God the Holy Spirit, Mentor's Guide, MG14

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G O D T H E H O L Y S P I R I T

said was not His own, but His that sent him, how much more is it there to be understood that the Holy Spirit proceeds also from himself, where He so says, He proceedeth from the Father, as not to say, He proceedeth not from me? From him certainly, from whom the Son had His Divine nature, for He is God of God, He has also, that from him to proceeds the Holy Spirit; and hence the Holy Spirit has from the Father himself, that He should proceed from the Son also, as He proceeds from the Father. ~ Quoted in Stanley M. Burgess, ed. The Holy Spirit: Ancient Christian Traditions . Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 1984. p. 183. Some Catholic, Orthodox, and Protestant theologians have suggested that the debate over the filioque clause in the creed could be resolved by the wording, “who proceeds from the Father through the Son.” This formula is found as early as St. Basil and was proposed as an ecumenical solution by the Council of Florence in 1439 A.D. Although it has not officially been adopted by any church body as a creedal statement, it remains part of the current ecumenical discussions on this topic. If we do not accept dual procession, it is not clear how to distinguish between the Son and the Spirit. All three members are co-eternal, co-equal, and omni-perfect. What differentiates them? We distinguish between the Father and the Son because the one begets and the other is begotten–that is, the essence of one is derived from the essence of the other. But if we say that the Son is from the Father alone and that the Spirit is from the Father alone–what is the difference between the Son and the Spirit? The Western Church says the difference is that the Spirit is from the Father and the Son . The Spirit proceeds from their mutual love. “Expression”–is pretty close to one of the main things connoted by “procession.” Eternal glory moving, effulgent love communing, deepest-down mystery self-giving, pure simplicity outbursting, timeless joy forthgoing. . . .In each of these dimensions the Spirit is the dynamic going forth, the efficacious presence, of God’s loving to be for another.

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16 Page 26 Outline Point III-A-2-d

~David Willis. Clues to the Nicene Creed: A Brief Outline of the Faith . Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2005. p. 128.