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Article: Who or what is the Holy Spirit?
- Article from:
- The Christian Century
- Article date:
- January 17, 1996
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1996 The Christian Century Foundation. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Pentecost is about the only time most mainline Christians think about the work of the Holy Spirit. The stunning narrative in Acts 2 has a double appeal. It portrays the unexpectedness. and universality of the Spirit's work--the Spirit arrives with "a sound like the rush of a violent wind" and with "tongues of fire," breaking down the language barriers between the faithful of "every nation under heaven." Acts 2 also provides an exuberant account of the church's beginning as a joyful, generous community of praise and goodwill. Our amazement at the Pentecost story quickly fades into uneasiness, however, as We try to appropriate this "gift of the Spirit"--a gift that stubbornly ...