Witty Friends

On this day in 325, the Council of Nicaea concluded with the establishment of the Holy Trinity. You know, that whole Nicene Creed thing1. Let me disabuse you of any notion you may have that this creed was unanimously approved. Quite the contrary. Like any good council, this one was convened because of a crisis in the early church. Arius, an Alexandrian priest, questioned the full divinity of Christ because, unlike God, Christ was born and had a beginning. Other groups with more power disagreed with Arius, and their side was ultimately successful. So basically the Nicene Creed is faith defined by a committee. No big tent for this belief, no siree Bob. Believe it and you’re “in”, don’t believe it and you’re “out”, and by out, they meant really out Over the years, other controversies arose as to whether or not the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father only or from both the Father and Son, finally contributing to the Great Schism between the Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic churches around 1054. Not surprisingly, I’ve always liked knowing what the heretics had to say on just about any issue of faith. Maybe it’s part of my predisposition to root for the underdog or my quest to subvert the dominant paradigm (which are just a lot of foo-foo words to say I kind of enjoy being a contrary curmudgeon). Quite often I find more resonance with the voices of the heretics. Over the years, and with gracious pastoral support, I’ve learned to love the questions. Like plenty of others, I’ve learned that you can confidently consider yourself a Christian and do the work God calls us to do whether or not you know for sure how many angels can dance on the head of a pin.

Don’t forget National Payroll week, September 5-9. Remember, America works because payroll professionals are working for America. Have you hugged a payroll professional today?

Daily Thought: Some people dream of success. Other people live to crush those dreams.