Journal: Southeastern Theological Review
Volume: STR 11:1 (Spring 2020)
Article: Breathe On Us, O Breath Of God: The Pneumatological Grounding Of Ecclesial Identity
Author: Daniel L. Hill

STR 11:1 (Spring 2020) p. 79

Breathe On Us, O Breath Of God: The Pneumatological Grounding Of Ecclesial Identity

Daniel L. Hill

Dallas Theological Seminary

While modern theologians have frequently decried the lack of focus on pneumatology in theological inquiry, recent years have witnessed a resurgence of interest in the Spirit’s procession and work. Additionally, contemporary theologians have tended to focus on Christological or Trinitarian approaches to theological anthropology, paying considerably less attention to how the Spirit informs our understanding of the human person. Beginning with a discussion of the Spirit’s role in constituting the church, this essay explores the Spirit’s fundamental role in grounding a coherent account of human identity. In it I argue that the Spirit is the one who grounds our conception of the good life, reorients our perspective of our pasts, situating them within the greater story of God’s redemption, and enables our proper worship in the present, forming us rightly as worshippers of God.

Key Words: ecclesiology, Holy Spirit, identity, pneumatology, theological anthropology

While there has been a resurgence of interest in theological anthropology in recent years, especially its Christological or Trinitarian contours, there is still ample room to explore how ecclesiology and pneumatology inform our understanding of the human person. While the question of “who am I” has plagued philosophers and novelists alike, I contend that if we approach this question pneumatologically and ecclesiologically, we will see that the Christian’s “identity” is situated within a community on the road to fellowship with God.1 Consequently, we find ourselves presented with the dogmatic question: how does the missio of the Spirit, the one

STR 11:1 (Spring 2020) p. 80

gathering this community, inform our understanding of human identity? In other words, how does the unifying, sanctifying, and worship-orienting work of the Holy Spirit help us to articulate a coherent account of human identity? This essay will argue that a coherent account of human identity must be robustly constituted through the mission of the Holy Spirit as he grounds our conception of the “good life” and gathers the disparate events of our lives within the greater story of God’s redemption.2 It is the presence of God through the dwelling of the Spirit that makes the Christian community unique and, consequently, grounds human identity.3 This essay will

STR 11:1 (Spring 2020) p. 81

You must have a subscription and be logged in to read the entire article.
Click here to subscribe