Comment from Harborough churches: A special anniversary

I don’t know if you like anniversaries. Often these are happy and joyful occasions when we celebrate with our nearest and dearest. It could be a birthday, a wedding anniversary, or a significant milestone in our jobs.

Sometimes what we are remembering is more sombre. This includes the anniversary of the death of a loved one, or a national tragedy like the 7/7 terrorist attacks in London which happened twenty years ago this summer.

Another kind of anniversary is that marking significant historical moments such as discoveries or decisions that have been significant in shaping the world we live in. One such commemoration that may have passed us by is that 2025 marks the 1700th anniversary of the Nicene Creed.

This is an official statement of Christian belief that is still used in churches across the world today. It begins, “We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, of all that is seen and unseen.”

The Nicene Creed was not the earliest summary of Christianity. Other summary statements of Christian faith existed long before this, including those found in Paul’s letters in the Bible, which date to within about 20-30 years of Jesus’ crucifixion.

So why did the church at the time feel the need to write yet another creed? The answer is because the traditional understanding of Christianity was being questioned. In this case, some new ideas were being put forward by a man called Arius. He didn’t like the idea of the Son of God being eternal, and claimed instead that “there was a time when he was not”.

This undermined Jesus’ claims and that of his followers. For example, Jesus said on one occasion, “I and the Father are one”, and the apostle Paul described him as “being in very nature God”. But if the Son of God was not an eternal being, then he must instead be a created being. He could therefore not be fully God, and so must not be worshipped as such.

If you’ve drifted off to the sports page of the Harborough Mail by this point, I don’t blame you. After all, what relevance does this dusty old theological debate have for us today?

Well, if nothing else, it shows us that truth matters. No one wants to be taken in by lies, or “alternative facts” as they’re called these days. Following Jesus is costly. It means If he is not really God as he claimed, then we cannot know God through him; we cannot have eternal life. That is why Christians have always sought to defend the truth of their faith.

​

Stuart Allen, Pastor, Christchurch Harborough