The Holy Spirit

By Stanley Hauerwas and Bishop William H. Willimon

Do you realize what baptism really means?
Through the Holy Spirit we become part of the Body of Christ! The work
of the Spirit is often thought of as “inspirational,” but it’s more than
a personal experience and this book challenges some of those
individualistic and subjectivist accounts. You’ll come to understand
that the Holy Spirit is who God is and what God does as the Trinity. And
you’ll learn how to prayerfully embrace this gift that created the
church and become empowered to live out holy love and friendship in the
world.
“Hauerwas and Willimon
are among the most reliable teachers of the church. Ours is a time when
faithful teaching is urgent in the church that is compromised,
bewildered and domesticated. This study by these trustworthy teachers on
the Holy Spirit is a robust affirmation of the way in which core claims
made concerning God’s Spirit matter concretely in the life of the
church. This book is an invitation to fresh learning, to repentance, and
to the recovery of missional nerve.”
-Walter Brueggemann, Columbia Theological Seminary

"For
too long many Christians have neglected the Holy Spirit; some even fear
the Holy Spirit. Hauerwas and Willimon challenge them to rediscover the
Comforter, the Advocate, for the renewal of the Christian church and
the world. This is a welcome and much needed corrective to common
Christian forgetfulness of the Spirit.”
-Roger E. Olson, Foy
Valentine Professor of Christian Theology and Ethics, George W. Truett
Theological Seminary, Baylor University

"The Holy Spirit is too
often considered the junior partner of the Trinity. Therefore, this book
by two eminent churchmen is a cause for celebration, reminding us of
the importance and vitality of an orthodox view of God's Spirit."
-Tony
Jones, author of Did God Kill Jesus? andtheologian-in-residence at
Solomon’s Porch in Minneapolis. He teaches theology at Fuller
Theological Seminary and United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities.

"When
these two long-time theologian-friends and disciples of Jesus, gather
in a room to write, you can be sure that you will hear a sound of a
rushing mighty wind, feel the heat of holy fire, and be ignited by
dynamite on the page as you read. Whether it be theTrinity, Pentecost,
holiness, or the last things, this is not just another book, this is
literary bread from heaven fed to you by anointed servants of the Holy
Spirit. Take, eat and be filled with the Spirit of Christ!"
-Luke A. Powery, Dean of the Chapel and Associate Professor of Homiletics, Duke University

This
engaging and accessible pneumatological overview,written by two leading
voices of theological wisdom and church renewal, is a rich
collaborative discussion, which weaves together poignant and
wide-ranging doctrinal insight (from the historic creeds, to the
Wesleyan heritage, to contemporary Pentecostalism), punctuated by
perceptive liturgical applications, fresh biblical expositions,
memorable testimonial observations, and passionate pastoral appeals –
all driving toward the earnest prayer of its authors, "Come, Holy
Spirit!"
-Rickie D. Moore, Associate Dean of the School of Religion, Professor of Old Testament, Lee University

• Language: English
• Publisher: Abingdon Press
• Release date: Oct 6, 2015
• ISBN: 9781501805165

Stanley Hauerwas

Stanley Hauerwas is professor emeritus of ethics at Duke University where he held the Gilbert T. Rowe chair for more than twenty years. Among his numerous publications are Sanctify Them in the Truth: Holiness Exemplified (1998) and Living Gently in a Violent World, with Jean Vanier (2008). His latest publication is Fully Alive: The Apocalyptic Humanism of Karl Barth (University of Virginia Press, 2023).

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Other Abingdon Press Books by Stanley Hauerwas and William H. Willimon

Other Abingdon Press Books by Stanley Hauerwas

and William H. Willimon

Resident Aliens: Life in the Christian Colony (Expanded

25th Anniversary Edition)

Where Resident Aliens Live: Exercises for Christian Practice

The Truth about God: The Ten Commandments in Christian Life

Lord, Teach Us: The Lord’s Prayer and the Christian Life

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The holy spirit

Copyright © 2015 by Abingdon Press

All rights reserved.

No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage or retrieval system, except as may be expressly permitted by the 1976 Copyright Act or in writing from the publisher. Requests for permission should be addressed to Permissions, Abingdon Press, 2222 Rosa L. Parks Blvd., PO Box 280988, Nashville, TN 37228-0988, or [e-mail].

This book is printed on acid-free paper.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Hauerwas, Stanley, 1940-

The Holy Spirit / Stanley Hauerwas, William H. Willimon. — First [edition].

1 online resource.

Includes bibliographical references.

Description based on print version record and CIP data provided by publisher; resource not viewed.

ISBN 978-1-5018-0516-5 (e-pub) — ISBN 978-1-4267-7863-6 (binding: soft back) 1. Holy Spirit. I. Title.

BT121.3

231’.3—dc23

2015017818

All scripture quotations unless noted otherwise are from the Common English Bible. Copyright © 2011 by the Common English Bible. All rights reserved. Used by permission. www.CommonEnglishBible.com.

Scripture quotations marked (NRSV) are taken from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Dedication

To those who, by the Holy Spirit, are our pastors

Clarke French

and

Heather Rodrigues

Contents

Contents

Introduction

Chapter One

Trinity

Chapter Two

Pentecost: The Birth of the Church

Chapter Three

Holiness: Life in the Spirit

Chapter Four

Last Things

The Creeds

Introduction

Introduction

Christians are nothing without the Holy Spirit. The historic core of the service of ordination is the Veni Creator Spiritus , Come, Creator Spirit. The church in its wisdom knows that pastoral leadership, preaching, and care ought not be attempted alone. Just as the Spirit brooded over the waters at creation, the church is birthed by the Holy Spirit. The church lives not by

savvy, worldly wisdom, and techniques for church growth but rather lives moment by moment, in every time and place, utterly dependent upon the gifts of the Spirit. Thus the Holy Spirit is nothing less than a life-and-death matter for the people of God.

Christians are people who dare to live in the power of the Holy Spirit, that is, live lives out of control, coming to God dependent, empty-handed, lives driven by and accountable to someone more interesting than ourselves.

You will note a number of themes recur in our exploration of the Spirit: When we talk about the Holy Spirit, we are talking about God, who is one as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is more than a personal experience; the Holy Spirit is who God is and what God does as the Trinity, whether we feel it or not. Because the Holy Spirit is intensely communitarian, relational, and embodied, we have the church. Whatever we say about the Holy Spirit must be tested by and congruent with the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. The Holy Spirit is that gift whereby even in a world at war, we may live in peace, our enemies can become friends, and even in a culture of lies, we can tell the truth. Come, Holy Spirit! is the first and last prayer of the church, our only hope in life and death. In receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit, we can begin the adventure of discipleship and end all our attempts at self-justification. Holiness is the fruit of the Spirit and a sure test of holiness is love.

Come, Holy Spirit! is the first

and last prayer of the church.

Jesus commands us to venture courageous, countercultural, demanding lives. He orders us to love one another, to pray for our enemies, to take up the cross and follow. But he does not expect us to do these demanding tasks or to live and to die by ourselves. Christ gives us what we need to be as holy as he calls us to be. Thus the church prays for the gift of the Holy Spirit (Epiclesis) every time we read scripture, preach, celebrate the Eucharist, or stand against injustice. We know that we cannot pray as we ought, enjoy the peace of Christ, or be the body of Christ in motion except through the gifts of the Spirit. Little in the Christian faith is self-derived.

Therefore we write this book as a practice of prayer, bold to believe that little in our celebration of the Holy Spirit is original with us. A quarter of a century ago, we coauthored Resident Aliens: Life in the Christian Colony.¹ This book is therefore a demonstration of how two friends have, under the influence of the Holy Spirit, continued to grow in their faith. Even as this book is a collaborative effort, we’ll try to think with our friends the saints, for the church, and under the influence of the Holy Spirit. That these words might be helpful to fellow Christians and to a church facing new challenges, that you and your church may hear these words of ours as God’s address to you, God’s summons, blessing, and disruption, we pray, Come, Holy Spirit!

1. Stanley Hauerwas and William Willimon, Resident Aliens: Life in the Christian Colony, rev. ed. (Nashville: Abingdon, 2014).

Chapter One

Chapter One

Trinity

When we talk about the Holy Spirit, we are talking about God. You may find this an odd remark with which to begin a book meant to introduce the doctrine of the Holy Spirit. After all, this is a book written by Christians for Christians. However, throughout Christian history, and particularly in our own day, Christians have had difficulty remembering that when they say Holy Spirit , they’re saying God .

God as Father, Son, and . . .

Surveys show that nine out of ten Americans say they believe in God. But we’re not sure that the God in whom so many Americans believe is the God designated by Holy Spirit. Actually, when Christians say Holy Spirit, they are not merely saying God; they are saying Trinity: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, who are the one God. The Holy Spirit is the third person of the Trinity. Often when you are third in a list, for instance, a list like the Apostles’ Creed, it can seem that third is an afterthought. ¹

Thus the general presumption is that the Father creates, the Son redeems, and the Spirit—well, what does the Spirit do? Too often the Spirit is associated with our feeling that we have had some sort of experience that is somehow associated with God or at least a vague feeling that seems to be spiritual. Human experience is

Reviews for The Holy Spirit

[atdcross · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A good book on any aspect of Christian theology is one that brings clarity and new insights into what is believed. An even better Christian book is one that challenges long-held assumptions and forces the reader to rethink concepts and values taken for granted.This is an even better book.