by personal vendettas, succumbing to the thought patterns of a decaying world. Nevertheless, it is vital to keep these realities in the forefront of our minds and actions. This is how the church is and what it is to be in the ultimate purpose of God. Thus, Paul can write later in Ephesians that Christ’s goal for His bride is to
sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present [it] to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish (Eph. 5:26–27)
When we say that these four attributes are to be held together in tension, we are warning against an exaggerated emphasis on any one or, alternatively, a practical de-emphasis on any one. The four are of equal significance.
An overemphasis on the holiness and Apostolicity of the church can lead to sectarianism. It is true that the church must be ruled by the Word of God, for that is the purpose of Christ, whose Word it is. The doctrinal foundations must be clear and sound. The life of the church must accord with the truth of God; loving discipline is part of that. To insist on dotting every i and crossing every t, however, will exclude those who belong but do not match up to the prescribed yardstick. In short, it will breach unity and catholicity, which are both equally part of what the church is. This is the route taken by sects, which cannot countenance the slightest deviation.
On the other hand, to neglect the holiness and Apostolicity of the church in its doctrine and practice has its own perils. It indicates an unbalanced emphasis on unity and catholicity. Today, with the modern ethos of equality and inclusivity, this is a pressing problem. The church is one, certainly. Jesus prayed that we may all be one as He and the Father are one (John 17:20–23). But that unity cannot be bought at the expense of Apostolic doctrine and holy living, thereby undermining the Apostolicity and holiness of the church. This is the pattern of liberal denominations. The result is the eventual dilution of all biblical characteristics and their ultimate disappearance.
In short, given our current conditions, we need careful thought in holding these attributes together. In themselves, and in the light of the nature of the church as Christ has established it, there is no tension, for this is what His church is. Nevertheless, in our fallen world and with its often-twisted and distorted features, from which professing Christians are by no means exempt, this is not a simple task.
Let us return to the initial comments about the propriety of the creed of Constantinople I. In light of what we have stated, its commitments are identical to those of Paul and the New Testament as a whole. This tells us something about the status and value of the ecumenical creeds. They reflect the teaching of the Bible and are an excellent shorthand way to understand its teachings. Moreover, they have been received and confessed for a millennium and a half by the faithful in all branches of the church. These statements tell us what Christians believe. Hence, regarding other commonly accepted early creeds, the Thirty-Nine Articles stated in Article 8:
The three Creeds, Nicene Creed, Athanasius’s Creed, and that which is commonly called the Apostles’ Creed, ought thoroughly to be received and believed: for they may be proved by most certain warrants of holy Scripture.
The pursuit of a wholesome goal of sound doctrine, increasingly valued and ever incisively probed, healthy living permeated by love for God and others, in the unity of the Holy Spirit and expressed in a churchly context, is at the heart of Christ’s purpose for us here and now.