Students take part in Credo Conference

Students from Fakenham Academy and Hethersett Academy took part in a special conference at Norwich Cathedral which put the spotlight on the Nicene Creed.

2025 marks the 1700th anniversary of the Nicene Creed which forms part of the Religious Studies syllabus but also underpins the global Christian faith, as Pope Francis has said, “it unites us with all those who are baptised”.

The Credo Conference took place on Monday 23 June to celebrate this important 1700th anniversary and it gave GCSE students, and those in year 9 about to begin their GCSE studies, the opportunity to discuss and debate the relevance of the Nicene Creed and the doctrines it contains.

The Cathedral also hosted a panel of representatives from different Christian denominations to discuss the diversity of Christianity, providing a unique platform for the students to debate with a group of experts at this engaging, inspiring and thought-provoking event.

Chaired by The Dean of Norwich, the panel included:

• Rev Dr Peter Doll – Anglican Cathedral
• Dr Richard Maguire – Roman Catholic Cathedral
• Vicky Baker – Eastern Baptist Association
• Rev Matthew Olanrewaju – Methodist/URC Minister
• Ruth Beattie - Salvation Army East of England Division

The debate was split into two parts. It began with a discussion on an opening statement followed by a more general debate on the creed and exploring how denominations differ.

The opening statement said: "A Creed is no longer necessary for Christianity today. What is more important is how Christians live out their faith."

The debate began by hearing an excellent speech against this statement by Beau Berwick from Hethersett Academy, who spoke passionately about the need for faith and belief in order to inspire action.

The panel then gave answers either for or against the main statement, all fundamentally in favour of a statement of belief while some viewed the creed as central to worship and others didn’t.

Some among the panel also argued that, due to its age, it needs updating and perhaps now including statements on ethical questions. However, others believed firmly that this document is all that is needed for a declaration of faith.

For the second half of the debate we heard more from students with questions ranging from views on infant baptism, limbo and devotion to Mary; to questions of biblical interpretation, the relevance of the creed for today and denominational differences.

Clare Williams, Norwich Cathedral's Head of Schools and Family Learning, who organised the event, said: "We are delighted to have marked such an important anniversary by engaging young people in this debate style of learning.

We hope it provided a richness to their study of the diversity of Christianity and also gave them confidence to speak, question and engage in this way."

Pictures: Bill Smith