Chad Tyler Gerber is Assistant Professor of Theology at Walsh University, USA. This book is part of the Ashgate Studies in Philosophy and Theology in Late Antiquity. The series focuses on major theologians from the patristic period as individuals immersed in their own culture. It somewhat uniquely aims to understand the convergence or divergence of pagan and Christian thought on issues addressed by both streams. Accordingly, it hopes to ascertain the true creativity of a particular author and to assess the abiding value of his thought for modern times. This text is serious theology so lay people or even many clergy may not find it easily palatable. However, teachers and advanced students of theology will definitely find it a rewarding and worthwhile read. Augustine is indisputably one of the giants of Christian thought, and Gerber offers a fresh and vigorous look at his pneumatology. That alone is cause for acclaim. Accordingly, those interested in patristic studies in general or in Augustine in particular as well as his pneumatology will benefit from The Spirit of Augustine’s Early Theology. I suspect Pentecostal and Charismatic theologians should be especially interested in the depths of Augustine’s theology of the Holy Spirit.

Gerber explains that “Augustine’s pneumatology remains one of his most distinctive, decisive, and ultimately divisive contributions” to Christian theology. Several questions guide Gerber’s work on this text. How did Augustine’s understanding of the Spirit develop? Why does he identify the Spirit with divine love and cosmic order? What were the sources of his inspiration? Gerber focuses on the early Augustine and his first writings in order to get at the seminal roots of his more mature thought. He is particularly interested in the Platonic influence on Augustine’s pneumatology and in the possibility of his continuing commitment to the divinity of the human soul. (In a brief appendix, Gerber sums up his argument that Augustine rejected the divinity of the soul; but, he suggests Augustine appropriated certain functions of the Plotinian Soul regarding the particularity of the Holy Spirit, especially his idea of the Spirit as the “ordinator” of the world.)

Following the contours of Augustine’s early writings and the locale of their construction, Gerber presents his material in four chapters. After a brief introduction, Chapter One on “Nicea and Neoplatonism” (386-87 AD) examines the influence of Nicea and Neoplatonism on the budding theologian’s early Trinitarian theology as he writes from Milan. Gerber concludes that “at bottom” Augustine’s early Trinitarian theology was “pro-Nicene” and also made use of “Plotinian triadology”. He suggests the early Augustine still had much to learn about both Neoplatonism and pro-Nicene theology; but, he had sufficiently grasped the central tenets of both in such as way as to understand and express his theology in terms that would remain essentially the same throughout his subsequent writings.

In Chapter Two, “The Soul of Plotinus and the Spirit of Nicea,” studying the Cassiciacum Dialogues (386-87 AD), Gerber gets to a more specific pneumatology and also to the delicate relation in Augustine between Plotinus’ philosophy and Nicene theology. Gerber suggests that Augustine’s more or less random invocations on pneumatology at this point nevertheless adhere to a consistent “redemptive-historical perspective in which God the Spirit leads fallen souls to God the Son.” Augustine is apparently influenced here by the New Testament and by patristic writings. The theme of “return” is also evident, and Plotinus appears to have provided “a psychological model of ascent” in which the soul’s salvation involves a vision of “archetypal Truth and a ‘return'” to God as “the ultimate source of all things” (although Romans 11:36 is key). Gerber, however, judges the material too scarce at this point to make sweeping conclusions about specific ideas concerning pneumatology and cosmic order.

The title of this book may be initially off-putting to some, as though the author is proposing a view of the Holy Spirit akin to what is known as “adoptionist Christology.” But in the foreword, Matthew Bates makes it clear this is not the case: “While the revelation of the divinity of the Spirit (as part of the Christian doctrine of God) has an origin in time, nevertheless the Spirit’s divinity is not constrained by time or by our process of discovery” (xi). So, the book is not about the Spirit becoming God, as though there “was a time when he was not” God, but about how the Spirit came to be understood as being God.

The author, Kyle Hughes, apart from being an ordained deacon in the Anglican Church in North America, is also chair of the history department at Whitfield Academy in Atlanta, Georgia. He brings both a doctrinal lens and a historian’s perspective to this topic.

Chapter one, “The Problem of the Holy Spirit,” starts off by tackling some of the difficulties raised by the ways the Spirit is portrayed in Scripture. While the Father and Son are consistently portrayed in personal terms, phrases that depict the Spirit being “poured out” on people, or “filling” them, seem to suggest an inanimate substance rather than a personal being (3). Hughes then outlines how this historical study will not simply summarize the dogmatic teachings of various church fathers, but dive into how the early church’s methods of biblical interpretation that informed their declarations about the Godhead. Hughes proposes that the development of pneumatology in the first few centuries of the Christian era was based first on ideas being grounded in Scripture, while also including the church’s lived experiences of the Holy Spirit in light of Scripture.

Chapter three deals with “The Spirit and Christian Identity.” In discussing how the increasingly Gentile church came to see itself as no longer simply a messianic Jewish sect, Hughes looks at the Epistle of Barnabas and the writings of Justin Martyr. Barnabas argues that not only did the Spirit inspire the writers of the Ole Testament to look forward to Christ, but the Spirit himself looked forward to Christ, which is a personal activity rather than that of an impersonal force (42). Hughes points out that Justin wrote about the ongoing presence of the charisms in the second century, in the lives of both male and female believers, which means that the Montanists and other charismatic groups in the early church were not as innovative as some versions of history would assume (48-49). Justin also argued that just as the central Old Testament figures had gifts of the Spirit, the presence of these gifts among Christians showed that God’s Spirit was now upon them and had departed from the Jewish people as a group, indicating that the Christians had properly recognized the arrival of the Messiah.

The fifth chapter, “The Spirit and the Divine Economy,” examines Iranaeus’ presentation of the Spirit as the one who gives life, prepares believers for eternal life, reveals God across all of Scripture, and realizes the risen Christ’s presence in redeemed individuals (80-81). The work of Tertullian is further examined as well, discussing how his battle against modalistic monarchianism led to the development of trinitarian language, with Tertullian showing how that activities of the Father, Son, and Spirit are carried out by three divine Persons, and not simply one God playing three roles (85). The author also points out that Tertullian’s particular language sets up a problem for later trinitarian theologians, that of subordinationism (87). Novatian’s contribution of the eternal distinction of the Son from the Father is discussed (92), as is Origen’s articulation of the eternal existence of the Spirit with the Father and the Son (95).

I found this book to be very helpful in understanding the development over time of the doctrines we learn today in basic Christian discipleship classes and courses of systematic theology. The church’s teaching on the divine personhood of the Spirit—and thereby of the Trinity—did not descend fully-formed from heaven on golden tablets but was hammered out over the centuries through theological reflection on Scripture in the midst of the Spirit’s working among believers. I highly recommend Hughes’ volume to students of historical theology, as well as to anyone who desires to know more about “how we got here.”

Reviewed by Brian Roden

Publisher’s page: https://wipfandstock.com/9781532693748/how-the-spirit-became-god/

The book consists of Acknowledgments, five chapters, thirteen excurses, varied notes, selected bibliography, and detailed indexes of subjects, ancient names, modern authors and ancient sources.

Chapter titles include: “The Emergence of the Spirit: Recasting Exodus”, “The Essence of the Spirit: Retelling Exodus”, “The Absence of the Spirit: Recalling Exodus”, “The Assurance of the Spirit: Rekindling Exodus”, and “The Significance of the Spirit: Rediscovering Exodus”. Each chapter brings a varied and deep-well resource for the study of pneumatology.

This work offers detailed, personable, opinionated, and indispensable tedious research. From his descriptions of German theologian Hans Leisagang and more to his Greek or Jewish tracing of the origins of historical pneumatology, you’ll find detailed promise of the divine presence of God. The weight of God’s glory is depicted through Israel’s birth and early years. Pillars and angels, Clouds and fire are described as leading the Israelites to outpace the Egyptians. While God’s presence is described as durable, unshakable, and reliable.

Levison’s description of the Babylonian exile offers intriguing storylines where the Spirit is an active agent in cross-cultural contexts.  He offers rich parallels of Moses and Ezekiel, Jeremiah, Zechariah and more with concepts of the Spirit of God 1) rushing upon, 2) pouring over, and 3) resting upon individuals.

Jack Levison holds the W.J.A. Power Chair of Old Testament Interpretation and Biblical Hebrew at Perkins School of Theology, Southern Methodist University. Levison was raised in New York, attended Wheaton College, received an MA at Cambridge University, and pursued his doctoral studies at Duke University. Faculty page.

He offers a unique study of consequences regarding modern assessments of early Judaism including a discourse of NT Wright’s deep appreciation for the contributions of 2^nd Temple Judaism and Shekinah Glory’s indwelling presence. He proclaims clearly, the Spirit is active now.

Levison ends this work with thirteen brief two to four page excurses. An excursus (from Latin excurrere, ‘to run out of’) is a short outbreak or narration in a work of literature. Excursuses often have little to do with subject matter discussed by the work, used to lighten or add insight to the story. He does it with brilliance.

Reviewed by Joseph S. Girdler

Publisher’s page: https://www.baylorpress.com/9781481310031/the-holy-spirit-before-christianity/

June 19-22, 2016 at Princeton Theological Seminary.

Conference description from The Center for Barth Studies:

Karl Barth’s Pneumatology and the Global Pentecostal Movement

Karl Barth’s pneumatology is a contentious subject, especially when read in critical relationship to his conception of divine and human agency and his consequent understanding of the church. But how might Barth’s pneumatological contribution be interpreted in another ecclesiological context, and against another set of concerns regarding the acting of God in relation to the human? This conference sets Barth’s work within the context of world Pentecostalism and examines the potential of his pneumatology for a God wondrous and beyond all controls, and for the church as a pilgrim people gathered and send by the Spirit to witness to this God.

Speakers include: Christian T. Collins Winn, Daniela C. Augustine, Frank D. Macchia, Nimi Wariboko, and Terry L. Cross.

For more information, see the 2016 Conference webpage: http://barth.ptsem.edu/event/2016-annual-karl-barth-conference

Introduction

The purpose of this article is to reveal the initial development of the teaching on the Holy Spirit in the life of Alexander Campbell, founder of the movement named the Disciples of Christ. Campbell’s pneumatology must be placed within the context of American history in the nineteenth century. Beginning with the influence of Cane Ridge and Millennialism on his theology, his weak pneumatology led to an insipid work of the Spirit through the denomination’s history. However, in the charismatic renewal of the twentieth century, Don Basham stood boldly against the rationalistic atmosphere of his church and became well-known for his teachings on deliverance and casting out demons. Consequently, the initial aspect of the paper contains the early history of Campbell’s pneumatology. The second part is a revelation of the charismatic Spirit’s work in one of Campbell’s followers, Don Basham. Though the two appear theologically different, the thesis of the paper is that the operation of the Holy Spirit is the amputated element of Campbell’s theology which is renewed by the baptism in the Holy Spirit in Don Basham and the mainline churches.

Alexander Campbell (1788 – 1866).

The indigenous growth of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in America has a remarkable background and history. As Alexander Campbell searched for a way to end partisan bickering among Presbyterians in Scotland, his company of Christians became one of the largest church movements in American history. As Kevin Ranaghan wrote in his journalistic description of the movement, “one type of revival movement, called Campbellite stressed the word of God well enough, but the word as understood and interpreted by ‘good common sense.’ From the somewhat more rationalistic revival emerged the Disciples of Christ in the north and the Christian Church in the south.”[1] Because the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) had a diluted pneumatology, the Spirit’s presence was submerged in the past 180 years limiting revival and renewal in its members.

Cane Ridge

Interior of the original meeting house at Cane Ridge, Kentucky. Image: Chris Light.

Cane Ridge became known for its unusual manifestations of the Spirit. Though many churches were calm and quiet places of reflection, this experience was diametrically different. Leroy Garrett recorded in the The Stone-Campbell Movement, a graphic description of the “exercises” manifested at Cane Ridge:

They consisted of laughing and singing, the jerks, falling and even screaming and barking. The falling and screaming would sometimes go together, leaving the subject as if he were dead. The jerks were mostly a head movement, which sometimes agitated the whole body. Some people became amazingly acrobatic, for they would stand in one place and jerk backwards and forward with their head almost touching the ground…witnesses would see people on hands and knees in the woods, making the noise with uplifted hands, and would report that ‘they barked up trees like dogs.’[4]

This event was a Pentecost experience before Azusa Street was a reality. C. Dwight Dorough in The Bible Belt Mystique added that “persons were very often favored with visions and heavenly singing.”[5] This early nineteenth century worship was a precursor to what the twentieth century would encounter with the fullness of the Holy Spirit. Yet, Alexander Campbell, a rationalist and devout reader of the intellectual philosopher John Locke never incorporated emotional worship into his church.

Graham A. Cole teaches biblical and systematic theology at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Deerfield, Illinois. Readers of The Pneuma Review will probably remember his excellent contribution about pneumatology, also from Crossway, entitled He Who Gives Life (2007). This brief book seems to have grown out of the same research but aimed at more popular audience.

Indeed, herein Cole seeks to biblically – and sequentially – address six questions, all of which are both crucial and common, about the person and the works of the Holy Spirit. Cole contends that despite the growth of the charismatic movement and Pentecostal churches, people still have questions – even troubling concerns – about the person and work of the Holy Spirit. These real questions are the burden of this book, questions that affect a person’s relationship to the Spirit, including: 1. What is blasphemy against the Holy Spirit?; 2. How does a person resist the Spirit?; 3. Ought we to pray to the Spirit?; 4. How do we quench the Spirit?; 5. How do we grieve the Spirit?; and 6. How does the Spirit fill us?

Each chapter is devoted to only one question and challenges readers about their relationship with the Spirit, as well as about Christian living in general. Readers are also given key elements for thinking theologically about contemporary issues, as well as further implications regarding their belief and behavior. Notably, thinking theologically, according to Cole, involves three specific components, all of which are necessary to “run the race with endurance.” First, viewing the Word of revelation, illuminated and applied by the Spirit, as foundational for life and thought. Secondly, taking heed to the “great cloud of witnesses” in Christian history. Third, recognizing the human predicament in the world as living in-between the Cross and the coming reign of God on the new earth. Taking these three into consideration enables one not only to reflect correctly on the Holy Spirit, but also to work (actively) wisdom in the day(s) at hand. After all, theology without application is ‘abortion’ (17). In sum, this is a reader-friendly book – both brief and full of solid, reassuring answers, and should be a welcome addition to any library.

Reviewed by Bradford McCall

Publisher’s page: https://www.crossway.org/books/engaging-with-the-holy-spirit-tpb/

Originally published on the Pneuma Foundation (parent organization of PneumaReview.com) website. Later added to the Winter 2023 issue.

Frank D. Macchia, Justified in the Spirit: Creation, Redemption, and the Triune God (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2010), 360 pages, ISBN 9780802837493.

Justified in the Spirit is a sophisticated attempt to do what its title suggests: to find an increased role for the Spirit within the Christian doctrine of justification. The book represents a bringing together of a number of different perspectives—including those that derive primarily from centuries of tradition, along with more recent insights from biblical scholarship. The book moves through discussions of the shape of soteriology within different streams of tradition (Catholic, Lutheran, Calvinist, Pentecostal, etc.), and combines these with significant contributions from well known theologians. Although Macchia is a theologian himself, he pays more attention to the fruits of New Testament scholars than many other theologians working today.

One of the book’s main arguments is summed up on p. 53: “Participation in Christ is first and primarily a pneumatological reality as believers are caught up in the communion of the Spirit with Christ and, through Christ with the heavenly Father.” This sentence says a lot. One of the book’s main aims seems to be to forge links between aspects of soteriology and Trinitarian language.

Many of the main features, it must be said, are indicative of the age in which this book was written: it is certainly vogue to be “broadly Trinitarian, ecclesiological, and eschatological” (a description found on the back cover). While there may a proper place to be “Trinitarian”, the way in which that call has been handled in recent years has been a little over the top, as it sometimes seems as if one’s handling of any given doctrine can somehow be graded on how great a role it assigns to each member of the Trinity. It is almost as though theologians are afraid to leave out one of the members of the Trinity in any given discussion, even when the topic (e.g. hermeneutics) does not have a natural bearing on the doctrine of the Trinity. This danger seems to be somewhat greater among Pentecostals, as some appear to have a strong desire to bring the Spirit into doctrines in which the Spirit arguably does not belong.

Frank D. Macchia

Does Macchia do that here? It is difficult to say. His discussion is at all places carefully researched, and his arguments are never fleeting or forced. Although he never gives the keys (so to speak) to NT scholarship, he does listen to it intently and with a genuine openness. And yet the question remains whether Macchia accomplishes a pneumatological orientation of the doctrine of justification simply by construing “justification” more broadly than others do, by allowing it to include (rather than lead to) the fruit of the spirit-filled life. The same could be said of how Macchia achieves his heightened emphasis on the role of the spirit-filled community. Both of these concerns naturally belong within a theology, but are they really a part of justification per se? Macchia evidently disagrees with the habit of identifying “justification” with a forensic aspect of salvation, and identifying the other aspects of salvation with other terms. Yet he writes as if the term “justification” must apply to all aspects of salvation—including justification per se, sanctification, and redemption. (See esp. pp. 204–5.) Macchia is not alone in this, but it is still unfortunate that he does not explain why he takes this approach.

Gary Tyra, The Holy Spirit in Mission: Prophetic Speech and Action in Christian Witness (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2011), 206 pages, ISBN 9780830839490.

Tyra, an experienced Assemblies of God pastor and Christian college teacher, has written a biblically based, academically conversant, and culturally informed appeal for Western evangelicals to seek for and exercise a Spirit-empowered Christianity. While not breaking new ground the book is an accessible synthesis of leading scholars with a view of how individual believers, local churches, and denominational leaders can implement such a revitalized and robust New Testament faith. The footnotes of The Holy Spirit and Mission reveal the author’s familiarity with current scholarly discussion. Missional church movement writers such as Darrell Gruder, Alan J. Roxburgh, and Alan Hirsch have exposed the weakness of Western Christianity due to an increasing secular culture. Leading renewal theologians such as Clark Pinnock, Gordon Fee, Amos Yong, Frank Macchia, and Robert Menzies have argued that Luke-Acts is more than a historical record but a “missional pneumatology” that should be a template for us today.

We will briefly review the content of this work. In the opening two chapters Tyra sets out the biblical foundation for a Spirit-empowered Christianity. The Old Testament is not ignored as he mines the Scripture for the actions and words of Spirit-empowered saints: Moses and the 70 elders in Numbers 11, Gideon and Samson in the book of Judges, and Saul’s prophesying in 1 Samuel 10:10 are some of examples associating the Holy Spirit with either speaking or acts of miraculous power. The New Testament evidence is centered on Luke-Acts which Tyra defends as giving a prescriptive and theological model for believers to emulate today. Thus the ministry of Christ and the stories of Stephen, Peter, Philip, and Paul provide windows into how the Spirit works in doing the will of God.

In his third chapter Tyra suggests that the explosive growth of pentecostal-styled Christianity in the “majority world” is due to the reliance of believers there on the powerful demonstration of the Spirit’s work. Other factors are mentioned but Tyra argues that the key to this numerical increase is the missional faithfulness of such Christians to speak and act under the spontaneous direction of the Spirit. It is what he calls a “theological realism” of being Bible-based, eschatologically driven, and obedient to the “call” of the Spirit to engage in personal and corporate evangelism. Anecdotal stories from Pentecostal missionaries such as Loren Cunningham’s Youth With A Mission and the Church of God provide illustrations of this thesis.

Chapter four returns to missional church literature to boldly underscore the book’s main idea that a new way of “doing church” in the West is imperative. Relying heavily upon Roxburgh and Boren’s Introducing the Missional Church, Tyra envisions the contemporary church focusing on community, service, and proclamation to represent God’s kingdom to the world. In the last chapter, Tyra returns to the biblical story of Ananias as a spiritually-obedient servant of God. The latter provides a model of missional faithfulness for local church leaders, denominational officials, and also academic faculty.

Edmund J. Rybarczyk, The Spirit Unfettered: Protestant Views of the Holy Spirit (Brewster, MA: Paraclete Press, 2010), 162 pages, ISBN 9781557256546.

Edmund Rybarczyk, Professor of Historic and Systematic Theology at Vanguard University, introduces eleven significant theologians, starting with Luther and sixteenth century Protestant theologians, and ending with Welker in the twenty-first century. Each of the eleven chapters gives the reader a brief biographical sketch of each particular theologian and a concise summary of their major contribution to pneumatology. Rybarczyk describes how each theologian builds on the ideas of his predecessors in order to demonstrate the development of Protestant doctrines on the Holy Spirit. The Spirit Unfettered serves as a quick read (roughly ten pages for each theologian), providing the new student with a contextual point of reference to introduce each theologian, and to remind the seasoned student of the historical development of pneumatic doctrines.

I write this review as a pentecostal college professor who is always looking for textbooks for his students. Rybarczyk has provided an inexpensive and simple book, which would be easily read by the average college freshman. It moves quickly and does not use too many difficult words to describe the theologian or his theological position. In some ways it skims the surface, yet gives the student a vista to see the whole theology-of-the-Spirit landscape without becoming bogged down with so many details that one becomes disoriented in the process. Rybarczyk has added a glossary of terms and makes reference to this in the pages of the book, which will guide the new student to understand any terminology that might be new or unfamiliar. Equally, he gives a sufficient amount of information in the endnotes for the curious student to look deeper. Here we are tempted to critique his use of secondary sources in the endnotes, but will refrain because he accomplishes his purpose of making introductions and overviews of the theologians and their ideas.

Reviewed by John R. Miller

Find a sample of The Spirit Unfettered online: site.paracletepress.com/samples/exc-spirit-unfetteredi-20.pdf

In the published world of often confusing or even misleading titles and subtitles, this collection offers clearly what its title promises: perspectives on constructive pneumatology. The authors of the ten chapters are well-known theologians from a variety of Christian perspectives and speak from these traditions to a common concern for a more complete understanding of the Holy Spirit. The editor provides both a general introduction to the book and a historical introduction to the range of existing theologies of the Holy Spirit that opens up the space for various themes of constructive pneumatology, touching on the relationship between Spirit and Scripture, the Spirit and world religions, and the Spirit’s presence in the world.

Essays by Amy Plantiga Pauw and Moly T. Marshall address the relationship of the Spirit and the biblical texts. Pauw connects with the editor’s theme of discernment and shows that a reading of Scripture without the Spirit can lead to a manipulation of the Word, and she suggests that Scripture itself needs to be exorcised from any false spirits. Marshall focuses on how the reading of Scripture can be understood as the Spirit’s activity that makes possible understanding and consensus, not only in our use of the Bible but also in our relationship with one another.

Essays by Roger Haight and Amos Yong speak to the question of the Spirit’s relationship to other religions and faith traditions. Haight explores how the “symbol of the Spirit of God” extends the important relationship between Christ and other religions and proposes that Christians must conclude that the Spirit is operative in other religions. His essay examines different strategies for using traditional theological language and shows how understanding the Spirit as symbol can inform a (cosmic) Christian understanding of God at work in the world. Yong’s essay investigates a pneumatological understanding of hospitality as a root metaphor for the Christian engagement of other religions. Engaging in dialogue the basic Christian attitudes of exclusivism, inclusivism, and pluralism, Yong proposes that a hermeneutic of hospitality – from a pneumatological perspective – can offer clarity and invigorate Christian relations with the worlds of other faiths.

The concluding essays by Rieger and Cobb venture more closely into the world of political theology. Rieger analyzes the relationship of Spirit and empire and the possibility of resistance. The embodied Spirit, Rieger argues, overcomes the fragmentation of the postcolonial empire and bring a new sense of personhood and relationship. Cobb concludes the collection with a sweeping investigation of the Holy Spirit and the present age. Engaging economic and political tensions in today’s world, Cobb sees the Spirit as the power of balance, resistance, and transformation.