Creeds and Confessions of the Lutheran Church

Three Chief Creeds (Symbols)

The Apostle's Creed
The Nicene Creed
The Athanasian Creed

Confessions

The Augsburg Confession
Luther's Small Catechism 
Luther's Large Catechism

 

                      The Apostle's Creed

                     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. The
                     third day He rose again from the dead.
                    He ascended into heaven and sits at the
                    right hand of God, the Father Almighty.
                    From thence He will come to judge the
                      living and the dead. I believe in the
                    Holy Spirit, the holy Christian church,*
                    the communion of saints, the forgiveness
                      of sins, the resurrection of the body,
                        and the life everlasting. Amen.
                   *The ancient text: the holy catholic Church
                                  ***
 

                        The Nicene Creed

                   I believe in one God, the Father Almighty,
                   maker of heaven and earth and of all things
                   visible and invisible. And in one Lord Jesus
                 Christ, the only begotten Son of God, begotten
                  of his Father before all worlds, God of God,
                 Light of Light, very God of very God, begotten,
                   not made, being of one substance with the
                   Father, by whom all things were made; who
                  for us men and for our salvation, came down
                   from heaven, and was incarnate by the Holy
                  Spirit of the virgin Mary and was made man;
                   and was crucified also for us under Pontius
                  Pilate. He suffered and was buried. And the
                    third day he rose again according to the
                   Scriptures, and ascended into heaven, and
                  sits at the right hand of the Father. And he will
                  come again with glory to judge both the living
                 and the dead, whose kingdom will have no end.
                  And I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord and
                 giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and
                the Son, who with the Father and the Son together
                  is worshiped and glorified, who spoke by the
                prophets. And I believe in one holy Christian and
                 apostolic Church,* I acknowledge one baptism
              for the remission of sins, and I look for the resurrection
                  of the dead, and the life of the world to come.
                                 Amen.
              *The ancient text: one holy catholic and apostolic Church
                                  ***
 

 The Athanasian Creed

          Whoever will be saved shall, above all else, hold the catholic faith.
             Which faith, except everyone keeps whole and undefiled,
                     without doubt he will perish eternally.
         And the catholic faith is this, that we worship one God in three persons
           and three persons in one God, neither confusing the persons nor
                           dividing the substance.
             For there is one person of the Father, another of the Son,
                        and another of the Holy Spirit.
       But the Godhead of the Father, of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit is all one:
                     the glory equal, the majesty coeternal.
           Such as the Father is, such is the Son, and such is the Holy Spirit.
        The Father uncreated, the Son uncreated, and the Holy Spirit uncreated.
              The Father incomprehensible, the Son incomprehensible,
                     and the Holy Spirit incomprehensible.
           The Father eternal, the Son eternal, and the Holy Spirit eternal.
                And yet they are not three eternals but one eternal.
            As there are not three uncreated nor three incomprehensibles
                  but one uncreated and one incomprehensible.
               So likewise the Father is Almighty, the Son Almighty,
                        and the Holy Spirit Almighty.
              And yet they are not three Almighties but one Almighty.
          So the Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Spirit is God.
                  And yet they are not three Gods but one God.
        So likewise the Father is Lord, the Son Lord, and the Holy Spirit Lord.
                 And yet they are not three Lords but one Lord.
         For as we are compelled by the Christian truth to acknowledge every
       person by himself to be both God and Lord, so we cannot by the catholic
                faith say that there are three Gods or three Lords.
              The Father is made of none, neither created or begotten.
          The Son is of the Father alone, not made nor created but begotten.
        The Holy Spirit is of the Father and of the Son, neither made nor created
                        nor begotten but proceeding.
                    So there is one Father, not three Fathers,
                         One Son, not three Sons,
                    One Holy Spirit, not three Holy Spirits.
                 And in this Trinity none is before or after another,
                      none is greater or less than another.
           But the whole three persons are coeternal together and coequal,
                 so that in all things aforesaid, the Unity in Trinity
                   and the Trinity in Unity is to be worshipped.
        He, therefore, that will be saved is compelled thus to think of the Trinity.
         Furthermore, it necessary to everlasting salvation that he also believe
                 faithfully the incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ.
       For the right faith is that we believe and confess that our Lord Jesus Christ,
                       the Son of God, is God and man;
           God of the substance of the Father, begotten before the worlds;
             and man of the substance of his mother, born in the world;
                Perfect God and perfect man, of a reasonable soul
                         and human flesh subsisting.
                  Equal to the Father as touching his Godhead
                and inferior to the Father as touching his manhood;
          Who, although he is God and man, yet he is not two but one Christ:
                One, not by conversion of the Godhead into flesh
                     but by taking the manhood into God;
                  One altogether, not by confusion of substance
                           but by unity of person.
                 For as the reasonable soul and flesh is one man,
                       So God and man is one Christ;
                Who suffered for our salvation, descended into hell,
                     rose again the third day from the dead.
           He ascended into heaven, he sits at the right hand of the Father,
       God Almighty, from whence he will come to judge the living and the dead.
              At whose coming all men will rise again with their bodies
                  and will give an account of their own works.
              And they that have done good will go into life everlasting;
                 and they that have done evil, into everlasting fire.
            This is the catholic faith which, except a man believe faithfully
                       and firmly, he cannot be saved.