You can’t believe how exciting and satisfying a long exegetical discussion of prepositions can be, until you watch Basil work the “through whoms” and “to whoms” and “from whoms” of the New Testament. But that which joins creation to the Word cannot belong to the creatures and that which bestows sonship upon the creation could not be alien from the Son.”īasil the Great, On the Holy Spirit (late fourth century). The circuit of the Trinity closes in the thought of the mature Athanasius, and a spark jumps: “In the Holy Spirit, the Word makes glorious the creation, and, by bestowing upon it divine life and sonship, draws it to the Father. These letters don’t just read like binitarianism with the Spirit tacked on as an afterthought. But when he did so, he made up for lost time. Not until late in life did he turn attention to the Spirit. Athanasius wrote voluminously on the deity of Christ, and though he’s trinitarian his phrases often sounds binitarian. I’m sure I’m leaving out a few even better books, but there’s an embarrassment of riches on this topic.Īthanasius, Letters to Serapion on the Holy Spirit (4th c.). Here are some of my favorite books on pneumatology, off the top of my head.
Hey, according to the liturgical calendar, it’s Pentecost Sunday! Quick, think about the Holy Spirit. Essay / Theology Here Comes Pentecost: Good Books on the Holy Spirit
