Mentor's Manual

Sec t i on I : Under s tand i ng The Urban Mi n i s t r y I ns t i tute 47

ancient Church’s rule of faith, as well as a coherent summary of Scripture and defense of historic orthodoxy, the Nicene Creed is a key pedagogical tool at the Institute . You will find, as we have, that employing it in this way can deepen your students’ appreciation and understanding of orthodox teaching in their overall theological and leadership preparation. Of course, many ways exist to review and memorize the Nicene Creed together with your students. One way to familiarize yourself with the Nicene Creed is through song. Dr. Don Davis has written the Nicene Creed in hymnic form, adapting it metrically in both common meter (8.6.8.6.) and 8.7.8.7. We’ve included a list of tune possibilities for use with these lyrics. (As you know, the hymn meter system allows any number of well-known hymn melodies to be assigned to various sets of hymn lyrics.) With the Nicene Creed in hymn form, you can select well-known hymn melodies and sing together the faith of the Creed as a class, with your whole heart!

The Nicene Creed and Its Role in Leadership Development

• The Nicene Creed hymn – Common Meter (in the Appendix) • The Nicene Creed hymn – 8.7.8.7 (in the Appendix)

Be creative as you help your students become familiar with this important, historic summary of our faith.

Additional Resources on the Nicene Creed We offer the following documents (in the Appendix) to assist you in understanding the vitality and centrality of the Nicene Creed for both worship and leadership development.

• The Nicene Creed with Biblical Support

• There Is a River: Identifying the Streams of a Revitalized, Authentic Christian Community in the City This tabular document outlines what we believe to be the key tributaries of a renewed, authentic expression of the historic orthodox faith in the city. These elements together suggest the kind of spiritual formation and identity that can revitalize and regenerate urban Christian community. The theological foundation for this document is squarely built upon the elements of the Nicene Creed.