Filioque -- Catholic Answer

[adstrinity]

If I have this right, this WAS added later, right? We’re not denying that it wasn’t part of the original, we’re stating that it was added to combat a heresy, but, the heresy was only in part of the Church which is why it’s not part of the Universal Creed, right?

I note the Churches in the East know a lot about this…

 

[PraRFLEsEkHm]

Hi

try looking here: oce.catholic.com/index.php?title=Filioque
for the full article.

I’m not sure what you mean by ‘added’ since the Filioque has been around from the beginning. Although was not actually set down in it’s present form until much later, this is pretty common within the Church. Not that things are changed at all - just decisively stated once and for all ending whatever controversy prompted the need.

The opening statement here:

The dogma of the double Procession of the Holy Ghost from Father and Son as one Principle is directly opposed to the error that the Holy Ghost proceeds from the Father, not from the Son. Neither dogma nor error created much difficulty during the course of the first four centuries.

seems to say that the Filioque was present, although with misunderstandings, from the beginning.

As to Sacred Scripture, the inspired writers call the Holy Ghost the Spirit of the Son (Gal., iv, 6), the Spirit of Christ (Rom., viii, 9), the Spirit of Jesus Christ (Phil., i, 19), just as they call Him the Spirit of the Father (Matt., x, 20) and the Spirit of God (I Cor., ii, 11). Hence they attribute to the Holy Ghost the same relation to the Son as to the Father. Again, according to Sacred Scripture, the Son sends the Holy Ghost (Luke, xxiv, 49; John, xv, 26; xvi, 7; xx, 22; Acts, ii, 33; Tit., iii, 6), just as the Father sends the Son (Rom., viii, 3; etc.), and as the Father sends the Holy Ghost (John, xiv, 26).

This would seem to dispel any allusions to anything being a ‘fabrication’ of the RCC.

Is that what you were looking for?

Peace

John

 

[Verbum]

Hi Adstrinity,

The filioque was absent from the original creed approved at the First Council of Constantinople. The Catholic Church does not alter the decisions of a council. However the word “filioque” (and the Son) has been added in the LITURGICAL version of the creed. (Eastern Catholics have the option of either versions).

This issue is becoming a non–issue. In modern days, discussions among Catholics and Orthodox have shown that we seem to believe the same thing about the Trinity. We just express it differently.

Here’s one instance of a report on recent discussions :

usccb.org/seia/filioque.shtml

Verbum

 

[CentralFLJames]

The whole history is just sad since it appears that the intention of Rome to insert the Filioque Clause into the Creed without a formal Council meeting was done simply in haste to combat Arianism. The doctrine itself is not that profound theologically. It looks to me like a couple of egotistical patriarchs getting their knickers all twisted simply because on a chance visit to Rome during attending mass one of them heard a new sentence in the Creed they never heard and felt slighted that they were not consulted.

If you ask me its just a bunch of men with bruised egos and paranoid that they were being left out of decisions when the logistics would have taken many years to resolve by calling council meetings etc. but Arianism had to be put down. We traded the heresy of the Arians for the Schism of the Orthodox - not sure that was a good trade.

I am so ready for the Orthodox to just “get over it” and come back fully into the family. It’s ancient history and there is no reason for them to remain seperated. To my knowledge the only legitimate remaining beef is not even religious but political. There was the bad treatment of Roman sponsored mercenary Crusaders attacking the East which was apologized for years ago.

James

 

[adstrinity]

CentralFLJames, look at it this way; if the Catholic Church is wrong about the HS thing, then they added to the Deposit of Faith, how else have they corrupted the faith? I think this is how the Orthodox legitimately view us.