As we celebrate the 17th anniversary of the council of Nicaea, we do well to remember those who did all that they could to contend for the faith that was once for all given to the saints. One of those men was a well-respected African theologian and Church father, Athanasius 1 of Alexandria. As a … Read more
Vincent of Lérins is commonly employed by Roman Catholics as a stalwart defender of the Magisterium’s infallibility (e.g. Guarino, 2006, 2013; Congar, 1997, 2004; John Henry Newman, 1845; etc.). His Commonitorium provides an early intellectual case for the rule of orthodoxy: universality, antiquity, and consent. More specifically, ecumenical councils provide judgments of the Church as … Read more
Explores the historical development of Trinitarianism, situationally driven by the challenges of Arianism, as seen in Christology at the First Council of Nicea (325 AD) and Pneumatology at the First Council of Constantinople (381-383 AD). Includes the examination of developing Pneumatology post-Nicea, and how Arianism came to be seen as threatening, not just the divinity … Read more
This paper explores the pneumatological affirmations of the Nicene Creed on the Holy Spirit as “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” as a robust theological remedy for a self/identity fragmented … Read more
Textual criticism is deeply fundamentally church history, yet it also presents an enduring challenge for the church. How can the church assert that it is founded upon the Scriptures while simultaneously engaging in the process of establishing the Scriptures themselves? This apparent paradox has been central to both orthodoxy and orthopraxy since the earliest days … Read more
The virgin Mary’s obscurity in modern evangelicalism outside of Christ belies the significant role she played in early Christian debates, doctrine, and creeds. Though absent from the 325 A.D. version of the Nicene creed, Mary appears in the Constantinople version as well as the earlier Apostle’s Creed. Though she did not formally receive the title … Read more
It has long been observed that churches in the Free Church tradition, with its emphasis on ‘the autonomy of the local church,’ often see little value in creedal affirmations and prefer to ask the question: ‘Where stands it written [in Scripture]?’ In fact, Donald Durnbaugh in his classic ‘The Believers’ Church: The History and Character … Read more
There has been much scholarly interest in trinitarianism among evangelical scholars. Part of this interest is a renewed evangelical ressourcement of Nicene writers. To give a sample, non-exhaustive list of books on the Trinity in the last ten years which draw on Nicene writers: Barrett, On Classical Trinitarianism (2024); Butner, Trinitarian Dogmatics (2022); Letham, The … Read more
This study explores the historical and theological foundations of the Baptist Faith & Message (2000) by examining the relationship between some Southern Baptists’ self-identification as a non-creedal tradition and the significant role of creeds and confessions in shaping Southern Baptist beliefs and practices. This work highlights the historical dependence of Baptists on creeds for doctrinal … Read more
This paper seeks to explore the way Hebrews 1 shows us that the Son is God in the same way that the Father is God while distinguishing between the persons of the Father and the Son. This concept is formalized in the Nicene-Constantinople Creed, particularly with the Son being “Light from Light” and Homoousia with … Read more