Change In Nicene Creed By Worship Commission Opposed to 98 Resolution

By: Rev. Jack Cascione
Pastor Joel A. Brondos wrote:

"...you may have heard the rumor by now that the Kieschnick-appointed Commission on Worship has recently decided to remove the word 'men' from the Nicene Creed for the new 2007 hymnal: 'Who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven . . .' will be changed to 'who for us and for our salvation . . .' Such an action would be consistent with their presuppositions."
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Pr. Brondos is on the Hymnal Committee

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The politically correct agenda of the National Organization for Women (N.O.W.) is being applied to the Nicene Creed by the LCMS President's appointees currently overseeing the production of a new hymnal.   The original creed does indeed say "men" as the Bible uses the male gender to signify the entire human race.

It was God who Created Adam before Eve and it is God who teaches in Roman 5:12 and following that Adam is to blame for all sin in the world even though Eve picked and ate the fruit before Adam.  The Trinity is male as are all the angels.  The Nicene Creed says "for us men" because this is how the Bible says it:

Mark 10:27 And Jesus looking upon them saith, With MEN it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible.

Luke 9:14 For they were about five thousand MEN. And he said to his disciples, Make them sit down by fifties in a company.

Acts 4:12 Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among MEN, whereby we must be saved.

Acts 22:15 For thou shalt be his witness unto all MEN of what thou hast seen and heard.

Romans 5:12 Wherefore, as by one MAN sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all MEN, for that all have sinned:

Titus 2:11 For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all MEN,

1 Timothy 2:4 Who will have all MEN to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.

We would remind the Worship Commission that all LCMS pastors have sworn in their ordination vows to the wording, "for us men" in the Nicene Creed asm published in the Lutheran Confessions.

We would remind the Worship Commission and President Kieschnick that according to the 1998 LCMS Convention, they have no authority to change the Creeds.  The Worship Commission will be in violation of the Convention by making this change in the Nicene Creed.

The following Resolution was adopted by the 1998 LCMS Convention 83% to 17%.


RESOLUTION 3-04A

Overture 3-123-125 (CW, pp. 189-191)

Preamble

"Since in ancient times the true Christian doctrine as it was correctly and soundly understood was drawn together out of God's Word in brief articles or chapters against the aberrations of heretics, we further pledge allegiance to the three general creeds, the Apostles', the Nicene, and the Athanasian, as the glorious confessions of the faith--succinct, Christian, and based upon the Word of God--in which all those heresies which at that time had arisen within the Christian church are clearly and solidly refuted" (Formula of Concord, Rule and Norm, 4 [Tappert, p. 504]).

WHEREAS, The three creeds--the Apostles', the Nicene, and the Athanasian--are the cherished possession of the entire church down through the ages and are not just the expression of any one individual; and

WHEREAS, The church has maintained the confession of these creeds and has even suffered martyrdom rather than to deny the faith confessed in them; and

WHEREAS, The pastors and congregations of The Lutheran Church--Missouri Synod by virtue of membership in the Synod have subscribed the three general creeds of the church--the Apostles', the Nicene, and the Athanasian--as correct exposition of the Scriptures (LCMS Constitution, Art. II); and

WHEREAS, Some congregations are not making regular use of these historic creeds in their public worship services; and

WHEREAS, Informal statements of faith are subject to an imprecise and even erroneous confession of the faith of the Christian church; therefore be it

RESOLVED, That we beseech one another by the mercies of God not to substitute informal statements of faith for the regular use of the three general creeds of the church in our public worship services.

November 14, 2002