The Apostles' Creed.
The oldest summary of Christian belief still in regular use in the Western church. Three English translations, the original Latin, and a short commentary on each clause. Used in baptismal liturgies for at least 1,700 years and still recited weekly across the Anglican, Lutheran, Catholic, and Reformed traditions.
The text, in four versions
Anglican traditional
Book of Common Prayer (1662)
I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth: And in Jesus Christ his only Son our Lord, Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, Born of the Virgin Mary, Suffered under Pontius Pilate, 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 Catholick Church; The Communion of Saints; The Forgiveness of sins; The Resurrection of the body, And the Life everlasting. Amen.
Ecumenical contemporary
ICET (1988)
I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth. I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried; he descended to the dead. On the third day he rose again; he ascended into heaven, he is seated at the right hand of the Father, and he will come to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.
Contemporary Roman Catholic
USCCB (current)
I believe in God, the Father almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried; he descended into hell; on the third day he rose again from the dead; he ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty; from there he will come to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting. Amen.
Original
Latin (Textus Receptus, ca. 8th c.)
Credo in Deum Patrem omnipotentem, Creatorem caeli et terrae. Et in Iesum Christum, Filium eius unicum, Dominum nostrum, qui conceptus est de Spiritu Sancto, natus ex Maria Virgine, passus sub Pontio Pilato, crucifixus, mortuus, et sepultus, descendit ad inferos, tertia die resurrexit a mortuis, ascendit ad caelos, sedet ad dexteram Dei Patris omnipotentis, inde venturus est iudicare vivos et mortuos. Credo in Spiritum Sanctum, sanctam Ecclesiam catholicam, sanctorum communionem, remissionem peccatorum, carnis resurrectionem, vitam aeternam. Amen.
A short history
Despite its name, the creed was not composed by the apostles in a single sitting (a medieval legend imagined each apostle contributing one clause). It developed gradually out of the baptismal interrogations of the early Roman church — the questions a candidate was asked to answer "I believe" to before being immersed. The earliest known form is the Old Roman Creed, datable to the late second century. The version recited today (the so-called Received Text) was standardised in Gaul around the eighth century.
It is called "Apostles'" not because the Twelve wrote it but because it summarises the apostolic faith — the same doctrinal core preached in Acts and the Epistles. It is the shortest of the three classical creeds (Apostles', Nicene, Athanasian) and remains the everyday confession of faith in Western Christianity.
Clause by clause
I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth
Three claims in one line. God is personal (Father), supreme (almighty), and the source of everything that exists (creator). The creed begins with creation because the Christian story does — Genesis 1 is the first word.
And in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord
Four titles: Jesus (his given name, "the Lord saves"), Christ (Messiah, anointed one), only Son (uniquely God's own), and Lord (the Greek kyrios, the New Testament's word for the divine name). All four point to the same person.
Conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary
The Incarnation in two clauses. The Spirit acts; the Virgin bears. Christianity does not say Jesus appeared as a god in disguise — he was conceived, gestated, and born like any human child.
Suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried
The naming of Pilate roots the story in datable history — a real Roman governor of Judea (AD 26–36). The four verbs progress through stages of death: suffered, crucified, died, buried. Each is affirmed against ancient heresies that denied one or another.
He descended to the dead
Sometimes "descended into hell" (the older translation of Latin inferos, meaning the realm of the dead rather than the place of damnation). The clause affirms that Christ truly died and entered the state of the dead before rising — and, in some traditions, preached to the souls there (1 Peter 3:18–20).
On the third day he rose again from the dead
The pivot of the creed. "Third day" is counted inclusively from Friday: Friday, Saturday, Sunday. The Resurrection is presented as bodily and historical, not metaphorical.
He ascended into heaven, is seated at the right hand of the Father, will come to judge the living and the dead
Three movements: ascended (Acts 1), seated (the present reign of Christ), and will come again (the eschatological hope). The right hand is the place of authority — the Son is enthroned, not absent.
I believe in the Holy Spirit
The Third Person of the Trinity, introduced briefly. The Nicene Creed develops this clause much further; the Apostles' simply confesses it.
The holy catholic Church, the communion of saints
"Catholic" here means universal, not Roman Catholic specifically — the whole worldwide church across denominations. "Communion of saints" means the fellowship of all believers, living and departed, in one body.
The forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting
The three ends. The forgiveness already given, the resurrection still to come, and the life that follows it. Note the strikingly physical "resurrection of the body" rather than "immortality of the soul" — Christian hope is for renewed creation, not disembodied escape.
FAQ
Did the apostles actually write it?
No. The "apostles'" in the title means it summarises the apostolic faith — the same doctrinal core preached in Acts and the Epistles — not that the Twelve sat down and composed it. A medieval legend imagined each apostle contributing one of twelve clauses, but historians have known since the Renaissance that the creed developed gradually out of baptismal liturgies in the early Roman church.
What does "catholic" mean here?
"Catholic" comes from the Greek katholikē, meaning "universal" or "according to the whole." The creed is confessing belief in the worldwide church of Christ, not in the Roman Catholic denomination specifically. Protestants and Catholics alike use this clause in good conscience.
What is "he descended into hell"?
The original Latin says descendit ad inferos — "he descended to the dead" or "to the realm of the dead." The clause is about Christ truly dying and entering the state of the dead between Good Friday and Easter Sunday, not about him going to the place of damnation. Some traditions also draw on 1 Peter 3:18–20 to understand it as Christ's "harrowing of hell," proclaiming victory to the souls there.
How old is this creed?
The earliest form (the Old Roman Creed) is datable to the late second century — within living memory of the apostles. The form recited today was standardised in Gaul around the eighth century. So the creed itself is around 1,200 years old in its current wording, with roots that go back about 1,800 years.
Is this the same as the Nicene Creed?
No. The Nicene Creed (AD 325, expanded 381) is longer and addresses specific fourth-century controversies about the divinity of Christ and the Holy Spirit. The Apostles' Creed is shorter, older in its core, and used more as a baptismal confession. Most Sunday liturgies in the Reformed and Lutheran traditions use the Apostles'; the Nicene is more common in Catholic and Orthodox Sunday worship.
Related tools
Say it slowly. Then learn what's behind each line.
Kerygma's Theology category covers the doctrinal claims of the creed — Trinity, Incarnation, Resurrection, the church, the last things — in trivia rounds that pair with this confession. Free for seven days.
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