He proceeds from the Father and the Son

The original Creed of Nicaea (A.D. 325) concluded with the declaration of belief: “And in the Holy Spirit.” Later, the Creed of Constantinople (A.D. 381) expanded this statement, affirming: “And in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father.”

The Eastern Orthodox Church maintains this original wording of the Creed, while the Roman Catholic Church and many Protestant traditions adopted the phrasing: “who proceeds from the Father and the Son (‘Filioque’ in Latin).”

This concept ‘and the Son’ had been in existence in the West for a long time. However, the addition of the word filioque to the Creed first appears in the acts of the Synod of Braga (A.D. 412), and in the third Council of Toledo (A.D. 589).

This wording ‘and the Son’ was later incorporated into the Roman Mass (Latin Rite) and formally approved by Pope Benedict VIII in 1014.

It is striking to realize that the single word Filioque resulted in the Great Schism between the Eastern (Greek) and Western (Latin) Churches in 1054. This invites us to delve into the meaning of the word “procession.”

The Creed mentions two processions: The Son proceeds from the Father, by way of emanation of the intellect; and this procession is called generation. Thus, the Creed says, “Begotten, not made.”

But the Spirit proceeds from the love of the Father and the Son through an act of their unified will. Together, the Father and the Son breathe forth the Holy Spirit. And the Creed says, “Proceeds from the Father and the Son.”

The Son is called the Wisdom of God, proceeding from an act of the intellect. Meanwhile, the Holy Spirit is the love of God—the very breath of God—proceeding from an act of the will: an act of love.

The Athanasian Creed, which originated in Southern France (Gaul) around the mid-fifth century, further explains:

The Father is made of none: neither created, nor begotten.
The Son is of the Father alone: not made, nor created, but begotten.
The Holy Spirit is of the Father and of the Son: neither made, nor created,
nor begotten, but proceeding.

This means that a single act of the will, shared through the consubstantiality of Father and Son, results in the spiration of the Holy Spirit.

‘Unbegottenness’ is the unique personal property of the Father, ‘Begottenness’ is the unique personal property of the Son, and ‘procession’ is the unique personal property of the Holy Spirit.

Reconciliation on the filioque involves modern dialogues and agreements between Catholic and Orthodox churches. An "Agreed Statement on the Filioque" by Catholic and Orthodox theologians in 2003, declared that the Filioque was no longer a "Church-dividing" issue that would prevent full communion, provided there is further review.

Pope Francis omitted the Filioque during his 2021 pastoral visit to Greece. Pope Benedict XVI also omitted the Filioque while reciting the Creed with Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I during the Feast of Sts. Peter and Paul in Rome.

As a Catholic, I believe that the Holy Spirit is consubstantial with the Father and the Son, and proceeds eternally from the Father and the Son, not by two spirations, but by one single spiration.