Eusebius, of Cæsarea. A.D. 325

Socrates, Hist. Eccl. Lib. I. cap. 8.

Eusebius, Bishop of Cæsarea, in Palestine (d. 340), the Church historian, the friend and eulogist of Constantine I., and a leading member of the Council of Nicæa (325), forms the connecting link between the ante-Nicene and the Nicene Church. In his account of that Council he mentions the following creed, which his church in Cæsarea had received from the bishops of former times in catechizing and at baptism, which he himself had learned from Scripture, believed, and taught, and which he had laid before the Emperor and the Council. It comes very near the Nicene Creed as adopted in 325, and was the basis of it, but the characteristic shibboleth of Nicene orthodoxy, the term homoousios or consubstantial, is wanting. See Eusebii Cæsareensis Episcopi de fide Nicænæ exposita, in Athanasius, Epistola de decretis Synodi Nicænæ (Opera, Tom. I. Pt. I. pp. 238 sqq., ed. Montfauc.); Socrates, Hist. Eccl. Lib. I. cap. 8; Theodoret, Hist. Eccl. Lib I. cap. 12.

Pisteuomen eis hena theon patera pantokratora,

We believe in one God the Father Almighty,

ton ton apanton horaton te kai aoraton poieten;

Maker of all things visible and invisible;

Kai eis hena kurion Iesoun Christon,

And in one Lord Jesus Christ,

ton tou theou logon,

the Word of God,

theon ek theou,

God of God,

phos ek photos,

Light of Light,

zoen ek zoes,

Life of Life,

huion monogene,

the only-begotten Son,

prototokon pases ktiseos,

the first-born of every creature,

pro panton ton aionon ek tou theou patros gegennemenon,

begotten of God the Father before all ages,

di hou kai egeneto ta panta;

by whom also all things were made;

ton dia ten hemeteran soterian sarkothenta kai en anthropois politeusamenon,

who for our salvation was made flesh and made his home among men;

kai pathonta,

and suffered;

kai anastanta te trite hemera,

and rose on the third day;

kai anelthonta pros ton patera,

and ascended to the Father;

kai hexonta palin en doxe krinai zontas kai nekrous.

and will come again in glory, to judge the quick and the dead.

[Pisteuomen] kai eis hen pneuma hagion.³¹

[We believe] also in one Holy Ghost.³²

Touton hekaston einai kai huparchein pisteuontes, patera alethos patera kai huion alethos huion kai pneuma hagion alethos pneuma hagion, kathos kai ho kurios hemon apostellon eis to kerugma tous heautou mathetas eipe; poreuthentes matheteusate panta ta ethne, baptizontes autous eis to onoma tou patros kai tou huiou kai tou agiou pneumatos.

We believe that each of these is and exists, the Father truly Father, and the Son truly Son, and the Holy Ghost truly Holy Ghost; even as our Lord, when sending forth his disciples to preach, said: 'Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.'

To this creed Eusebius adds: 'And concerning these things we affirm that we so hold and so think, and have of old so held, and will so hold till death, and stand steadfast in this faith, anathematizing all ungodly heresy. We testify before Almighty God and our Lord Jesus Christ that we have thought all this in heart and soul ever since we knew ourselves, and we now so think and speak in truth, being able to show by evidence and to convince you that we in past times so believed and preached accordingly.'