Athanasian

[ ath-uh-ney-zhuhn ]

adjective

1. of or relating to Athanasius or to the doctrines ascribed to him.

noun

1. Theology. a follower of Athanasius or a believer in the Athanasian Creed.

Word History and Origins

Origin of Athanasian¹

First recorded in 1580–90; Athanasi(us) + -an

Example Sentences

The Athanasian Creed of at least a century later is more explicit, Christ “descended into hell.”

From Salon

The Church of England adopts “as thoroughly to be received and believed,” the three ancient creeds, known as the Apostles’, the Athanasian, and the Nicene.

From Project Gutenberg

Any one was declared a heretic who did not accept the Apostles’’, Athanasian, and Nicene creeds, the seven sacraments of the Church, and the existence of purgatory.

From Project Gutenberg

Into his services he introduced many peculiar alterations: he drew up a “Primitive Liturgy,” in which he substituted for the Nicene and Athanasian creeds two creeds taken from the Apostolical Constitutions; for his “Primitive Eucharist” he made use of unleavened bread and mixed wine; he distributed at the price of one shilling medals of admission to his oratory, with the device of a sun rising to the meridian, with the motto Ad summa, and the words Inveniam viam aut faciam below.

From Project Gutenberg

Why even the person who wrote on the religion of Shakespeare claims it as a sort of William Shakespeare’s Athanasian creed, and meant to express a belief in the Trinity, “three in one!”

From Project Gutenberg