Cyril’s Creed

A hermeneutic and aesthetic challenge! These important works came at a time of rapid transition for the Church, from Christianity being a persecuted religion to becoming the favored one.

St. Cyril’s thorough introduction to the Christian Faith in Creed of Jerusalem: Doctrine of the Holy Trinity, has remained unchanged over the last 1700 years. This ancient Creed, in full accord with the Athanasius Creed, was used by the Church of Jerusalem in the middle of the fourth Century. It was culled from his Catechetical Lectures and recited to the Catechumens to be committed to memory.

Gifted teachers like Cyril of Jerusalem produced several Catechetical Lectures, Concerning the Unity of God as instruction to the Church. The First, "procatechesis," heartily welcomes the candidates to take baptism and introduces them to the periods of doctrinal instruction ahead. The remaining five, called "mystagogical catecheses," are an exposition on the rites of Christian initiation, baptism, chrismation and the Eucharist, for the newly baptized. The last lecture is a commentary on the Lord’s Prayer. A rich source of information on the history and worship of the fourth century, these lectures continue to instruct and inspire.