lums@soggy-fibers.ai.mit.edu (Andrew Lumsdaine) (03/07/91)
Sorry if this has been brought up before, but can someone briefly summarize the origins of the Apostles' Creed? In particular, I would like to know where the "He descended into Hell" comes from. I have seen some Scripture references (I Peter 3:19, I Peter 4:6, Luke 1:78-79, Ephesians 4:8-10), but find their applicability to this question somewhat tenuous. I am not trying to prove anything one way or the other; I would just like to know how this particular doctrine evolved. Thanks in advance, Andrew Andrew Lumsdaine "We don't understand the software, and lums@rice-chex.ai.mit.edu sometimes we don't understand the hardware, MIT RLE but we can *see* the blinking lights!" [Creeds seem to go back about as far as we can trace the history of the church. E.g. I Cor 15:3ff appears to be quoting a very early creed. Creeds were used to summarize the faith, for instruction and other purposes. They were commonly associated with baptism, just as today generally some sort of confession of faith is required of candidates for baptism or their parents. There are brief creeds with some of the same basic articles as the Apostle's Creed as early as 150. In fact Leith claims that all of the items in the Apostle's Creed can be found in creedal formulations from 100. But the earliest creed I know of that has a real resemblence to it seems to be the Interrogatory Creed of Hippolytus, ca. 215. It is believed that the current text first appeared in the 6th or 7th Cent., but the differences between that final form and earlier ones from the 3rd through 5th Cent. are minor. It seems to come from the Roman tradition, and in fact is sometimes known as the Roman Symbol. Use of the term Apostle's goes back at least to the 404. (This information all comes from Leith's "Creeds of the Churches".) I think you have the relevant Biblical references for "descended into hell". Some of our readers know more about patristic thought than I. Some of them may be familiar with some of the early sermons and other explanations of the creed. These would be the best basis for judging what the phrase meant within the tradition that actually developed it. In current explanations, I've heard ideas such as the following: - that Christ really experienced the full consequences of our sins, including the isolation from God that is its consequence. Christ's cry from the cross (Mk 15:14) can be taken as a reference to Ps 22, which ends in triumph. However it is sometimes taken to imply that Christ actually experienced the results of our sins. The descent into Hell would be another way of expressing this. - that Christ is Lord of the entire creation, including Hell, and he visited it to establish his Lordship. - that Christ visited Hell to preach to those who had not had the opportunity to hear when they were alive. (This seems to be the meaning of I Pet.) - one theory of the atonement involves the idea that Christ freed us from the threat of Hell by going to Hell and then breaking its power. Note that expecting the Creed to be based on Scripture is based on a Protestant concept of Church history. If the creedal tradition really goes back to before Paul, then creeds were developing in parallel with the Bible. Of course the later development of the creedal tradition would have been influenced by the Bible. But given the Catholic concept of doctrinal development I'm not sure the people involved in forming it would have said that the Bible was their only source. --clh]
dfausett@zach.fit.edu ( Donald W. Fausett) (06/23/91)
Last Sunday, I attended a Presbyterian (USA) church service
in which the minister mentioned that Jesus had spent three days
preaching in Hell. After the service, I asked my wife if she knew
what that comment referred to. She said that she thought it was
based on the Apostles' Creed. After a brief search, she found a
statement of the Apostles' Creed. Surely enough, it contains the
following:
"I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth:
And in Jesus Christ his only Son, our Lord; who was crucified, dead, and
buried; he descended into hell; the third day he rose again from the dead;
he ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father
Almighty; from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead.
"I believe in the Holy Ghost; the holy Catholic Church; the
communion of saints; the forgiveness of sins; the resurrection of the
body; and the life everlasting. Amen."
Perhaps this is an FAQ (frequently asked question), if so, please
forgive me, and point me in the right direction. Is the phrase, "he
descended into hell", based on scripture? Is it generally interpreted
literally, or is it interpreted as being synonymous with "continued in
the state of the dead, and under the power of death"? How many churches
(denominations) invoke the Creed as an article of faith? (I think that
the eastern orthodox churches do not.)
Thank you for any comments or discussion.
-- Don Fausett
[As far as I know, no denominations emphasize this belief, but just
about everybody uses the Apostles' Creed, and it's there. At the very
least it emphasizes the reality of Christ's death. The footnote in
the text used by the PCUSA ("continued in the state of death") seems
to be trying to limit the meaning to that. However it is also
connected with something called "the harrowing of hell", wherein
Christ, being unjustly sent to hell because he was bearing our sins,
broke out of it, and in the course of doing so, freed people from its
power. The Biblical reference is I Pet 3:19ff and 4:6. Exactly who
he brought with him in his escape from hell is something Christians
don't agree on. It varies depending upon your approach, from OT
patriarchs who were destined to be saved, but couldn't be until they
had a chance to accept Christ, to just about everyone. --clh]tblake@bingvaxu.cc.binghamton.edu (Thomas Blake) (06/25/91)
In article <Jun.22.21.16.38.1991.18150@athos.rutgers.edu> dfausett@zach.fit.edu ( Donald W. Fausett) writes: >... > "I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth: >And in Jesus Christ his only Son, our Lord; who was crucified, dead, and >buried; he descended into hell; the third day he rose again from the dead; >he ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father >Almighty; from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead. > "I believe in the Holy Ghost; the holy Catholic Church; the >communion of saints; the forgiveness of sins; the resurrection of the >body; and the life everlasting. Amen." > > Perhaps this is an FAQ (frequently asked question), if so, please >forgive me, and point me in the right direction. Is the phrase, "he >descended into hell", based on scripture? ... To which OFM replies (in part). >[As far as I know, no denominations emphasize this belief, but just >about everybody uses the Apostles' Creed, and it's there. At the very >least it emphasizes the reality of Christ's death. ... I learned "The Apostles' Creed" without the "He descended into Hell." there's a footnote in the UM Hymnal that some versions include it. Recently I read in an encyclopedia (if I recall correctly), that the orginal version of this creed did not include "He Descended into Hell", but that it was added later. Recently, my pastor (formerly Presbyterian with some High Church Episcopalian leanings) preached a sermon which used the "Apostles' Creed" (including "he descended into hell") as one of her central illustrations, so it appears that her background has certainly emphasized that line more than mine. Tom Blake SUNY-Binghamton
carroll@cs.washington.edu (Jeff Carroll) (06/27/91)
In article <Jun.22.21.16.38.1991.18150@athos.rutgers.edu> dfausett@zach.fit.edu ( Donald W. Fausett) writes: > > Last Sunday, I attended a Presbyterian (USA) church service >in which the minister mentioned that Jesus had spent three days >preaching in Hell. After the service, I asked my wife if she knew >what that comment referred to. She said that she thought it was >based on the Apostles' Creed. After a brief search, she found a >statement of the Apostles' Creed. Surely enough, it contains the >following: It depends on whose version of the Apostles' Creed you're using. When I was United Methodist, the phrase "he descended into hell" appeared in a footnote, much as an alternate reading would in a study Bible, but was never used. In the Episcopalian Prayer Book, the phrase "he descended to the dead" is used. I believe "he descended into hell" appeared in the 1928 BCP. >[As far as I know, no denominations emphasize this belief, but just >about everybody uses the Apostles' Creed, and it's there. At the very All the credal churches use the Apostles' Creed and the Nicene Creed, but in slightly variant forms. Some (whether most or not, I dunno) omit the language "he descended into hell" because they don't believe that He did. Don't forget that there are Protestant groups who don't use or believe in the use of creeds; but their members probably aren't interested in this thread anyway. -- Jeff Carroll carroll@ssc-vax.boeing.com
jhpb@garage.att.com (Joseph H Buehler) (07/01/91)
St. Augustine has a work that explains the Apostle's Creed, phrase by phrase. The descent into hell is not included. [Leith's "Creeds of the Churches" gives a number of early creeds from the Roman creedal tradition and related traditions. Apparently there wasn't a single agreed text until fairly late. It was more a credal tradition that was usually associated with Rome. However the variations were fairly small. Most of the creeds Leith gives as representatives do not have the descent into hell. The earliest one he gives that does have it is from Rufinus, based on the baptismal creed of his church, Aquileia. It is from c 404, roughly the same time as Augustine's. The descent into hell is in the final text adopted around 700. Of course this is just for the West. "At the Council of Florence the Eastern representatives declared that they knew nothing of an Apostles' Creed." (Leith) I apologize for an earlier statement that implied that the Eastern church accepts the Apostles' Creed. --clh]