Statements of Faith for the Armenian Presbyterian Church

THE APOSTLES’ CREED

I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth; and 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; the third day he rose from the dead; he ascended into heaven, and sits on the right hand of God the Father; from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit; the holy catholic church, the communion of saints; the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life-everlasting.

CONFESSION OF FAITH OF THE ARMENIAN EVANGELICAL CHURCH CONSTANTINOPLE, TURKEY JULY 1, 1846

We, the Armenian Evangelical Church—rooted in an ancient heritage extending to the apostles, yet affirming the legacy of the Reformation; planted in the rich soil of Ararat, yet blossoming across oceans and continents; parched by the winds of persecution, yet bearing the fruit of perseverance—proclaim the faith received from our ancestors.

We believe in one God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, to Whom alone belongs all glory and worship: Father, our Creator, Maker of all things in heaven and earth; Son, our Savior, Only-begotten of the Father, Who was born of the Virgin Mary, suffered death on the cross, was resurrected and ascended into heaven, and Whose triumphant return all creation awaits; and Holy Spirit, our Comforter, Who inspired the sacred scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, Our supreme authority in all matters of faith and conduct, and Who breathes new life into all believers.

We believe that though humanity was created good in God’s image, through our disobedience, we all have fallen into sin and become worthy of condemnation and eternal separation from God. Yet the Father in grace sent His Son Jesus Christ, the atoning sacrifice for our salvation. This free gift is received only through repentance and faith in Christ, is displayed in our loving service to God and those around us, and is enjoyed eternally in the presence of God.

We believe the universal church to be the Body of Christ, through Whom every church receives its identity and mission: to proclaim the Gospel in word and deed, to administer the sacraments of baptism and communion, and to nurture believers through teaching the Word and equipping the saints for service.

To further this mission, the Spirit leads us in continual growth through worship, prayer, and study of Scripture, in partnership with all who confess Christ as Lord and accept the Nicene and Apostles’ Creeds.

We believe our particular calling to be the leading of our people and all peoples into a commitment to Christ and a growing relationship with God, and to this task we commit our lives.

Glory to God from generation to generation in the Church, and in Christ Jesus our Lord, for ever and ever. Amen.

ARMENIAN NICENE CREED

We believe in one God, the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of things visible and invisible.

And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, begotten of God the Father, only-begotten, that is of the substance of the Father.

God from God, light from light, true God from true God, begotten and not made; of the same nature of the Father, by whom all things came into being in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible;

Who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven, took body, became man, was born perfectly of the holy Virgin Mary by the Holy Spirit.

By whom he took body, soul and mind and everything that is in man, truly and not in semblance.

He suffered and was crucified and was buried and rose again on the third day and ascended into heaven with the same body and sat at the right hand of the Father.

He is to come with the same body and with the glory of the Father to judge the living and the dead; of His kingdom there is no end.

We believe also in the Holy Spirit, the uncreated and the perfect; who spoke through the Law and through the Prophets and through the Gospels;

Who came down upon the Jordan, preached through the apostles and dwelled in the saints. We believe also in only one catholic and apostolic holy Church;

In one baptism with repentance for the remission and forgiveness of sins;

In the resurrection of the dead, in the everlasting judgment of souls and bodies, in the kingdom of heaven and in the life eternal.