Credo

Credo means 'I believe' in Latin, traditionally the official language of the Church. (Today, most Masses are held in the vernacular, though.)

It can be surprising sometimes to hear some of the things that people say Catholics believe. I've had people tell me that I worship Mary, the Pope, statues, a piece of bread...the list goes on. Actually, none of that is true, and these next few posts will be dedicated to setting the record straight.

First, take a look at the Nicene Creed. This statement of belief was developed in the 4th century, and is professed by Catholics at every Sunday Mass. (Note: 'Mass' is what we call a worship service.) I'm going to use the creed as a reference point for explaining our core beliefs in a simpler way. So, without further delay:

The Quick and Dirty Creed

We believe in one God who made everything, both concrete and abstract, like heaven and angels. There is no other God beside Him. However, God is present in three forms, or persons. The three persons all make up one God. They are:

Father- Yahweh, all-powerful, all-knowing, present everywhere, creator and judge. He is the God of the Jews in the Old Testament.

Son- Jesus (Christ), the savior of all mankind. God the Father formed Jesus from Himself ("begotten, not made" means they're the same in essence, just separated). After the fall of man from grace, we needed a redeemer to heal our shattered connection to the Father. Scripture explains what happened next: "For God so loved the world that He gave his only Son, that whoever believed in Him would not perish, but have eternal life" (John 3:16). Jesus came down from Heaven, and was born of a human woman (making Him both fully God and fully man, like us in every way except imperfection) to suffer and die for our sins/failings. Jesus is God, and in dying, He took our place before the Father so that we don't have to experience eternal punishment (Hell). After three days, however, Jesus miraculously rose from the dead, defeating death and suffering while promising all those who believed in Him the same--Heaven, eternal paradise with God, after we die. (Those who don't accept Jesus will still go to Hell.)

Holy Spirit- Wisdom, comforter, inspirer. The Holy Spirit is the drive in us to do good, to be moral, and to follow God faithfully.

We believe in only one Church that is protected by God; it is universal and has descended from Christ through his disciples and those who became leaders after them. We believe that baptism--a washing in water with prayer--washes away the original sin of Adam and Eve and gives us the strength to fight temptation. We believe that all the dead that accepted Jesus while alive will be given new life at the end of time.

Amen--"this is true"--this is what we believe.