The principle beliefs of The Church are summed up in its three historical Creeds:  Apostles’, Nicene, and Athanasian.  Due to language issues, the Anglican Church has dropped the Athanasian Creed from the Prayer Book.

The Apostles’ Creed arose in The Church of Rome in about the year 140 A.D.  It was a statement of belief recited by a candidate at Baptism.

The Nicene Creed primarily affirms the Trinity and Incarnation.  Anglicans have centered their attention on these two doctrines above all others.

We can never understand the full meaning of God’s purpose in becoming human but there are implications in the Incarnation:

1)      The Incarnation means that God created everything that is.  It is the ultimate act of creation.

2)      The Incarnation means that sin cannot be explained by identifying with matter of the physical world.  Anglicans believe that sin is in the person or the community.  With the ability to reason comes the ability to sin (God’s grace of free will).  Sin is rebellion against God.  It is our refusal to serve with God as partners in bringing to fulfillment His vision for creation.  Sin, as Paul pointed out, is the violation of God’s revealed purpose for creation.  It is inevitable that people will violate that purpose.  We all sin.  The issue lies in our continued, intentional action contrary to God’s will.

3)      The Incarnation embraces the totality of life.

Scripture is not always clear and does not answer all questions.  Therefore, Anglicans also turn to Tradition and Reason for understanding.  No better summary of this tradition of The Church can be found than the Creeds.  Agreed to in 325 A.D., the Nicene Creed is the basic statement of what Episcopalians believe.