Analysis of συμπροσκυνούμενον καὶ συνδοξαζόμενον: Worship and Glorification of the Holy Spirit in Eastern Orthodox Theology

(c) 2025 George Georgalis <george@galis.org> unlimited use with this notice
revision 6839390e 20250529 215022 PDT Thu 09:50 PM 29 May 2025
original 68390148 20250529 175224 PDT Thu 05:52 PM 29 May 2025

The Linguistic Challenge of Divine Mystery

The phrase "τὸ σὺν Πατρὶ καὶ Υἱῷ συμπροσκυνούμενον καὶ συνδοξαζόμενον" represents one of the most theologically dense and linguistically precise expressions in the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed. These two participles—συμπροσκυνούμενον (symproskynóumenon) and συνδοξαζόμενον (syndoxazómenon)—articulate something fundamentally ineffable: the nature of divine worship and the Holy Spirit's full participation in the Godhead.

Grammatical and Morphological Analysis

συμπροσκυνούμενον (symproskynóumenon)

Morphological Breakdown:

Grammatical Construction:

συνδοξαζόμενον (syndoxazómenon)

Morphological Breakdown:

Grammatical Construction:

Etymology and Semantic Development

The Evolution of προσκυνέω (proskynéō)

The verb προσκυνέω underwent remarkable semantic evolution:

  1. Pre-Classical Period: Physical prostration, literally "kissing toward"
  2. Classical Greek: Gesture of reverence to Persian kings or Greek gods
  3. Septuagint Translation: Chosen to translate Hebrew הִשְׁתַּחֲוָה (hishtachavah), meaning worship/bow down
  4. New Testament Usage: Reserved almost exclusively for divine worship
  5. Patristic Development: Technical theological term for latria (worship due to God alone)

The addition of συν- (syn-) produces a term that resolves the linguistic challenge of expressing how the Holy Spirit shares fully in the worship given to the Trinity as one God. This prefix transforms the meaning from simple worship to worship-together-with, establishing the Spirit's complete divine status.

The Complexity of δόξα (dóxa)

The term δόξα carries multiple semantic layers:

  1. Classical Greek: "opinion, reputation, appearance"
  2. Septuagint: Translates Hebrew כָּבוֹד (kavod), meaning "weight, glory, presence"
  3. Biblical Theology: Divine radiance, the manifestation of God's presence
  4. Liturgical Context: The luminous energy of God experienced in worship

Theological Implications in Eastern Orthodox Context

The Impossibility of Precise Definition

Eastern Orthodox theology embraces apophatic (negative) theology—the recognition that God transcends human categories. The terms συμπροσκυνούμενον and συνδοξαζόμενον represent kataphatic (positive) statements that paradoxically point to this ineffability:

  1. Worship as Transformative Action: While προσκυνέω denotes worship, Orthodox theology understands worship as truly human action infused with divine grace. Through worship, human nature transcends itself through glorification, participating in divine life while remaining authentically human.
  1. Glory as Uncreated Light: In Orthodox understanding, δόξα refers to the uncreated energies of God—divine activities distinguishable from but inseparable from the divine essence. This Palamite distinction means "glorification" involves participation in something beyond created reality.

The Nature of Pneumatological Experience

The Holy Spirit's role presents unique characteristics that are natural to theology though they may seem paradoxical to secular thought:

  1. The Spirit as Enabler and Recipient: The Spirit both enables worship and receives worship—a relationship that reveals the dynamic nature of Trinitarian life
  2. The Uncontainable Presence: Like the Son, the Spirit cannot be contained or limited, yet the Spirit's incorporeal nature means this presence is experienced differently than the Incarnate Word
  3. Personal and Incorporeal: The Spirit is fully personal—we have personal experience of the Spirit—yet remains incorporeal, without physical form

Cultural and Liturgical Context

Liturgical Embodiment

In Orthodox practice, these terms find expression through:

  1. Physical Prostrations: The bodily act of προσκύνησις during liturgy
  2. Doxological Hymns: Countless variations of "Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit"
  3. Epiclesis: The invocation of the Holy Spirit, acknowledging dependence on the One being worshipped

Iconographic Theology

The Orthodox approach to icons illuminates these concepts through three essential principles:

  1. Icons as Written Theology: Icons are "written" (γράφω) rather than merely painted, because they inscribe theological truth in visual form. Just as the Creed articulates faith in words, icons articulate faith in color and form, both serving as windows to divine reality.
  1. Veneration and Prototype: When Orthodox Christians offer veneration (προσκύνησις) to icons, this honor passes to the prototype—the person depicted. This theological principle illuminates how worship offered to the Spirit is worship offered to God, as the Spirit is truly God.
  1. The Spirit's Uncontainable Nature: The Holy Spirit defies direct depiction not because of hiddenness but because of the Spirit's uncontainable, incorporeal nature. Wind, fire, dove—all symbols point to but cannot capture the Spirit who fills all things and is everywhere present.

Linguistic Precision and Theological Humility

The Syn- Prefix as Theological Statement

The repeated use of συν- (with/together) serves multiple functions:

  1. Anti-Subordinationist: Establishes the Spirit's full equality with Father and Son
  2. Relational Ontology: Defines the Spirit through relationship, not isolation
  3. Liturgical Unity: Reflects the inseparable worship of the Trinity—not as three objects of worship but as one God in three persons

Passive Voice as Theological Necessity

The passive construction (-ούμενον) indicates:

  1. The Spirit receives worship—not as inferior but as fully divine
  2. Worship originates from the Father through the Son in the Spirit
  3. Human worship participates in an eternal Trinitarian exchange

Contemporary Interpretive Challenges

Translation Inadequacies

Modern translations struggle with these terms in several crucial ways:

  1. Passive Voice Richness: English cannot capture the full semantic range of the Greek middle/passive voice. The -ούμενον ending suggests both receiving worship and being involved in the very act of worship—a reciprocal relationship foreign to English grammar.
  1. Embodied Worship: The physical, embodied dimension of προσκυνέω—the actual prostration, the kissing toward—disappears in translation. English "worship" has become largely conceptual, while the Greek term retains its concrete, bodily character.
  1. Temporal Ambiguity: The present tense in Greek points not to a moment in time but to eternal, ever-present reality. The Spirit is not merely "worshipped" at certain times but exists in an eternal state of receiving worship together with the Father and Son.

Living the Creed in Contemporary Orthodox Practice

For Orthodox Christians seeking to understand their faith's Greek foundations, these terms reveal:

  1. Theological Precision Through Divine Inspiration: The synaxis (gathering) of the Church Fathers, guided by divine inspiration, articulated precise terminology that safeguards Orthodox faith. Each grammatical element serves to preserve revealed truth.
  1. The Present Eternal: The use of present tense reveals how the Creed speaks not of past beliefs but of eternal realities actively present. When we confess these words, we participate in the ongoing worship of the Trinity.
  1. Participation Over Definition: These terms invite us into mystery rather than offering exhaustive explanation. They are verbal icons that lead us into encounter with the living God.

The Character of Letters and Practice

While letters, words, and paper themselves are not glorified or worshipped, the practice of carefully preserving and transmitting these precise terms edifies the Church. Just as an icon is written rather than painted, indicating its sacred purpose, so too these credal terms are received and preserved with reverence—not for the ink and parchment but for the divine truth they convey.

The very letters and syllables serve completeness and purity of the message:

The Gift of Divine Revelation

The phrase συμπροσκυνούμενον καὶ συνδοξαζόμενον stands as divinely inspired testimony to the Holy Spirit's full divinity and the unified worship of the Trinity. The hypostasis of the Church, established by Christ, received this symbol of faith as eternal truth—not as product of human deliberation but as gift of divine revelation codified through the Tradition of Church beliefs.

Through the Incarnation of the Word, human perception was opened to the light of the Trinity. The Son's entry into the world lifted humanity to participate in divine life, making possible the reception of these profound truths. In this light, the Creed exists as the divinely inspired symbol of the faithful—each word a precious vessel containing inexhaustible meaning.

The very impossibility of precisely defining these terms reflects Orthodox epistemology: true knowledge of God comes not through conceptual mastery but through participation in divine life. The Spirit who is "worshipped-together-with and glorified-together-with" the Father and the Son remains free like the wind, "blowing where it wishes" (John 3:8), filling all things while transcending all limitation.

These sacred words continue to shape Orthodox consciousness, reminding believers that in worship and glorification, the Trinity is encountered not as three separate objects of devotion but as one God—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—to whom be glory unto ages of ages. Through understanding these terms in their original linguistic richness, contemporary Orthodox Christians enter more deeply into the transformative encounter with the living God who is both transcendent mystery and intimate presence.