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Credo

The credo (Latin for "I Believe"; ) is a statement of religious belief, such as the Nicene Creed (or, less often, another creed, such as the Apostles' Creed). It especially refers to the use of the creed in the Catholic Mass, either as text, Gregorian chant, or other musical settings of the mass.

History

After the formulation of the Nicene Creed, its initial liturgical use was in baptism, which explains why the text uses the singular "I ... instead of "we...." The text was gradually incorporated into the liturgies, first in the east and in Spain, and gradually into the north, from the sixth to the ninth century. In 1014 it was accepted by the Church of Rome as a legitimate part of the service.

Probably because of its late adoption, and the length of the text (the longest in the Ordinary of the Mass), there are relatively few chant settings of it. What is identified as "Credo I" in the Liber Usualis was apparently widely considered the only authentic credo, and it is the element of the ordinary that was most strongly associated with a single melody. The Liber Usualis contains only two other settings, designated as "Credo V" and "Credo VI," which is far fewer than for other settings of the Ordinary.

In musical settings of the credo, as in the Gloria, the first line is intoned by the celebrant alone ("Credo in unum Deum"), or by a soloist, while the choir or congregation joins in with the second line. This tradition continued through the Middle Ages and Renaissance, and is even followed in more recent settings. In Stravinsky's Mass, for example, a soloist intones the first line, which is from the plainchant Credo I. In mass settings of the Classical and Romantic period (for example the later masses of Haydn, and the Missa Solemnis of Beethoven) the Credo line is usually set for whole choir.

The melody of Credo I first appears in eleventh-century manuscripts, but it is believed to be much older, and perhaps Greek in origin. It is almost entirely syllabic, probably because of the length of the text, and consists of a great deal of repetition of melodic formulas.

In polyphonic settings of the Mass, the Credo is usually the longest movement, but is usually set more homophonically than other movements, probably because the length of the text demanded a more syllabic approach, as was seen with chant as well. A few composers have set a Credo individually, but it is generally part of a Mass. Largely due to the worshipping practices of cathedrals and churches, that prefer the Creed to be said or sung by the congregation, the Credo is frequently omitted from performances of Masses that include them. Likewise it is the norm for composers, when writing a setting of the Mass, to omit the Credo entirely.

Text

This is the original Latin text used in chants and most modern settings of the Mass. For translations, see Nicene Creed.

Credo in unum Deum, Patrem omnipoténtem, factórem cæli et terræ, visibílium ómnium et invisibílium;

Et in unum Dóminum Iesum Christum, Fílium Dei unigénitum, et ex Patre natum ante ómnia sæcula: Deum de Deo, lumen de lúmine, Deum verum de Deo vero, génitum non factum, consubstantiálem Patri, per quem ómnia facta sunt; qui propter nos hómines et propter nostram salútem descéndit de cælis; et incarnátus est de Spíritu Sancto ex María Vírgine et homo factus est; crucifíxus étiam pro nobis sub Póntio Piláto, passus et sepúltus est; et resurréxit tértia die secúndum Scriptúras; et ascéndit in cælum, sedet ad déxteram Patris; et íterum ventúrus est cum glória iudicáre vivos et mórtuos; cuius regni non erit finis;

Et in Spíritum Sanctum, Dóminum et vivificántem: qui ex Patre Filióque procédit; qui cum Patre et Fílio simul adorátur et conglorificátur; qui locútus est per Prophétas;

Et unam sanctam cathólicam et apostólicam Ecclésiam.

Confíteor unum baptísma in remissiónem peccatorum; et expecto resurrectionem mortuorum et vitam ventúri sæculi. Amen.

Personal belief

In some religions, especially those having no formal creed such as Unitarian Universalism, a credo can be a statement of personal belief.

References

Hoppin, Richard. Medieval Music. New York: Norton, 1978. Pages 136-138.

Pagan Wicca

Websites

WorkingForChange

WorkingForChange is a progressive news and opinion Web site maintained by Working Assets. The site features articles from syndicated columnists such as Ellen Goodman, Robert Scheer and Greg Palast. In January 2007 the site started a blog. WorkingForChange is now http://www.credoaction.com.

CREDO Action

CREDO Action, formerly ActForChange, is an online activism site run by Working Assets that allows individuals to speak out on urgent issues to elected officials and other targeted decision-makers. Recent issues featured on the site include opposition to conservative judicial nominees, support for embryonic stem cell research, and opposition to President Bush's use of signing statements. The site also features the CREDO Action Mobile network, a mobile text activism network where users can sign up to receive alerts on progressive issues, and the CREDO blog

VolunteerForChange

VolunteerForChange is a program created by Working Assets in order to make volunteering easier for busy people who want to make a difference. It is a Web-based tool for progressive organizations and individuals to manage volunteers online, using customer-generated ratings to guarantee the best possible experience for users.

Environmental activities

Working Assets uses 100% post-consumer recycled paper and soy-based ink for all its paper bills and internal operations, and provides tens of thousands of dollars in tree-planting grants to nonprofit groups each year. Working Assets' San Francisco operations are carbon neutral. The company purchases carbon offsets through Carbonfund.org to reduce its office's climate footprint to zero. Its window envelopes do not use transparent plastic film, but instead leave the window open to facilitate recycling.

Criticism

Credit card

Although the Working Assets credit card is now offered through Bank of America, the product came under criticism when it was issued through the bank MBNA, the top contributor to George W. Bush's 2000 Presidential Campaign. When asked about this, Working Assets' employees have made differing claims. In one letter, it was stated that Working Assets chose MBNA regardless of its political views and entirely for its experience and quality customer service. In another letter, president Michael Kieschnick stated that Working Assets ended up under MBNA when the company purchased the credit card business of Fleet Bank, which had previously issued the card. Kieschnick said it was not Working Assets' choice to select MBNA and cannot change banks without violating its current contract. MBNA was subsequently purchased by Bank of America. Many environmental groups, including ones who benefit from Working Assets, have active campaigns against Bank of America, citing its funding of more projects that contribute to global warming than any other bank. This may cause a conflict of interest for these charities.

Activism against warrantless wiretapping, and CREDO's network use of a participant

Working Assets has been an active opponent against Warrantless wiretapping by the NSA and has been active in criticizing Verizon and AT&T for collaborating with the NSA to permit these activities. Sprint, the network carrier which CREDO resells service on, is also named as a company which participated in this activity.

While CREDO has voiced opposition against FISA and providing immunity to AT&T and Verizon against lawsuits stemming from the wiretapping controversy, criticism or mention of Sprint is notably absent in its press releases.