Part One: The Profession of Faith › Section One of Part One: “I Believe” - “We Believe” ›› CHAPTER 3: Man’s Response to God ››› Article 2: We Believe

› IN BRIEF

Questions and Answers

182. Why is our personal faith intimately tied to the Church? (CCC 166) Our personal faith is intimately tied to the Church, because:
1. we have received it from the Church
2. we are kept in it by the Church
3. we should hand it on to future members of the Church.
183. What does the “I believe” of the Apostolic Creed express? (CCC 167) The “I believe” of the Apostolic Creed expresses the Faith of the Church professed personally by each believer in the liturgy (e.g. Baptism).
184. What does the “We believe” of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed express? (CCC 167) The “We believe” of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed expresses the Faith professed by the bishops assembled in council.
The “Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed” is the Creed formulated by Nicaea I (AD 325) and Constantinople I (AD 381).
185. Why do we pray “Lord, look upon the Faith of Your Church”? (CCC 168) We pray “Lord, look upon the Faith of Your Church”, because it is the Church that believes first and so bears, nourishes and sustains my Faith.
186. Why is the Church our mother? (CCC 169) The Church is our mother, because we receive through her the life of Faith.
187. Do we believe in the formulas of the language of Faith? (CCC 170) We do not believe in the formulas of the language of Faith, but in the realities they express.
188. Why are the formulas of the language of Faith important? (CCC 170) The formulas of the language of Faith are important, because through them we approach, express, celebrate, assimilate and hand the Faith on.
189. Why does the Church teach us the language of Faith? (CCC 171) The Church teaches us the language of Faith in order to introduce us to the understanding and the life of Faith.
190. Why is there only one Faith? (CCC 172) There is only one Faith, because the one Faith is received from the one Lord, transmitted by one Baptism and grounded in the conviction that all people have only one God and Father.