Creed

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Creed. A concise statement of what is believed (Lat., credo, ‘I believe’).

Judaism

See ARTICLES OF FAITH.

Christianity

Creeds originated as confessions of faith by candidates for baptism. The Council of Nicaea (325) put in a credal form the profession of faith as a standard of orthodoxy, and the use of creeds for this purpose rapidly spread. The most important creeds, the Nicene Creed, Apostles' Creed, and Athanasian Creed, are also used liturgically.

Islam

The basic ‘creed’ is the shahāda, but this affirmation of allegiance (islām) is not a credal profession, with articles of faith. The nearest equivalent to that is the ʿaqīda, several of which appeared in the early history of Islam.

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