Creeds, Confessions & Catechisms: A Reader’s Edition is put out by Crossway and is edited by Chad Van Dixhoorn. This resource provides easy access to some of the most important theological statements and documents from throughout church history.
Here’s my review of this helpful resource.
The Importance of Creeds & Confessions:
Historic creeds and confessions are incredibly important for the church. They help us to understand and articulate the key doctrines of the Christian faith in a clear and concise manner and they have helped guide believers into deeper understanding of orthodox theology.
As RC Sproul said, “Creedal statements are an attempt to show a coherent and unified understanding of the whole scope of Scripture.”
Often these creeds and confessions were created not only to articulate and promote true teachings but to refute false teaching. Take the Nicene Creed, for example. It was written in the 4th century to combat false teachings about the nature of Christ. It affirms that Jesus is fully God and fully man, and that he was begotten, not made.
Confessions of faith, such as The Belgic Confession, the Westminster Confession of Faith, or the London Baptist Confession attempt to distill Scripture’s teaching on a number of core doctrines in way that is easy to understand.
Catechisms, such as the Heidelberg or Westminster, are useful for teaching sound doctrine through the use of memorable questions and answers.
Of course, these creeds and confessions are not meant to replace the Bible. Instead, they serve as a summary of what the Bible teaches on various topics. They help us to understand and articulate the key doctrines of the Christian faith in a clear and concise way and should be held up to the standard of Scripture.
They also help us to be in continuity with the historic Christian faith. As we study and learn from these creeds and confessions, we can see how Christians throughout the ages have understood and articulated the key doctrines of the faith and we are able to stand firm on the same foundation as fellow believers who lived centuries before us.
One of the most well-known and widely used historic creeds is the Apostles’ Creed. This ancient statement of faith dates back to the early centuries of Christianity and provides a summary of key Christian beliefs, such as the Trinity, the incarnation, and the resurrection of Christ. By reciting this creed, we can join with generations of Christians in affirming our faith in these essential doctrines.
Every believer should be familiar with these important documents and use them regularly as they seek to grow in their understanding of Scripture and doctrine.
About the Book
Creeds, Confessions & Catechisms includes 13 of the most important documents in Church history with introductions for each by Dixhoorn that explains the origins and significance of each document.
This edition includes:
- The Apostles’ Creed
- The Nicene Creed
- The Athanasian Creed
- The Chalcedonian Definition
- The Augsburg Confession
- The Belgic Confession
- The Thirty-Nine Articles of Religion
- The Canons of Dort
- The Westminster Confession of Faith
- The London Baptist Confession
- The Heidelberg Catechism
- The Westminster Larger Catechism
- The Westminster Shorter Catechism
There is also a helpful general index as well as a Scripture index in the back, which makes this a handy resource for study or sermon prep. For example, you could look up ‘deacons’ or the ‘trinity’ and quickly see which pages and sections of particular creeds and confessions deal with this topic.
If you were studying a particular passage of Scripture, such as Romans 2:14-15, you would be able to see where this passage is cited in relation to particular doctrines in these various documents.
I wholeheartedly recommend that believers have access to these creeds, confessions, and catechisms and make regular use of them in their study of Scripture.
This is a great looking cloth-over-board edition that gathers them all together in one place so that every Christian can have them on their shelf.
The introductions to each document are brief but helpful, there are explanatory footnotes in several places, and the overall presentation is fantastic.
I encourage you to pick up a copy of Creeds, Confessions, and Catechisms from Crossway. Links to purchase are included in the links below, and I hope that you get much use out of it.

Creeds, Confessions, & Catechisms: A Reader’s Edition
Creeds, Confessions, and Catechisms gathers 13 of Christian history’s most important documents―including the Apostles’ Creed, the Belgic Confession, and the Heidelberg Catechism―into one beautiful collection. Each text includes an introduction from editor Chad Van Dixhoorn that explains its origins and significance to the early church.
Creeds, Confessions, & Catechisms has a spot on The Five-Foot Bookshelf: 57 Great Books Every Christian Should Own. Check out the entire list of must-own books that all fit on a single shelf below!

Note: I received a free copy of this book from Crossway in exchange for a fair and honest review. If you purchase a copy using the link included I will receive a small affiliate commission at no additional cost to you. Using these links is a great way to support Reasonable Theology!