How to explain single procession of the Holy Spirit to Latin Catholics and Protestants?

[Harpazo]

In my dialogue with an Evangelical Protestant friend of mine, he has expressed interest in trying to convert me. I’ve been able to refute everything he’s thrown at me (Praise be Jesus Christ!), but in this particular area I’m having a bit of trouble. I plan on inviting him to Adoration at my Maronite parish this Friday. Yes, I know this isn’t an authentic Maronite Tradition, but Christ is there and I know that He will reach out to my friend and help lead him home.

He’s planning going to Liberty University, as we live about 1 hour away from there. At school today, he showed me the “beliefs” of the college. For the most part, they were orthodox (orthodox Protestant, oxymoronic, I know) however, there was a blatant reference to Sola Scriptura and then another to the double procession of the Holy Spirit. I know that Catholics and Orthodox argue past each other on this issue. I myself, follow what the Councils and the Church has taught on this, meaning a single procession of the Spirit.

There are sadly Latin Catholics that are ignorant on the matter, as well as Protestants.

How can I explain this, considering he does not accept the authority of either the Pope nor any Bishop nor the Councils? Are there Scripture passages that lend to this?

Al-Masih Qam!
Andrew

 

[Nicholas82]

John 15:26 "But when the Helper comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify of Me.

How that could be taken to say anything but that the Spirit proceeds from the Father, sent by the Son, but proceeding only from the Father, is beyond me.

 

[East_and_West]

In my dialogue with an Evangelical Protestant friend of mine, he has expressed interest in trying to convert me. I’ve been able to refute everything he’s thrown at me (Praise be Jesus Christ!), but in this particular area I’m having a bit of trouble. I plan on inviting him to Adoration at my Maronite parish this Friday. Yes, I know this isn’t an authentic Maronite Tradition, but Christ is there and I know that He will reach out to my friend and help lead him home.

He’s planning going to Liberty University, as we live about 1 hour away from there. At school today, he showed me the “beliefs” of the college. For the most part, they were orthodox (orthodox Protestant, oxymoronic, I know) however, there was a blatant reference to Sola Scriptura and then another to the double procession of the Holy Spirit. I know that Catholics and Orthodox argue past each other on this issue. I myself, follow what the Councils and the Church has taught on this, meaning a single procession of the Spirit.

There are sadly Latin Catholics that are ignorant on the matter, as well as Protestants.

How can I explain this, considering he does not accept the authority of either the Pope nor any Bishop nor the Councils? Are there Scripture passages that lend to this?

Al-Masih Qam!
Andrew

This can get messy, because as we know, later councils expounded upon the matter of the procession of the Holy Spirit from both the Father and the Son. If you try to tackle this issue, I think you are simply going to show him that Catholics are not really united in their faith.

 

[Formosus]

The Council of Florence teaches its a double procession. The problem here is that in the latin theological language, double procession does not mean the samething it means in the greek language of theology. Someone on here recently pointed out that the Assyrians adopted a position similar to the fillioque 100 years before the spanish local council in the west that is constantly cited for its [the filioque] introduction.