Traditionally creeds are communal texts read and repeated in worship to remind the faithful of common beliefs. Religious historian Jaroslav Pelikan describes a moment in the spiritual development of a

Traditionally creeds are communal texts read and repeated in worship toremind the faithful of common beliefs. Religious historian Jaroslav Pelikandescribes a moment in the spiritual development of a people—speaking ofthe Massai of Africa—where they can no longer repeat the prayers and creedsof their teachers but must find their own words for their own context. Inmany ways, the same is true of college students moving away from family,neighborhood, and hometown and trying to find beliefs and a voice that istruly their own.

For this assignment, compose a personal credo that distills your uniqueapproach to life into a short statement of no more that 250 words. We’ll havetime to add flesh to this skeleton later, but for now you’re simply definingyour belief as precisely as possible.For this exercise to be meaningful, you must make it wholly your own. Thisshort statement isn’t all you believe; it’s simply a way to introduce others tosome things you value. In spite of the name, your credo need not be religiousor even public. You may decide to focus on commitments to family, service,political action, or the arts. As you look for a focus, try to choose concretelanguage and to find something that helps others understand your past,present, and future choices