Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!bonnie.concordia.ca!uunet!europa.asd.contel.com!gatech!rutgers!aramis.rutgers.edu!athos.rutgers.edu!christian From: ssc-bee!ssc-vax!carroll@cs.washington.edu (Jeff Carroll) Newsgroups: soc.religion.christian Subject: Re: Apostles' Creed Message-ID: Date: 27 Jun 91 06:39:01 GMT Sender: hedrick@athos.rutgers.edu Organization: Boeing Aerospace & Electronics Lines: 35 Approved: christian@aramis.rutgers.edu In article dfausett@zach.fit.edu ( Donald W. Fausett) writes: > > Last Sunday, I attended a Presbyterian (USA) church service >in which the minister mentioned that Jesus had spent three days >preaching in Hell. After the service, I asked my wife if she knew >what that comment referred to. She said that she thought it was >based on the Apostles' Creed. After a brief search, she found a >statement of the Apostles' Creed. Surely enough, it contains the >following: It depends on whose version of the Apostles' Creed you're using. When I was United Methodist, the phrase "he descended into hell" appeared in a footnote, much as an alternate reading would in a study Bible, but was never used. In the Episcopalian Prayer Book, the phrase "he descended to the dead" is used. I believe "he descended into hell" appeared in the 1928 BCP. >[As far as I know, no denominations emphasize this belief, but just >about everybody uses the Apostles' Creed, and it's there. At the very All the credal churches use the Apostles' Creed and the Nicene Creed, but in slightly variant forms. Some (whether most or not, I dunno) omit the language "he descended into hell" because they don't believe that He did. Don't forget that there are Protestant groups who don't use or believe in the use of creeds; but their members probably aren't interested in this thread anyway. -- Jeff Carroll carroll@ssc-vax.boeing.com