Hey guys, I was reading Tertullian's and Hippolytus' early speculation on the doctrine of the Trinity and I was interested that as early as Tertullian, was not only the doctrine of Christ's humanity AND divinity explicitly defended, so was the idea of God being one essence and three distinct persons. Reading Tertullian, he used the term "through the Son" to speak of the Spirit's eternal procession.
However, I have noticed that Photius in the Mystagogy does not really do justice to the term "through the Son" when we discuss of how the Holy Spirit was eternally proceeded from the Father before time. St Photius only treats the temporal procession of the Spirit through the Son (i.e. after the Resurrection, Christ sends the Spirit...but obviously this has nothing to do with the Spirit's eternal generation).
St Basil in On the Holy Spirit writes:
"Thus the way of the knowledge of God lies from One Spirit through the One Son to the One Father, and conversely the natural Goodness and the inherent Holiness and the royal Dignity extend from the Father through the Only-begotten to the Spirit. Thus there is both acknowledgment of the hypostases and the true dogma of the Monarchy is not lost" (CHap 47).
St John of Damascus in An Exposition of the Orthodox Faith writes: "And the Holy Spirit is the power of the Father revealing the hidden mysteries of His Divinity, proceeding from the Father through the Son in a manner known to Himself, but different from that of generation." (Chapter 12).
My question is what does this mean? St Gregory of Nyssa used the following example to show how the Spirit proceeds through the Son:
It is as if a man were to see a separate flame burning on three torches (and we will suppose that the third flame is caused by that of the first being transmitted to the middle, and then kindling the end torch).
So, if the eternal procession of the Spirit is akin to a third torch getting a flame from a second torch, whose flame was received from the first torch...how is this different than the RC doctrine that the Spirit proceeds from the Father and Son. Granted, both torches are not lighting the Spirit at the same time so to say, but going by Gregory of Nyssa's example, the flame does make its way from the Father through the Son to the Spirit.
It would be like me saying I took the train through Germany and France before I made it to Spain, or I proceeded from Germany and France to get to Spain. Sure, I was in Germany first, but the word "and" does not undo that proceeded from two points to get to a third.
Did St Photius deal with the is of eternal procession?
However, I have noticed that Photius in the Mystagogy does not really do justice to the term "through the Son" when we discuss of how the Holy Spirit was eternally proceeded from the Father before time. St Photius only treats the temporal procession of the Spirit through the Son (i.e. after the Resurrection, Christ sends the Spirit...but obviously this has nothing to do with the Spirit's eternal generation).
St Basil in On the Holy Spirit writes:
"Thus the way of the knowledge of God lies from One Spirit through the One Son to the One Father, and conversely the natural Goodness and the inherent Holiness and the royal Dignity extend from the Father through the Only-begotten to the Spirit. Thus there is both acknowledgment of the hypostases and the true dogma of the Monarchy is not lost" (CHap 47).
St John of Damascus in An Exposition of the Orthodox Faith writes: "And the Holy Spirit is the power of the Father revealing the hidden mysteries of His Divinity, proceeding from the Father through the Son in a manner known to Himself, but different from that of generation." (Chapter 12).
My question is what does this mean? St Gregory of Nyssa used the following example to show how the Spirit proceeds through the Son:
It is as if a man were to see a separate flame burning on three torches (and we will suppose that the third flame is caused by that of the first being transmitted to the middle, and then kindling the end torch).
So, if the eternal procession of the Spirit is akin to a third torch getting a flame from a second torch, whose flame was received from the first torch...how is this different than the RC doctrine that the Spirit proceeds from the Father and Son. Granted, both torches are not lighting the Spirit at the same time so to say, but going by Gregory of Nyssa's example, the flame does make its way from the Father through the Son to the Spirit.
It would be like me saying I took the train through Germany and France before I made it to Spain, or I proceeded from Germany and France to get to Spain. Sure, I was in Germany first, but the word "and" does not undo that proceeded from two points to get to a third.
Did St Photius deal with the is of eternal procession?