Beliefs
“Jesus is Lord.”
- Romans 10:9
What does Saint Francis Xavier Parish believe?
We believe and profess all that the holy Catholic Church believes, teaches, and proclaims to be revealed by God.
What does the Catholic Church believe to be revealed by God?
One of the best summaries of the Catholic faith is the Nicene Creed which is recited at most Sunday Masses.
What does the Nicene Creed say?
I believe in one God,
the Father almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all things visible and invisible.
I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ,
the Only Begotten Son of God,
born of the Father before all ages.
God from God, Light from Light,
true God, from true God,
begotten, not made, consubstantial with the Father;
through him all things were made.
For us men and for our salvation
he came down from heaven,
and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary,
and became man.
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate,
he suffered death and was buried,
and rose again on the third day
in accordance with the Scriptures.
He ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory
to judge the living and the dead
and his kingdom will have no end.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father and the Son,
who with the Father and the Son is adored and glorified,
who has spoken through the prophets.
I believe in one holy, catholic and apostolic Church.
I confess one Baptism for the forgiveness of sins
and I look forward to the resurrection of the dead
and the life of the world to come. Amen.
Where does the Nicene Creed come from?
It comes from the Bible and Tradition as reflected upon in the mind of the Church.
The Nicene Creed is the result of a universal gathering of bishops that occurred in AD 325. It settled the major question of how Christians can worship one God who is three divine persons. It improved on the earlier Apostles’ Creed by including more specific language about the divinity of Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. It was accepted by entire early Church.
Why does the Nicene Creed matter?
It is not just the rule of faith for the Catholic Church, but for many other Christian churches.
Like the earlier Apostles’ Creed, it has the entire Gospel in a short and rich summary. It describes the God who is a Trinity of three divine persons, who turns to humanity in the person of the Son, Jesus Christ, who suffered, died, and rose from the dead. The Nicene Creed also expresses our hope in our own resurrection.
The Nicene Creed provides an authoritative summary of what the Bible and Tradition say about God and faith.