Progressive Christians tend to prioritize orthopraxy (right actions) over orthodoxy as we tend to think that Christianity is distorted when we shift away from the religion *of* Jesus (his way of living and being in the world) to a religion *about* Jesus (believing "the right things" about him). We also critique the creeds for failing to include any mention of Jesus's way, teachings, and example - the very things that we contend are what are life-giving, transformative, and salvific.

That said, let's explore your question. The earliest versions of the Apostles' Creed do not state that Jesus "descended into hell."  The scholarship of Dr. Taylor Marshal  is helpful here:  "The Greek version of the Apostles’ Creed reads κατελθόντα εἰς τὰ κατώτατα, (“katelthonta eis ta katôtata“) meaning “descended to lower ones,” or you could translate it as “descended to those below.”

The Latin version reads “descendit ad inferos,” where “inferos” (not infernos with an “n”) means “those below” like the word “inferior.” So the Latin “inferos” corresponds pretty accurately with the Greek κατώτατα.

There are, however, early textual variants for this line in the Apostles’ Creed:

1. ad inferos “to those below” (in current usage, standardized by Trent, in use in Vatican documents)
2. ad infernos “to those below” (rare and later usage – but often reprinted in Catholic literature)
3. ad inferna (neuter accusative plural) “to the underworlds” (from Rufinus, circa AD 390 & Gallican Sacramentary circa AD 650)
4. ad infernum (accustive singular) “to the underworld” (from Poitiers, France circa AD 600)

The Latin versions that I see read both “inferos” or “infernos” in Catholic texts. The Council of Trent and the Vatican’s edition of the Catechism has it printed as “inferos” so that’s the official version. It’s worth noting that the Latin version of the Athanasian Creed also reads “inferos” or “those below.”

To be grammatically accurate, the Apostles’ Creed is stating that Christ is descending to persons “inferos” and not to a place “infernum,” though Scripture and Tradition identify the Old Testament righteous souls as waiting in Limbo or “Abraham’s Bosom.”   See this article also.

Moreover, as I've written before, Jesus never uttered the word "hell," nor is it even anywhere in the entire Bible - it's a pagan Germanic and Nordic concept that has been imposed into English translations of the Bible. See "To Hell with Hell."

That said, there is a way that I can embrace the idea that "Jesus descended into hell." That the mystic cosmic Christ meets us right where we are - even in the very real hellishness of so many of our lives (addictions, traumas, rapes, oppressions, exploitations, genocides, warfare, etc.) is profoundly helpful to so many. This is in sync with the words attributed to Jesus in Matthew 28:20 "I am with you always." I find comfort in knowing this.

~ Rev. Roger Wolsey