TheHoly Spirit, otherwise known as theHoly Ghost, is a concept within theAbrahamic religions. InJudaism, the Holy Spirit is understood as the divine quality or force ofGod manifesting in the world, particularly in acts ofprophecy, creation and guidance. InNiceneChristianity, this conception expanded in meaning to represent thethird person of theTrinity, co-equal and co-eternal withGod the Father andGod the Son. InIslam, the Holy Spirit acts as an agent of divine action or communication. In theBaha’i Faith, the Holy Spirit is seen as the intermediary between God and man and "the outpouring grace of God and the effulgent rays that emanate from His Manifestation".[1]
The Christian concept tends to emphasize themoral aspect of the Holy Spirit as a common expression in the Christian New Testament.[3] Based on the Old Testament, the book of Acts emphasizes the power of ministry aspect of the Holy Spirit.[4]
In general, Jews reject any conception of a co-equal, multi-person godhead; anything but an absolute monotheism is contrary to theShema. They do not consider the Hebrew word for "one" (Hebrew: אחד,ekhad) as meaning anything other than a simple numericalone.[5][6] The rabbinical understanding of the Holy Spirit has a certain degree ofpersonification, but it remains, "a quality belonging to God, one of his attributes".[7] The idea of God as aduality ortrinity is consideredshituf (or "not purely monotheistic").
According totheologianRudolf Bultmann, there are two ways to think about the Holy Spirit: "animistic" and "dynamistic". In animistic thinking, he is "an independent agent, a personal power which (...) can fall upon a man and take possession of him, enabling him or compelling him to perform manifestations of power" while in dynamistic thought it "appears as an impersonal force which fills a man like a fluid".[8] Both kinds of thought appear in Jewish and Christian scripture, but animistic is more typical of the Old Testament whereas dynamistic is more common in the New Testament.[9] The distinction coincides with the Holy Spirit as either a temporary or permanent gift. In the Old Testament and Jewish thought, it is primarily temporary with a specific situation or task in mind, whereas in the Christian concept the gift resides in persons permanently.[10]
On the surface, the Holy Spirit appears to have an equivalent in non-AbrahamicHellenistic mystery religions. These religions included a distinction between thespirit andpsyche, which is also seen in thePauline epistles. According to proponents[who?] of theHistory of religions school, the Christian concept of the Holy Spirit cannot be explained from Jewish ideas alone without reference to the Hellenistic religions.[11] And according to theologian Erik Konsmo, the views "are so dissimilar that the only legitimate connection one can make is with the Greek term πνεῦμα [pneuma, Spirit] itself".[12]
Another link with ancient Greek thought is theStoic idea of the spirit asanima mundi – or world soul – that unites all people.[12] Some[by whom?] believe that this can be seen in Paul's formulation of the concept of the Holy Spirit that unitesChristians inJesusChrist and love for one another, but Konsmo again thinks that this position is difficult to maintain.[13] In his Introduction to the 1964 bookMeditations, the Anglican priest Maxwell Staniforth wrote:
Another Stoic concept which offered inspiration to the Church was that of "divine Spirit". Cleanthes, wishing to give more explicit meaning to Zeno's "creative fire", had been the first to hit upon the termpneuma, or "spirit", to describe it. Like fire, this intelligent "spirit" was imagined as a tenuous substance akin to a current of air or breath, but essentially possessing the quality of warmth; it was immanent in the universe as God, and in man as the soul and life-giving principle. Clearly it is not a long step from this to the "Holy Spirit" of Christian theology, the "Lord and Giver of life", visibly manifested as tongues of fire at Pentecost and ever since associated – in the Christian as in the Stoic mind – with the ideas of vital fire and beneficent warmth.[14]
TheHebrew language phraseruach ha-kodesh (Hebrew:רוח הקודש, "holy spirit" also transliteratedruaḥ ha-qodesh) is used in theHebrew Bible and Jewish writings to refer to the spirit ofYHWH (רוח יהוה).[15] The Hebrew termsruacḥ qodshəka, "thy holy spirit" (רוּחַ קָדְשְׁךָ), andruacḥ qodshō, "his holy spirit" (רוּחַ קָדְשׁוֹ), also occur (when a possessive suffix is added thedefinite articleha is dropped).
The Holy Spirit in Judaism generally refers to the divine aspect of prophecy and wisdom. It also refers to the divine force, quality, and influence of the Most High God, over the universe or over his creatures, in given contexts.[16]
For the large majority ofChristians, the Holy Spirit (orHoly Ghost, from Old Englishgast, "spirit") is the third[17] person of the Trinity: The "Triune God" manifested asFather,Son, and Holy Spirit; each Person being God.[18][19][20] Two symbols from the New Testament canon are associated with the Holy Spirit in Christianiconography: a winged dove, and tongues of fire.[21][22] Each depiction of the Holy Spirit arose from different accounts in theGospel narratives; the first being at thebaptism of Jesus in theJordan River where the Holy Spirit was said to descend in the form of a dove as the voice of God the Father spoke as described inMatthew,Mark, andLuke;[21] the second being from the day ofPentecost, fifty days afterPassover where the descent of the Holy Spirit came upon theApostles and other followers ofJesus Christ, as tongues of fire as described in theActs of the Apostles,[23] as promised by Jesus in his farewell discourse.[24][25] Called "the unveiledepiphany of God",[26] the Holy Spirit is the One who empowers the followers of Jesus with spiritual gifts[27][28] and power[29][30] that enables the proclamation of Jesus Christ, and the power that brings conviction of faith.[31]
The Holy Spirit (Arabic:روح القدس,romanized: Ruh al-Qudus, "the Spirit of Holiness") is mentioned four times in theQur'an,[32] where it acts as an agent of divine action or communication. TheMuslim interpretation of the Holy Spirit is generally consistent with other interpretations based upon the Old and the New Testaments. On the basis of narrations in certainHadith, some Muslims identify it with the angelGabriel (ArabicJibrāʾīl).[33] The Spirit (الروحal-Ruh, without the adjective "holy" or "exalted") is described, among other things, as the creative spirit from God by which God enlivenedAdam, and which inspired in various ways God's messengers and prophets, includingJesus andAbraham. The belief in a "Holy Trinity", according to the Qur'an, is forbidden and deemed to beblasphemy. The same prohibition applies to any idea of theduality ofGod (Allah).[34][35]
In Baháʼí belief, the Holy Spirit is theconduit through which the wisdom of God becomes directly associated with his messenger, and it has been described variously in different religions such as theburning bush to Moses, thesacred fire to Zoroaster,the dove to Jesus, the angel Gabriel to Muhammad, and theMaid of Heaven to Bahá'u'lláh (founder of the Baháʼí Faith).[38] The Baháʼí view rejects the idea that the Holy Spirit is a partner to God in the Godhead, but rather is the pure essence of God's attributes.[39]
The theologian Raimon Panikkar believed theHindu concept ofAdvaita was linked to the Trinity. He stated that the Holy Spirit, as one of the Three Persons of the Trinity of "father, Logos and Holy Spirit", was a bridge-builder between Christianity and Hinduism, despite Shiva and the Holy Spirit occupying vastly different roles in their respective religions. He explains that: "The meeting of spiritualistic can take place in the Spirit. No new 'system' has primarily to come of this encounter, but a new and yet old spirit must emerge."[40]Atman isVedic terminology elaborated inHindu scriptures such asUpanishads andVedanta signifies theUltimate Reality andAbsolute.[41]
InZoroastrianism, the Holy Spirit, also known asSpenta Mainyu, is ahypostasis ofAhura Mazda, the supreme Creator God of Zoroastrianism; the Holy Spirit is seen as the source of all goodness in the universe, the spark of all life within humanity, and is the ultimate guide for humanity to righteousness and communion with God. The Holy Spirit is put in direct opposition to its eternal dual counterpart,Angra Mainyu, who is the source of all wickedness and who leads humanity astray.[42]
^Espín, Orlando O. (2007)."Holy Spirit". In Espín, Orlando O.; Nickoloff, James B. (eds.).An Introductory Dictionary of Theology and Religious Studies. Collegeville: Liturgical Press. p. 576.ISBN978-0-8146-5856-7.
^Erickson, Millard J. (1992).Introducing Christian Doctrine. Baker Book House. p. 103.
^Hammond, T. C. (1968). Wright, David F. (ed.).In Understanding be Men: A Handbook of Christian Doctrine (6th ed.).Inter-Varsity Press. pp. 54–56,128–131.
^Grudem, Wayne A. (1994).Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine. Leicester, England: Inter-Varsity Press; Grand Rapids, MI:Zondervan. p. 226.
^Williams, Charles (1950).The descent of the Dove : a short history of the Holy Spirit in the church. London: Faber.
^Kasemann, Ernst (1960).The Beginnings of Christian Theology [W.J. Montague, New Testament Questions of Today] (in German). Philadelphia: Fortress.ISBN978-1-316-61990-2.
^Wesley, John (2003).The Holy Spirit and power. Keefauver, Larry., Weakley, Clare G. ([Rev. and updated ed.] ed.). Gainesville, Fla.: Bridge-Logos. p. 107.ISBN088270947X.OCLC53143450.
.jpg)
