Though their principal intent was to clarify what the Bible teaches on key subjects so as to defend orthodoxy against the encroachment of pagan belief, local churches also embraced these documents as a means to let visitors know they weren’t attending a schismatic group, but a church that is part of a worldwide network of Bible-believing churches, in short, a true, Christian church. Thus, the ancient, written statements—which individual churches embraced—didn’t seek to emphasize a church’s originality