Why oh why does "Religion" have to be so complicated?

[michel]

A couple of Sundays ago, I went to our local church, and was handed, as usual, the "Order of Service";
The Order for the celebration of
Holy Communion
also called
The Eucharist
and
The Lord's Supper
at
....Church, Bournemouth​

We come to "The Creed":-

All​

We believe in one God,
The Father, the Almighty,
Maker of Heaven and earth,
all that is seen, and all that is unseesn.
We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ,
The only Son of God,
eternally begotten of the Father,
God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made,
of one being with the Father.
Through him all things were made.
For us and for our salvation
he came down from Heaven;was incarnate from the Holy Spirit
and The Virgin Mary, and was made man.
For our sakes, he was crucified
under Pontious Pilate;
he suffered death and was burried.
On the third day he rose again
in accordance with the scriptures;
he ascended into Heaven
and is seated at the right hand of God the Father.
He will come again in Glory
to Judge the living and the dead,
and his Kingdom will have no end.
We 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 worshipped and Glorified,
who has spoken through the Prophets.
We believe in one catholic
and apostolic church.
We acknowledge one baptism for the
forgiveness of sins. We look for the resurrection
of the dead, and the life nof the world to come.
Amen

Why this "extended " creed? - which -to my frail mind- only serves to confuse me. Why do accepted texts have to be messed around with, made to sound more complicated (well, to me at least)?​

 

[oldcajun]

People make it that way. Religion, in and of itself is not a problem.

 

[michel]

People make it that way. Religion, in and of itself is not a problem.

But, surely "Religion" - I quote "Word IQ" defined as:-

Religion, sometimes used interchangeably with faith, is commonly defined as belief concerning the supernatural, sacred, or divine, and the practices and institutions associated with such belief. In its broadest sense some have defined it as the sum total of answers given to explain humankind's relationship with the universe. Religion takes an almost infinite number of forms in various cultures and individuals, but is dominated by a number of Major world religions.

almost is akin with "Political party" as opposed to "Politics"? Is not "Religion" the differentiation between one type of faith and another? - whereas, in its true sense, the should only be one Faith; one spirituality, ONE religion?

 

[Dunemeister]

I find the creeds simpler than the bible...

 

[Master Vigil]

Religion is complicated, only if you use words to describe it. But since we are a literary species now, it ends up being more complicated than it ever needed to be.

 

[rojse]

Why this "extended " creed? - which -to my frail mind- only serves to confuse me. Why do accepted texts have to be messed around with, made to sound more complicated (well, to me at least)?​

If it were easy to understand, it would be easy to refute. That's a cynic's view, anyway.

 

[Jordan St. Francis]

You have quoted the Nicene Creed, the definitive Creed of the early Church. Perhaps you are used to the more simple Apostle's Creed.

The Nicene Creed was forged in the midst of particular divisive heresies. The simplicity of the Apostle's Creed proved to be insufficient to make clear the immutable components of the Faith received once and for all.

 

[Charity]

I think that religion is only as complicated as you make it....
Or should I say as complicated as some people try to make it...Religions try to conform God to their ideals instead of going with God's leadership...

 

[ἀλήθεια]

The Nicene Creed was formulated to combat heresy. It comes from the truth that is in the Bible:

Nicene Creed

We believe in (Romans 10: 8-10; 1 John 4: 15)
ONE God, (Deuteronomy 6: 4, Ephesians 4: 6)
Father (Matthew 6: 9)
Almighty, (Exodus 6: 3)
Maker of Heaven and Earth, (Genesis 1: 1)
and of all things visible and invisible. (Colossians 1: 15-16)

And in ONE Lord Jesus Christ, (Acts 11: 17)
Son of God, (Mathew 14: 33; 16: 16)
Only-Begotten, (John 1: 18; 3: 16)
Begotten of the Father before all ages. (John 1: 2)
Light from Light; (Psalm 27: 1; John 8: 12; Matthew 17: 2,5)
True God from True God; (John 17: 1-5)
Begotten, not made; (John 1: 18)
of one essence with the Father (John 10: 30)
through whom all things were made; (Hebrews 1: 1-2)
Who for us men and for our salvation (1 Timothy 2: 4-5)
came down from heaven, (John 6: 33,35)
and was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary (Luke 1: 35)
and became man. (John 1: 14)
And He was crucified for us (Mark 15: 25; 1 Corinthians 15: 3)
under Pontius Pilate, (John 19: 6)
suffered, (Mark 8: 31)
and was buried. (Luke 23: 53; 1 Corinthians 15: 4)
And on the third day He rose again, according to the Scriptures, (Luke 24: 1 1 Corinthians 15: 4)
and ascended into heaven, (Luke 24: 51; Acts 1: 10)
and sits at the right hand of the Father; (Mark 16: 19; Acts 7: 55)
and He shall come again with glory (Matthew 24: 27)
to judge the living and the dead; (Acts 10: 42; 2 Timothy 4: 1)
Whose Kingdom shall have no end. (2 Peter 1: 11)

And in the Holy Spirit, (John 14: 26)
Lord, (Acts 5: 3-4)
Giver of Life, (Genesis 1: 2)
Who proceeds from the Father [and the Son]; (John 15: 26)
Who with the Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorified; (Matthew 3: 16-17)
Who spoke through the prophets. (1 Samuel 19: 20; Ezekiel 11: 5,13)

In one, (Matthew 16: 18) holy, (1 Peter 2: 5,9)
catholic*, (Mark 16: 15)
and apostolic Church. (Acts 2: 42; Ephesians 2: 19-22)

I acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins. (Ephesians 4: 5)
I look for the resurrection of the dead, (John 11: 24; 1 Corinthians 15: 12-49; Hebrews 6: 2; Revelation 20: 5)
and the life in the age to come. (Mark 10: 29-30)

 

[michel]

Thank you all for your answer, and comments.

The Nicene Creed was formulated to combat heresy. It comes from the truth that is in the Bible:

Nicene Creed

We believe in (Romans 10: 8-10; 1 John 4: 15)
ONE God, (Deuteronomy 6: 4, Ephesians 4: 6)
Father (Matthew 6: 9)
Almighty, (Exodus 6: 3)
Maker of Heaven and Earth, (Genesis 1: 1)
and of all things visible and invisible. (Colossians 1: 15-16)

And in ONE Lord Jesus Christ, (Acts 11: 17)
Son of God, (Mathew 14: 33; 16: 16)
Only-Begotten, (John 1: 18; 3: 16)
Begotten of the Father before all ages. (John 1: 2)
Light from Light; (Psalm 27: 1; John 8: 12; Matthew 17: 2,5)
True God from True God; (John 17: 1-5)
Begotten, not made; (John 1: 18)
of one essence with the Father (John 10: 30)
through whom all things were made; (Hebrews 1: 1-2)
Who for us men and for our salvation (1 Timothy 2: 4-5)
came down from heaven, (John 6: 33,35)
and was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary (Luke 1: 35)
and became man. (John 1: 14)
And He was crucified for us (Mark 15: 25; 1 Corinthians 15: 3)
under Pontius Pilate, (John 19: 6)
suffered, (Mark 8: 31)
and was buried. (Luke 23: 53; 1 Corinthians 15: 4)
And on the third day He rose again, according to the Scriptures, (Luke 24: 1 1 Corinthians 15: 4)
and ascended into heaven, (Luke 24: 51; Acts 1: 10)
and sits at the right hand of the Father; (Mark 16: 19; Acts 7: 55)
and He shall come again with glory (Matthew 24: 27)
to judge the living and the dead; (Acts 10: 42; 2 Timothy 4: 1)
Whose Kingdom shall have no end. (2 Peter 1: 11)

And in the Holy Spirit, (John 14: 26)
Lord, (Acts 5: 3-4)
Giver of Life, (Genesis 1: 2)
Who proceeds from the Father [and the Son]; (John 15: 26)
Who with the Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorified; (Matthew 3: 16-17)
Who spoke through the prophets. (1 Samuel 19: 20; Ezekiel 11: 5,13)

In one, (Matthew 16: 18) holy, (1 Peter 2: 5,9)
catholic*, (Mark 16: 15)
and apostolic Church. (Acts 2: 42; Ephesians 2: 19-22)

I acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins. (Ephesians 4: 5)
I look for the resurrection of the dead, (John 11: 24; 1 Corinthians 15: 12-49; Hebrews 6: 2; Revelation 20: 5)
and the life in the age to come. (Mark 10: 29-30)

Well, I guess that is about as comprehensible as one can get; my eye was caught (at the time, in church), by

I acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins. (Ephesians 4: 5)

Looking this up, of course, the KJV with defender's notes, makes it all the more "Muddy"

Whether this "one baptism" refers to Spirit baptism or water baptism has been extensively argued. Since both aspects of baptism are taught in the Bible, with water baptism being the visible sign and testimony to the Spirit's baptism, and since no modifying words or phrases are attached to the word here to identify it as one or the other, it is probable that both aspects are in view. It is implied that both go together in one unifying reality (see notes on 1 Corinthians 12:13; Romans 6:3-5).

Source:

KJV Defenders Study Bible, by Dr. Henry Morris, Ph.D.
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Language: English
DEF 10 ISBN 0-529-10444-x
DEF 10-1 ISBN 0-529-10445-8

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[illyena]

Not every religion is so complicated, I think stuff life the nicene creed was written to get consensus between differing christian sects of the day, it left out the more controvertial stuff and created a religion agreeable to the masses, and was written to be ambiguous enough to allow open inturpretation and complicated enough that only a theologen could inturpret it. god for the people controlled by the church. remember that the nicene creed is written by man based on the truth in the bible, and the bible has been changed, rearranged, edited, censored and ammended over the centuries so many of the truths in it have been lost or obscured.