Can someone let me know more about the Apostles Creed please.
Sister, we used to recite that Creed in our big Presbyterian church every week, when I was a new Christian; it is recited in many, many Protestant churches. But in the smaller Presbyterian churches I belonged to, it was not recited. It wasn't mandatory.
It says:
I believe in God, the Father Almighty, the Maker of Heaven and earth; and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord:
Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried;
He descended into Hell.
The third day He arose again from the dead;
He ascended into Heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Ghost; the holy catholic church; the communion of saints; the forgiveness of sins; the resurrection of the body; and the life everlasting.
Amen.
Baptists are not "creedal" people, preferring to stick to the Bible alone; but, as creeds go, the Apostles' Creed is a good one, the best I've seen. It contains the gospel of the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ (1 Cor. 15), refers to our final resurrection, and to the reality of Heaven.
It does not explain how to become a Christian, but that isn't the purpose of a creed; the purpose is to declare what a group of Christians believe.
There are two lines in the Creed that worry people. One is "He descended into Hell;" as Bible believers, we know that He did, and it's not a stumbling block to us. But plenty of people in "mainline" churches just can't accept it. They think it sounds blasphemous.
The other thing is the line about the "holy catholic church." But notice that "Catholic" isn't capitalized. It simply means "universal," the body of Christ. A Catholic could recite this creed, and mentally capitalize the "C," but I don't know why they would: the Creed only mentions Mary in passing, and says nothing about Peter or Rome. The "Latin Rite" segment of the Catholic Church uses it, but they use many other creeds that spell out their other teachings, too. The Apostles' Creed is historically associated with the "reformed" churches: not the Calvinists, but simply the non-Catholics.
When I pastored a church, we didn't recite this or any other creed; like I say, that's not a Baptist practice. But if I visit a church that recites it, I can join in quite enthusiastically.
The title is kind of a swerve, or gimmick: we are to believe that the Apostles wrote it, or that it summarized their teachings. (The latter statement may be true.) The idea that it comes from the Apostles started in the 5th century.
The Creed is used by Presbyterians, Anglicans/Episcopalians, Methodists, Congregationalists, and others. But nobody has to use it; and, sadly, most of the people who recite it every week are zooming toward Hell like a martin to the gourd.
Hope this helps.
As a preteen, I went occasionally to the Episcopal church, mainly for Easter and Christmas, and when my sisters did.
I remember the entire congregation standing and reciting this creed (and the Nicene Creed), using the Book of Common Prayer. When I came across something that I wasn't sure that I believed in ('holy catholic church'), I wouldn't say it, I'd just mouth it.
Even then I was perverse! 
Okay, William, if Mrs H doesn't mind, would you like to 'splain the Nicene Creed to us?
The Nicene Creed from the 1662 Book of Common Prayer:
I believe in one God the Father Almighty,
Maker of Heaven and earth,
And of all things visible and invisible:
And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God,
Begotten of his Father before all worlds,
God of God, Light of Light,
Very God of very God,
Begotten, not made,
Being of one substance with the Father,
By whom all things were made;
Who for us men, and for our salvation came down from Heaven,
And was incarnate by the Holy Ghost of the Virgin Mary,
And was made man,
And was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate.
He suffered and was buried,
And the third day he rose again according to the Scriptures,
And ascended into Heaven,
And sitteth on the right hand of the Father.
And he shall come again with glory to judge both the quick and the dead:
Whose kingdom shall have no end.
And I believe in the Holy Ghost,
The Lord and giver of life,
Who proceedeth from the Father and the Son,
Who with the Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorified,
Who spake by the Prophets.
And I believe one Catholick and Apostolick Church.
I acknowledge one Baptism for the remission of sins.
And I look for the Resurrection of the dead,
And the life of the world to come.
Amen.
It would be very educational and mentally beneficial for the sake of a teaching tool.
The problem for some of us, especially children, is that it becomes a methodical "going through the motions" of reciting, and not meditating on the message.
Also, if the basis of the teaching is not taught and explained, the people reciting it have no frame of reference to clarify the message, and so it remains nonsensical and obscure to them.
It's still a good thing, I believe.
Well we went to Chapel and were told the Apostles wrote the Apostles creed.
The sermon was on the creed and all scipture quotes from an NIV Pastor were done from the KJB to match the creed.....Hahahaha!!!!!!
(05-30-2010 02:17 PM)MrsHayseed Wrote: [ -> ]Well we went to Chapel and were told the Apostles wrote the Apostles creed.
The sermon was on the creed and all scipture quotes from an NIV Pastor were done from the KJB to match the creed.....Hahahaha!!!!!!
Yes, the Catholics teach that the Apostles wrote it on or after the Day of Pentecost. Others say that it was written about a week after the Ascension. (As I said earlier, this is odd, because it's not a terribly Catholic creed; but then, a Catholic priest or scholar would rather lie than eat or breathe.) However, this idea of the Creed's origin wasn't put forth until around 600 A.D. Also, the Catholics have several different versions of the Creed; the one most frequently used omits "Maker of Heaven and Earth."
Why do the Catholics go to such lengths to lie about a creed that isn't really theirs? Two reasons: to associate themselves with the Apostles, and emphasize the stupid, damnable idea of "Apostolic Succession;" and also to co-opt a pretty good creed, like they try to co-opt everything else. The Catholics would claim that one of the Popes invented the automobile, if they could get away with it.
(05-30-2010 03:57 PM)William Wrote: [ -> ]The Catholics would claim that one of the Popes invented the automobile, if they could get away with it.
Well probably the Popemobile is antichrist's donkey anyways.
LOL Sister, that reminds me of a joke that Ruckman tells.
A Bible-believing, no-nonsense woman visited a fancy, highfalutin "mainline church." Whenever the preacher would mention God or Jesus or the Bible, she'd yell, "Amen!" But this wasn't that kind of church, and her enthusiasm was not welcome, Finally, after she'd done it once too often, two ushers came, gently took her by the arms, and began to escort her out. "AAAAMEN!" she cried. One of the ushers said, "Why are you saying that now ?"
She answered, "Praise God! My Lord Jesus only had one jackass to carry Him, and I've got two!"
(05-30-2010 06:07 PM)William Wrote: [ -> ]LOL Sister, that reminds me of a joke that Ruckman tells.
A Bible-believing, no-nonsense woman visited a fancy, highfalutin "mainline church." Whenever the preacher would mention God or Jesus or the Bible, she'd yell, "Amen!" But this wasn't that kind of church, and her enthusiasm was not welcome, Finally, after she'd done it once too often, two ushers came, gently took her by the arms, and began to escort her out. "AAAAMEN!" she cried. One of the ushers said, "Why are you saying that now ?"
She answered, "Praise God! My Lord Jesus only had one jackass to carry Him, and I've got two!"
LOL... oh my....