What is the difference in meaning between a 'credo' and a 'maxim'. Is there a difference?
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DA BEN DAN yanggui zi COAT
ANSWERS: 4
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Without looking either word up in the dictionary, "credo" to me means something you live by and "maxim" means something you've heard that others live by..as I said, I did not look either word up in the dictionary! :)
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'Credo' stands for 'belief', and there are religious overtones to that -- A 'maxim' is a subjective, rule-based, set of ethical conduct, an axiom of 'practical wisdom'. Credo is generally associated with non-esoteric religions, for example, the Creeds of Roman Catholicism and of some Protestant churches, e.g., the Nicene Creed. The introduction of a Creed into the church was meant to create a least-common denominator of shared belief to qualify for membership in the church. The Church marginalised any divergent views by calling them 'non-canonical', 'heretical', 'blasphemous', etc. and persecuted and killed anyone espousing anything that was perceived to conflict with an 'orthodox' or 'right-thinking' view. These same practises of authoritarian totalitarianism perfected by the Church's enforcement of its 'Credo' were later successfully used by Communist regime in Russia, China, Cuba and elsewhere, and also by Fascists in Germany, Spain and Italy. A maxim is more likely to be related to Platonic or Greek logic, and has more in common with a secular or rational worldview.
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My opinion: "Credo" is Greek for "I believe", so its one's personal beliefs. A maxim is akin to a proverb, some (usually good) advice all rolled up into an amusing or catchy saying.
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The former is personal. ;-)
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