years or so after Jesus’ death and resurrection. So I wondered, How did people understand their faith and identify with one another? I learned that creeds became an important form of communication to keep those first-century believers on the same page. But these belief statements weren’t simply a list of doctrines Christians had to affirm to be “in.” These were the convictions they lived and died for. When Christians today think of creeds, we tend to think of the Nicene or Apostles’ Creed, shared