What WE Believe

During the remaining four Sundays of July, we will be discussing the significance of the Nicene Creed---one of the earliest attempts to summarize the essentials of Christian Spirituality. The modern English translation of the creed is this:

"We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ,
the only Son of God,
eternally begotten of the Father,
God from God, light from light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made,
of one Being with the Father;
through him all things were made.
For us and for our salvation
he came down from heaven,
was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary
and became truly human.
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate;
he suffered death and was buried.
On the third day he rose again
in accordance with the Scriptures;
he ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead,
and his kingdom will have no end.

We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father [and the Son],
who with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified,
who has spoken through the prophets.
We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church.
We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.
We look for the resurrection of the dead,
and the life of the world to come. Amen."

According to Wikipedia...'The purpose of a creed is to act as a yardstick of correct belief. A creed is an epitome, not a full definition, of what is required for orthodoxy. It was hoped that by memorizing this summary of the faith, lay people without extensive theological training would still be able to recognize deviations from orthodox doctrines based on the Bible as interpreted in Christian Tradition.'

We will be especially discussing the one line near the end of the creed:
'...We believe in one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church...'

This week we will focus on the word, "ONE" and discuss the issues of unity (and disunity) that are demonstrated in the Church (Universal and Local)

I'm wondering...what are some of your experiences with Creeds?
Have you been a part of a faith community before that used/recited the Nicene or Apostle's Creed on a regular basis?
If so, did you find that practice vital or strange or just plain boring?