The Divine Nature of the Holy Spirit and the Church
The third article of the creed affirms the divine nature of the Church and the Holy Spirit. According to the creed, the Spirit is an attribute of God’s power rather than a person indwelled in the World. “The Spirit hovered over the waters that God made out of nothing, bringing life and setting things in order (Genesis 1:1-2). People, therefore, have a relationship with the Holy Spirit that is responsible for creating and sustaining life.
The first section of the article covers the story of Jesus from inception to the second coming. The creed identifies the Holy Spirit in the first place, “I Believe in the Holy Spirit.” The Holy Spirit became flesh to save mankind by reconciling us with God (Catholic 116). The creed perceives the Holy Spirit as a power from God to redeem the World that led to the birth and resurrection of Christ.
The Holy Spirit in the New Testament
The creed perceives the Church to be earthbound, whereas the New Testament teaches that the Holy Spirit dwells in Churches and the hearts of the faithful. First, Mary conceived Jesus through the power of the Holy Spirit. God used the Spirit to send his only Son to the World, who was in the human body. According to the New Testament, the Holy Spirit was launched when Christ completed his work on the day of Pentecost. “When the work which the Father gave the Son to do on earth was completed, the Holy Spirit was sent on the day of Pentecost to sanctify the Church continually and so that believers might have access to the Father through Christ in the one Spirit” (John 17:4). It is through the Spirit sins are washed away leading to eternal life.
Therefore, the New Testament implies that the Holy Spirit is among the faithful. According to the creed, through the Holy Spirit, man is invited and brought into the life of God; therefore, faith in the Holy Spirit manifests salvation, not faith in the Church. Incarnation describes that to be in touch with Christ, one must be in the Holy Spirit. The creed teaches that resurrection and everlasting life result from the Holy Spirit.
The Role of the Trinity in Salvation
According to the creed, the divine plan of our salvation is believed to be the work of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit from the beginning to the end. Ontological speculation acknowledges the power of God in history, which led to the resurrection of Jesus. The creed describes that the Son of God assumed human nature to accomplish salvation (Paul 3). Hence, God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are three different beings held together by divinity (Catholic 117). God can be acknowledged in two natures: the true God in perfect divinity of Jesus Christ, who is perfect in humanity and divinity.
The Trinity and the Church
The Holy Trinity describes God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit as one. God sent the Son and the Spirit, who are part of him, to unshackle his believers from sins. According to a Trinitarian view, the Church is holy and divine and holds the power of the Holy Trinity, while the doctrine interprets the Church in a worldly fashion (Ratzinger 333). Since teaching about the Holy Spirit differed from the teaching about the Church, Christology suffered major consequences, and it had to evolve. The doctrine of the Trinity, different from the creed, identifies Jesus as the incarnation of God consubstantially united with the Holy Spirit.
Works Cited
Catechism of the Catholic Church. Washington, DC: Libreria Editrice Vaticano [United States Conference of Catholic Bishops], 2018 [CCC]. [ISBN: 9781601376497]
Ratzinger, Joseph [Benedict XVI], Introduction to Christianity. San Francisco: Ignatius Press, Ignatius Press, 2004 [1968]. [ISBN 1-58617-029-5]
Holy Bible. American Standard Version, Bible Domain Publishing, (n.d).
Pope Paul VI, Dei Verbum [1965]