The New Gospel

<p><em style="line-height: 1.5; background-color: initial;">I believe in God the Father Almighty, Creator of the heaven and earth; and in Jesus Christ, His Only Son, our Lord, Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried.&nbsp; He descended into hell; the third day He rose again from the dead.&nbsp; He ascended into heaven, sitteth at the right hand of God, the Father Almighty.&nbsp; From thence he shall come to judge the living and dead.&nbsp; I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Holy Catholic Church, the communion of Saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting.&nbsp; Amen.</em></p>

<p><em style="line-height: 1.5; background-color: initial;">The Apostles’ Creed, we find, dehistoricizes the portrait of Jesus [found in the Synoptic Gospels], shearing him from his Jewish context and stripping from him his humanity.&nbsp; He is now a supernatural being engaged on a rescue mission, someone who swooped down from heaven to take loyal followers with him back there.&nbsp; We would not think of him as human, debating the Torah, encouraging strict adherence to its requirements, honoring the Sabbath, sharing bread and wine with his followers, engaging in festivals, planning and plotting his next moves, and delighting audiences with his amazing parables about the coming Kingdom.&nbsp; All of this is lost.</em></p>

<p><em style="line-height: 1.5; background-color: initial;">I, (name), promise to do my best, to do my duty to God and my Country, to help other people, and to obey the law of the pack.</em></p>