The Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed (Symbol of Faith)

The Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed, adopted at the First Ecumenical Council (Nicaea, 325) and expanded at the Second Ecumenical Council (Constantinople, 381), is the foundational confession of Orthodox Christian faith. It is recited at every Divine Liturgy and at Baptism. The Orthodox text does not include the later Western interpolation of the Filioque (“and the Son”).

Tradition: Pan-Orthodox

Historical Background

The original Nicene Creed of 325 was composed primarily to combat the Arian heresy, which denied the full divinity of the Son. The Council of Constantinople in 381 expanded the Creed, particularly its articles on the Holy Spirit, to address the heresy of the Pneumatomachians (Macedonians), who denied the divinity of the Holy Spirit. This expanded form — the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed — became the standard baptismal and liturgical creed of the universal Church (Council of Constantinople, Canon 1 / Definition).

The Creed was declared complete and inalterable by the Council of Ephesus (431, Canon 7) and reaffirmed by the Council of Chalcedon (451). The later Western addition of the Filioque clause (“and the Son”) to the article on the Holy Spirit was never accepted by the Eastern Churches and remains a fundamental point of theological disagreement.

Article-by-Article Exposition

Article 1: God the Father

Greek: Pisteuo eis hena Theon, Patera, Pantokratora, poieten ouranou kai ges, horaton te panton kai aoraton.

English: “I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible.”

Dogmatic Content: This article affirms strict monotheism — there is one God, not many. God is identified as Father, which in Trinitarian theology refers specifically to the First Person of the Holy Trinity, the unoriginate source (arche) and cause (aitia) of the Godhead. The Father is the Monarch (monarchia) of the Trinity: the Son is begotten of the Father, and the Spirit proceeds from the Father. The title “Almighty” (Pantokrator) signifies God’s sovereign rule over all creation. “Maker of heaven and earth” affirms the doctrine of creation ex nihilo — God created all things from nothing, both the spiritual realm (“invisible”) and the material realm (“visible”) (Pomazansky, Orthodox Dogmatic Theology, Part II, ch. 1).

Heresy Addressed: Against all forms of polytheism, dualism (Gnosticism, Manichaeism), and any denial that the material world was created by the good God. Also implicitly against Marcion, who distinguished the Creator God from the Father of Jesus Christ.

Article 2: The Only-Begotten Son

Greek: Kai eis hena Kyrion, Iesoun Christon, ton Huion tou Theou, ton monogene, ton ek tou Patros gennethenta pro panton ton aionon. Phos ek Photos, Theon alethinon ek Theou alethinou, gennethenta ou poiethenta, homoousion to Patri, di’ hou ta panta egeneto.

English: “And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Only-Begotten, begotten of the Father before all ages. Light of Light, true God of true God, begotten not made, of one essence with the Father, by Whom all things were made.”

Dogmatic Content: This is the central anti-Arian article. “Only-Begotten” (monogenes) affirms the unique relationship of the Son to the Father — He is not a creature but is eternally generated from the Father’s own being. “Before all ages” (pro panton ton aionon) means this begetting is eternal, not temporal. “Light of Light” is a metaphor drawn from the Fathers: as light generates light without diminution, so the Father begets the Son without division of essence.

The crucial term is homoousios (“of one essence” or “consubstantial”) — the Son shares the identical divine essence with the Father. This term was championed by St. Athanasius of Alexandria and became the touchstone of Nicene orthodoxy. It means the Son is not merely “like” the Father (homoiousios) nor of a different essence (heteroousios), but is of the very same essence. “Begotten not made” (gennethenta ou poiethenta) distinguishes the Son’s eternal generation from the creation of creatures. “By Whom all things were made” affirms the Son as the agent of creation (cf. John 1:3; Colossians 1:16) (Pomazansky, Orthodox Dogmatic Theology, Part II, ch. 2; Athanasius, On the Decrees of Nicaea, 19-24).

Heresy Addressed: Arianism — the teaching of Arius that “there was a time when the Son was not,” that the Son is a creature, the first and greatest of creatures, but not truly God. Also against Semi-Arianism (homoiousios — “of similar essence”) and Anomoeanism (the Son is “unlike” the Father).

Article 3: The Incarnation

Greek: Ton di’ hemas tous anthropous kai dia ten hemeteran soterian katelthonta ek ton ouranon kai sarkothenta ek Pneumatos Hagiou kai Marias tes Parthenou kai enanthropesanta.

English: “Who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven, and was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary, and became man.”

Dogmatic Content: The Son’s incarnation is motivated by love for humanity and the divine will to save. “Came down from heaven” does not imply local movement of the divine nature but the condescension (synkatabasis) of assuming human nature. “Was incarnate” (sarkothenta) and “became man” (enanthropesanta) together affirm that the Son took on complete human nature — body and rational soul — not merely flesh. The Virgin Mary is named to affirm the historical reality of the Incarnation and her role as Theotokos (God-bearer). “Of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary” affirms the virginal conception (Pomazansky, Orthodox Dogmatic Theology, Part II, ch. 3).

Heresy Addressed: Docetism (Christ only appeared to be human), Apollinarianism (Christ had a human body but a divine mind, lacking a human rational soul), and any denial of the reality or completeness of Christ’s human nature.

Article 4: The Crucifixion

Greek: Staurothenta te hyper hemon epi Pontiou Pilatou, kai pathonta kai taphenta.

English: “And was crucified for us under Pontius Pilate, and suffered, and was buried.”

Dogmatic Content: The Crucifixion is a historical event — “under Pontius Pilate” anchors it in time. “For us” (hyper hemon) declares the soteriological purpose: Christ suffered and died for our salvation. The Orthodox understanding of the Atonement is multifaceted — it includes ransom, victory over death and the devil (Christus Victor), sacrifice, and healing — and is not reducible to any single Western juridical theory. “Suffered” affirms the reality of Christ’s human suffering (the divine nature, being impassible, does not suffer in itself, but the one Person who is God suffered in His human nature). “Was buried” affirms the reality of His death (Pomazansky, Orthodox Dogmatic Theology, Part II, ch. 3).

Heresy Addressed: Docetism again (denial of real suffering), Theopaschitism in its heretical form (claiming the divine nature itself suffered), and any attempt to deny the historicity of the Crucifixion.

Article 5: The Resurrection

Greek: Kai anastanta te trite hemera kata tas Graphas.

English: “And rose again on the third day, according to the Scriptures.”

Dogmatic Content: The bodily Resurrection of Christ is the cornerstone of Christian faith (1 Corinthians 15:14). “On the third day” is historically specific. “According to the Scriptures” (kata tas Graphas) refers to Old Testament prophecies (Hosea 6:2; Jonah 2:1 [Jonah 1:17 in some numbering]; Psalm 15/16:10) and anchors the event in the fulfillment of God’s plan. The Resurrection is not a metaphor but a bodily reality — Christ’s body was transformed, not abandoned. This is the foundation of the Orthodox Paschal theology: “Christ is risen from the dead, trampling down death by death, and upon those in the tombs bestowing life” (Paschal Troparion) (Pomazansky, Orthodox Dogmatic Theology, Part II, ch. 3).

Heresy Addressed: Denial of bodily resurrection, Gnostic spiritualizing of the Resurrection.

Article 6: The Ascension

Greek: Kai anelthonta eis tous ouranous kai kathezomenon ek dexion tou Patros.

English: “And ascended into heaven, and sits at the right hand of the Father.”

Dogmatic Content: The Ascension affirms that Christ’s glorified human nature is now enthroned in heaven. “Sits at the right hand of the Father” is not spatial but expresses equal honor, authority, and glory with the Father. Christ did not lay aside His humanity at the Ascension — He remains the God-Man forever. The Ascension also makes possible the sending of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost (John 16:7) (Pomazansky, Orthodox Dogmatic Theology, Part II, ch. 3).

Heresy Addressed: Any denial of the permanence of the Incarnation, or the suggestion that Christ “shed” His humanity after completing His earthly work.

Article 7: The Second Coming

Greek: Kai palin erchomenon meta doxes krinai zontas kai nekrous, hou tes basileias ouk estai telos.

English: “And He shall come again with glory to judge the living and the dead, Whose Kingdom shall have no end.”

Dogmatic Content: Christ will return visibly, personally, and gloriously — not secretly or spiritually only. He will judge all humanity, both those alive at His coming and those who have died. “Whose Kingdom shall have no end” affirms the eternal nature of Christ’s reign, against any suggestion that the Kingdom is temporary (Pomazansky, Orthodox Dogmatic Theology, Part II, ch. 3).

Heresy Addressed: Marcellus of Ancyra’s teaching that the Son’s Kingdom would come to an end, and the Son would be reabsorbed into the Father. Also against any reduction of eschatology to mere symbolism.

Article 8: The Holy Spirit

Greek: Kai eis to Pneuma to Hagion, to Kyrion, to Zoopoion, to ek tou Patros ekporeuomenon, to syn Patri kai Huio symproskynoumenon kai syndoxazomenon, to lalesan dia ton propheton.

English: “And in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the Giver of Life, Who proceeds from the Father, Who together with the Father and the Son is worshipped and glorified, Who spoke through the prophets.”

Dogmatic Content: This article, added at Constantinople in 381, addresses the divinity of the Holy Spirit. “The Lord” (to Kyrion) — the Spirit is Lord, i.e., God. “Giver of Life” (to Zoopoion) — the Spirit is the source of all life, both natural and spiritual. “Who proceeds from the Father” (to ek tou Patros ekporeuomenon) describes the Spirit’s eternal mode of origin, distinct from the Son’s generation. The word ekporeusis (procession) is used (cf. John 15:26). The Orthodox Church teaches that the Spirit proceeds from the Father alone as the sole cause within the Trinity, while acknowledging that the Spirit is sent through the Son in the temporal mission (the economic Trinity). “Worshipped and glorified together with the Father and the Son” affirms the Spirit’s equal divinity — if the Spirit is co-worshipped, He must be co-divine (Pomazansky, Orthodox Dogmatic Theology, Part II, ch. 4; Lossky, The Mystical Theology of the Eastern Church, ch. 3).

The Filioque controversy: The Western Church added “and the Son” (Filioque) to this article, first locally in Visigothic Spain — at the Third Council of Toledo (589) King Reccared professed that the Spirit “proceeds from the Father and the Son” [Disputed: whether the word Filioque stood in the creedal text of Toledo III itself is questioned; A. E. Burn (1908) and A. E. Siecienski note that early copies of the acts lack the phrase, suggesting either an already-interpolated creed or later editing of the acts (Siecienski, The Filioque: History of a Doctrinal Controversy, Oxford, 2010)] — and eventually throughout the West. The Orthodox Church rejects this addition on two grounds: (1) it violates the prohibition of the Council of Ephesus against altering the Creed; (2) it distorts Trinitarian theology by introducing two causes or principles in the Trinity, undermining the Father’s unique Monarchy. St. Photius the Great wrote extensively against the Filioque in his Mystagogy of the Holy Spirit.

Heresy Addressed: Pneumatomachians (Macedonians) — those who denied the divinity of the Holy Spirit, calling Him a creature or a minister. Named after Macedonius, Bishop of Constantinople.

Article 9: The Church

Greek: Eis mian, hagian, katholiken kai apostoliken Ekklesian.

English: “In one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church.”

Dogmatic Content: The four marks (notae) of the Church:

One (mian): The Church is one because God is one, Christ is one, and the Spirit is one. There are not multiple churches; there is one Church with many local expressions. Schism is a wound against this unity.
Holy (hagian): The Church is holy not because its members are sinless, but because Christ, the Holy Spirit, and the means of grace dwelling within her are holy. The Church sanctifies her members.
Catholic (katholiken): “Catholic” (katholikos) means “according to the whole” or “universal.” It refers not merely to geographical extent but to fullness of faith — the Church possesses the whole truth. Each local church celebrating the Eucharist manifests the fullness of the catholic Church.
Apostolic (apostoliken): The Church is founded on the Apostles, preserves apostolic teaching, and maintains apostolic succession through the episcopate.

(Pomazansky, Orthodox Dogmatic Theology, Part III; Khomiakov, The Church is One)

Heresy Addressed: Ecclesiological errors — Donatism (the Church must consist only of the pure), denominationalism (the Church is divided into branches), and any ecclesiology that reduces the Church to an invisible, purely spiritual reality.

Article 10: Baptism

Greek: Homologomen hen baptisma eis aphesin hamartion.

English: “I acknowledge one Baptism for the remission of sins.”

Dogmatic Content: “One Baptism” means Baptism is unrepeatable — it imparts an indelible seal. Baptism effects the forgiveness of sins (both ancestral sin and personal sins committed before Baptism) and incorporation into the Body of Christ. “I acknowledge” (homologomen — literally “we confess”) is a public profession. The singularity of Baptism also raises the question of whether baptisms performed outside the canonical boundaries of the Church are valid — a question on which Orthodox practice has varied historically (Pomazansky, Orthodox Dogmatic Theology, Part III).

Heresy Addressed: Rebaptism movements (Donatists and others who insisted on rebaptizing those baptized by unworthy ministers), and any denial of baptismal regeneration.

Article 11: The Resurrection of the Dead

Greek: Prosdokomen anastasin nekron.

English: “I look for the resurrection of the dead.”

Dogmatic Content: This affirms the future, universal, bodily resurrection of all the dead at the Second Coming. It is not a resurrection of spirits alone but of bodies — the same bodies, transformed and glorified (1 Corinthians 15:42-44). The human person is body and soul together; salvation encompasses both. This distinguishes Christianity from Platonic dualism, which viewed the body as a prison to be escaped (Pomazansky, Orthodox Dogmatic Theology, Part IV).

Heresy Addressed: Gnostic denial of bodily resurrection, Origenist theories of purely spiritual resurrection [Disputed: the fifteen anti-Origenist anathemas transmitted with Constantinople II (553) are absent from the council’s official acts; Richard Price argues they were adopted at a pre-conciliar session, while the formal condemnation of Origenist teaching goes back to the edict and synod of 543 (Price, The Acts of the Council of Constantinople of 553, Liverpool UP, 2009)].

Article 12: The Life of the Age to Come

Greek: Kai zoen tou mellontos aionos. Amen.

English: “And the life of the age to come. Amen.”

Dogmatic Content: The final article looks beyond the resurrection to eternal life — not mere unending existence, but the fullness of communion with God, which is theosis (deification). “The age to come” (ho mellon aion) is the eschatological consummation when God will be “all in all” (1 Corinthians 15:28). “Amen” seals the entire Creed as a solemn affirmation of personal faith and the Church’s common confession (Pomazansky, Orthodox Dogmatic Theology, Part IV).

Heresy Addressed: Annihilationism (denial of eternal life), and universalism in its heterodox forms [Disputed: whether and how Origen’s apokatastasis was conciliarly condemned is debated — the anathemas of 543 and the fifteen anathemas associated with the 553 council condemn a specific Origenist system, but the latter are absent from the council’s official acts (Price, The Acts of the Council of Constantinople of 553, Liverpool UP, 2009)].

The Creed in Liturgical Use

The Creed is sung or recited at every celebration of the Divine Liturgy, immediately before the Anaphora (Eucharistic Prayer). It is also recited at Baptism (the catechumen or sponsor confesses the faith), at Compline, at the Midnight Office, and in personal prayer rules. In Russian usage, it is customary for the entire congregation to sing the Creed together.

The Filioque: A Summary of the Orthodox Position

The Orthodox objection to the Filioque is both canonical and theological:

Canonical: The Councils of Ephesus (431) and Chalcedon (451) prohibited additions to the Creed. The Filioque was added unilaterally by the Western Church without an Ecumenical Council.
Theological: The Father alone is the cause (aitia) and source (pege) of the Godhead. To say the Spirit proceeds from the Father “and the Son” either introduces two causes (contradicting the Monarchy of the Father) or subordinates the Spirit to the Son. St. Photius the Great argued this extensively in his Mystagogy of the Holy Spirit. St. Mark of Ephesus defended the Orthodox position at the Council of Florence (1438-1439) and refused to sign the decree of union.

(Lossky, The Mystical Theology of the Eastern Church, ch. 3; Photius, Mystagogy of the Holy Spirit)

References

Pomazansky, Michael. Orthodox Dogmatic Theology. Platina: St. Herman of Alaska Brotherhood, 1994.
Lossky, Vladimir. The Mystical Theology of the Eastern Church. Cambridge: James Clarke, 1957.
Athanasius of Alexandria. On the Decrees of Nicaea.
Photius the Great. Mystagogy of the Holy Spirit.
Khomiakov, Alexei. The Church is One.
Price, Richard. The Acts of the Council of Constantinople of 553. 2 vols. Liverpool: Liverpool University Press, 2009.
Siecienski, A. Edward. The Filioque: History of a Doctrinal Controversy. New York: Oxford University Press, 2010.
The Canons of the First Ecumenical Council (Nicaea, 325).
The Canons of the Second Ecumenical Council (Constantinople, 381).
The Canons of the Third Ecumenical Council (Ephesus, 431).