Tridentine Creed

The Tridentine Creed was proclaimed by Pope Pius IV in 1563 as a counter-reformation initiative from the Roman Catholic church at the Council of Trent, and remains accepted doctrine of that church.

It was intended to remedy a perceived lack of systematic knowledge among the clergy which left them vulnerable to the widely-distributed publications of the reformers. For protestants, it stands as an itemization of the core issues that made the reformation essential for the renewal of the church.

The Tridentine Creed was solemnly affirmed during the Vatican Council of 1870 at its second session. Since that time the Roman Catholic Church has added two articles which enter into the "Tridentine Profession of Faith," one on the sinlessness of the Virgin Mary, and one on the infallibility of the pope. [1]

Articles of the creed

  • Article 1: incorporates the text of the Nicene Creed, with the addition of the Filioque clause.
  • Article 2: gives the Catholic Church sole authority to interpret Scripture.
  • Article 3: asserts the existence of seven sacraments and affirms the Catholic ceremonies for them.
  • Article 4: embraces and receives the Council of Trent pronouncements on original sin and justification.
  • Article 5: states that during mass the priest offers a new sacrifice and that the bread and wine are physically transformed into Christ's body, blood, soul, and divinity
  • Article 6: asserts the existence of Purgatory from which souls can be boosted into heaven with help from living Christians.
  • Article 7: affirms the practices of praying to the saints and honouring their relics.
  • Article 8: affirms the veneration of icons of Jesus, Mary, and the saints.
  • Article 9: embraces the selling of indulgences.
  • Article 10: requires fidelity and submission to the Pope.
  • Article 11: broadly embraces all the sacred Canons and general Councils of the Roman church, and particularly the Council of Trent.
  • Article 12: condemns and rejects all heresies as identified by the Roman church.

References