The Nicene Creed in Minimal English

Beschreibung

“The Nicene Creed is the bedrock statement Christian orthodoxy: the point at which the Church, using conceptual tools it adopted from classical antiquity, defined its core beliefs in the God who is both creator and redeemer, incarnate in history, and thus the ultimate guarantor of history’s meaning. As Christians mark the 1,700th anniversary of this colossal achievement at the First Council of Nicaea, Anna Wierzbicka offers a fascinating explanation of why this ancient text has helped form the most diverse community in human history—and continues to do so today, across a myriad of cultural and social contexts.”

 — (George Weigel, Distinguished Senior Fellow, Ethics and Public Policy Center, Washington, D.C, USA)

This book offers an unpacked version of the Nicene Creed, which is the defining statement of belief of mainstream Christianity, and a milestone in human history. The book seeks to clarify this compressed text through the common conceptual language of all people: “Basic Human”.  Given the unique power of this language to articulate the tenets of the Creed with clarity and precision, this book will have a wide readership among all people interested in Christianity, as well as among scholars interested in the scope of human understanding and communication. More than that, at a time of “post-Christian spiritual disintegration”, when  many are seeking for the threads of meaning to hold things together (as discussed for example by authors like Tom Holland and Ayaan Hirsi Ali),  the vision of the Nicene Creed - “the world’s one unchanging Creed” – can offer a new reference point and be a beacon of hope.

Anna Wierzbicka is Professor of Linguistics (Emerita) at the Australian National University. She has published twenty five books. Her work engages linguistics,anthropology, cognitive science, philosophy, psychology and religion. In 2024 she was named an Inaugural Highly Ranked Scholar, ranked 5 in linguistics, within thetop 0.05% across all disciplines.

This book offers an unpacked version of the Nicene Creed, which is the defining statement of belief of mainstream Christianity, and a milestone in human history. The book seeks to clarify this compressed text through the common conceptual language of all people: “Basic Human”. Given the unique power of this language to articulate the tenets of the Creed with clarity and precision, this book will have a wide readership among all people interested in Christianity, as well as among scholars interested in the scope of human understanding and communication. More than that, at a time of “post-Christian spiritual disintegration”, when many are seeking for the threads of meaning to hold things together (as discussed for example by authors like Tom Holland and Ayaan Hirsi Ali), the vision of the Nicene Creed—“the world’s one unchanging Creed“—can offer a new reference point and be a beacon of hope.

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Anna Wierzbicka

Themen in »The Nicene Creed in Minimal English«

minimal language minimal English semantics Jesus Christ statement of belief Basic Human Fathers of the Church

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“The Nicene Creed is the bedrock statement Christian orthodoxy: the point at which the Church, using conceptual tools it adopted from classical antiquity, defined its core beliefs in the God who is both creator and redeemer, incarnate in history, and thus the ultimate guarantor of history’s meaning. As Christians mark the 1,700th anniversary of this colossal achievement at the First Council of Nicaea, Anna Wierzbicka offers a fascinating explanation of why this ancient text has helped form the most diverse community in human history – and continues to do so today, across a myriad of cultural and social contexts.” (George Weigel, Distinguished Senior Fellow, Ethics and Public Policy Center, Washington, D.C.)

“Although the Nicene Creed is the most universal and comprehensive statement of Christian belief, its language very much needs to be unpacked. It is of public benefit, therefore, to have these concepts explicated in a popularly accessible way. In this book, well-known linguist, Anna Wierzbicka, does so in the restricted vocabulary she helped identify that is universal across all languages. Combined with the theological background and insights Wierzbicka adds along the way, the volume is especially commendable to academics and popular readers alike.” (Douglas V. Porpora, Professor of Sociology, Department of Communication, Drexel University, Philadelphia)

“In this era of global confusion, spiritual fragmentation and encroaching darkness, the 1700th anniversary year of the Nicene Creed offers humankind a brilliant ray of hope, pointing the way to personal renewal. Anna Wierzbicka’s brilliant and profound book handles timeless truths of the Christian faith with expert precision, in crystal-clear language that affirms the psychic unity of human beings as made in the image of God. The Nicene Creed in Minimal English is a fitting celebration of a momentous anniversary, and a precious gift to all who seek to know what it means to follow Christ and embrace life with God. It is something very, very good.” (Mark Durie, Senior Research Fellow, Melbourne School of Theology and the Australian University of Theology)

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