Creed of Nicaea

Christianity

Written by

The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Last updated

June 23, 2026

Quick Summary

The Nicene Creed is a foundational statement of Christian belief, particularly concerning the Trinity. It affirms the belief in one God, who exists as three co-equal persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

The creed's origins trace back to the First Council of Nicaea in 325 CE. Emperor Constantine I convened this council to address the controversy of Arianism, a doctrine that denied the divinity of Christ. The council declared Arianism a heresy and established the divinity of Christ using the term homoousios, meaning "of one substance." This statement of faith, the Creed of Nicaea, is still authoritative in many Christian denominations today.1234

Summary created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

5 Britannica Sources

Ask Britannica AI about this topic

Britannica doesn't have a full article on this topic, so we've curated a list of our relevant coverage.

Council of Chalcedon
It approved the creed of Nicaea (325), the creed of Constantinople (381; subsequently known as the Nicene Creed), two letters of St. Cyril of Alexandria against Nestorius, which insisted on the unity of divine and human persons in Christ, and the Tome of Pope Leo I confirming
Read More
It approved the creed of Nicaea (325), the creed of Constantinople (381; subsequently known as the Nicene Creed), two letters of St. Cyril of Alexandria against Nestorius, which insisted on the unity of divine and human persons in Christ, and the Tome of Pope Leo I confirming
Read More

Arianism
History of controversy and conflict
…a heretic and issued a creed to safeguard “orthodox” Christian belief. The creed states that the Son is homoousion tō Patri (“of one substance with the Father”), thus declaring him to be all that the Father is: he is completely divine. In fact, however, this was only the beginning of…
Read More
…a heretic and issued a creed to safeguard “orthodox” Christian belief. The creed states that the Son is homoousion tō Patri (“of one substance with the Father”), thus declaring him to be all that the Father is: he is completely divine. In fact, however, this was only the beginning of…
Read More

Nicene Creed
History
…an enlarged version of the Creed of Nicaea, which was promulgated at the First Council of Nicaea (325). It was further assumed that this enlargement had been carried out at the First Council of Constantinople (381) with the object of bringing the Creed of Nicaea up to date in regard…
Read More
…an enlarged version of the Creed of Nicaea, which was promulgated at the First Council of Nicaea (325). It was further assumed that this enlargement had been carried out at the First Council of Constantinople (381) with the object of bringing the Creed of Nicaea up to date in regard…
Read More