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Whether this name “Holy Spirit” is the proper name of one divine person?
The two words “Holy” and “Spirit” together are an expression applicable to the Holy Trinity. For this word “Spirit” is that of the Divine Substance, that which is immaterial and invisible. As for the word “Holy,” this signifies the Divine Goodness and purity of what is set apart (holy). However, in the Church, when taken as one word, it is meant to distinguish the Third Person of the Most Holy Trinity (Who Is One Divine Essence) who is also the procession of Love and impulse/movement of the will which proceeds from the Father and Son by the real relation of common spiration. Therefore, the Holy Spirit is the proper name of a Divine Person. Whether the Holy Ghost proceeds from the Son? The Holy Spirit is from both the Father and the Son as proceeding through the real relation of common spiration; not made (creature), created (matter and nature), begotten (which is Son) or unbegotten (which is Father). Furthermore, the Holy Spirit does not beget another, while at the same time it is not the image of the Father or the Son because there cannot be two things in one image, for that would be impossible, nor can there be an image of an image. Now, since the Son proceeds by way of the Intellect as the Word Proceeding, and the Holy Spirit proceeds by way of the will as Love, it must also follow that the Holy Spirit must proceed (because of love) from the Word which comes forth from the Intellect which is the Son. See for yourself; before you tell your spouse or your loved one that you “love” them, or display an action of “love” towards them, the mind and the heart (intellect or soul) must feel it and then identify where this love must go. From there, once you make the decision to express this love either by word or deed, that love then proceeds to that person in the form of a loving expression/action, word, or many words such as a poem or loving sentence. So, in the same way, the movement of Love which is the Holy Spirit must come from an Intellect proceeding through the Word which is the Son, as our faith confesses. If someone were to claim the opposite, in that the Son proceeds from the Holy Spirit, then that would be a heretical statement and false. For we know the Divine Persons by their real relations. In the same way, think of a child tracing with a stick the outline of a figure in a sandbox which was hidden beneath the sand. The borderlines of the figure are the real relations between the figure which manifests and the sand which it borders. Once the real relation is identified, the figure is identified as well - so in this way, we know the Divine Persons by their real relations. Whether the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father through the Son? The Holy Spirit spirates from the Father through the Son which is also another way to say that the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father through the Son. The word “through” represents authority. In this case, a Divine Authority (Godhead), which is The Source of all authorities (human laws, princely classes, thrones, dominions and principalities). Whether the Father and the Son are one principle of the Holy Spirit? As stated earlier, the Father and the Son are one principle of the Holy Spirit. This is so for several reasons: One, the word “principle” signifies a property in things created. Two, Father and Son are one in the unity of form through the word “God,” which is proper to creation, because they are from the Divine Substance (Godhead). Now; because of this, they are one principle of the Holy Spirit by the unity of form in the property signified by this word “principle.” In another way, when we use the word “principle” in this regard, we are referring to Two Divine Persons: Father, and Son - which are the principle of the Third Divine Person who is Holy Spirit, even though all three Divine Persons are One Essence.
I am blessed to be a Third Order Lay Dominican. However, the ideas expressed in this post are my own and do not represent the endorsement of or position of the Order of Preachers as a whole.
Commentary regarding Saint Thomas Aquinas’ Summa Theologiae derived from: ST part (I), Q. 27-49 from newadvent.org with permission. Scripture texts in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Washington, D.C. and are used by permission of the copyright owner. All Rights Reserved. No part of the New American Bible may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the copyright owner.
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mr. scott lowry, op
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