spirit and healing in africa - University of the Free State

Hollingsworth 2008). The broad conceptual shift in late modern philosophy re-defined the
concepts of matter, person and force, resulting in new perspectives on the Holy Spirit.
Pneumatological reflection was no longer restricted by the dualism of matter and spirit, so that
the Spirit’s involvement in creation could now be thought as the divine presence embracing and
transforming materiality and physicality. Pneumatological reflection was also opened up by a
relational concept of personhood, offering possibilities for speaking about the Spirit as relatively
distinct person of the Trinity. Pneumatological reflection was also broadened by the dynamic,
non-linear and holistic concepts of force. This meant that the work of the Spirit was no longer
understood along the strict lines of the ordo salutis, in which the Spirit’s power was the force
causing the changes leading to salvation. The agency of the Spirit could now, in communication
with contemporary science, be articulated on the basis of notions like dynamic relations,
forcefield, embrace and outreaching. Shults has identified important trends in pneumatology by
pointing out the significance of the motif of relationality within theological discourse.
7.2 GOD’S RELATIONAL LIFE
The turn to relationality (or the return to relationality, as Shults indicates) produced tremendous
and surprising perspectives on God’s relational life and the person of the Spirit. Old and new
resources were tapped, biblical voices were retrieved, and interaction with Eastern Orthodox
theologians was sought. Unfortunately, the scope of this research does not allow for a detailed
description of contemporary debate on the notion of relationality in Reformed theology. What
follows here is a brief treatment of the person of the Spirit as the bond of love, a characterization
that emerges often in Reformed pneumatology. This relational understanding of the Spirit is an
important element in exploring the link between God and healing. In addition, the
characterization of the Holy Spirit as the Ecstatic God who reaches out in fellowship is of great
significance for interpreting the relationship between Trinitarian life and human well-being and
healing.
7.2.1 Bond of love
The motif of relationality can already be found in Augustine’s theology of the Holy Spirit. His
conceptualization of the Spirit, as the bond of love (vinculum amoris) between the Father and the
Son, paved the way for Christian theology to understand God’s life in relational terms. The
Augustinian idea of the Spirit as the bond of mutual love is well-accepted in Christian theology
(cf. Coffey 1990:193-229; Pannenberg 1991:259-337; Grenz 1996:1-13; Pinnock 1996:37-40;
Ratzinger 1998:324-337; Jenson 2001:146-161). Augustine’s understanding of the Holy Spirit as
the agent of unity (cf. Ayres 2010:251-256) emerges regularly in Reformed pneumatologies (as
shown in Chapter 6).
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