Who is the Holy Spirit

I have been reading through different forums in relation to the trinity, different concepts within christianity, teachings and also listening to an interesting podcast.

One thing that I have come across is the idea that the Holy Spirit is a feminine being rather than a masculine being. I also noticed whilst trying to find the gospel I found a while ago where Jesus talks of the earthly mother he calls the spirit his mother. What are your thoughts on this concept?

Also, from my limited understanding of the Holy Spirit...it is among us on earth. My second question is who really is the Holy Spirit? Not so much what does the Holy Spirit do or what has it done, but more what is its purpose? Is it possible that the Holy Spirit, being that it is meant to be all around us, is in fact the spirit of earth/nature?

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There is something pagan in me that I cannot shake off. In short, I deny nothing, but doubt everything. - Lord Byron

I believe the Holy Spirit is the Paraclete of the trinity. While I also believe that we all have Spirit within us, that is different from the Holy Spirit. With that said, I don't think Jesus was referring to His mother as the Holy Spirit.

I haven't thought about the Holy Spirit as having a particular gender, however, my first reaction to this would that the Holy Spirit is not one that can be referred to either gender.

I believe the Holy Spirit's purpose is to advocate and help us achieve God's will in our lives so long as we are willing.

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One of the greatest diseases is to be nobody to anybody.
Blessed Mother Teresa

Love is something Eternal
The aspect may change
But not the essence.
Vincent Van Gogh

My understanding is the personal pronoun in the original language is of a neutral gender but english doesn't have singular neutral pronouns, it uses only male or female. English only has a plural neutral personal pronoun {they}. Obviously useing a plural personal pronoun would cause other problems so the translators stayed with the masculine personal pronoun {he} to correspond with the personal pronouns {he} used for God the Father and His son Jesus.

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Eph 4:32 And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.

The best way to know how Christianity has historically understood the Holy Spirit would be to go to the horse's mouth. The Nicene Creed is a definite good start, though the statement about the Spirit in the Creed isn't terribly expansive. St. Basil the Great's On the Holy Spirit is probably one of the most important treatments of Pneumatology (theology on the Holy Spirit) in Christian history.

But for a basic summary:

The Spirit isn't a distinct or separate "being", as the Three in the Trinity are all one Being, God. The Spirit therefore shares in the same Being as the Father and the Son. Namely, the Holy Spirit is the one, undivided God. He's neither male nor female, since God has no gender.

Christian theologians traditionally, when talking about the Trinity, discuss the Trinity in two ways:

The Ontological Trinity: This refers to how the Three relate to one another, the Father's fatherliness toward the Son, etc.

The Economic Trinity: This refers to how the Three relate to us and vice versa.

When talking about the ontological Trinity certain relational terms get used. We speak of the Son being eternally begotten of the Father for example. In the case of the Spirit we say that He eternally proceeds from the Father [and the Son]. The Spirit flows out from the Father into the Son, and from the Son back again to the Father. An ebb and flow, a breathing, between the Father and the Son, and the Spirit is in both, as the very Breath of the Father and the Son.

A lesson can be learned from the episode from Jesus' baptism, where it's said that the Father speaks to His Son, and the Spirit descends in the form of a dove. The Spirit emerges from the Father, moving toward the Son; and as the Father gives all things to the Son, so He also gives the Son His Spirit. The Spirit of the Father, therefore, is also Spirit of the Son.

It is this three-fold interconnectivity, this mutual indwelling of the Three in one Another that forms the basis of the notion of Perichoresis, where the Oneness of the Three is described as a dynamic movement, a living in and into the Other. The word perichoresis itself means "to dance around [in a circle]"

Understanding this, we can speak of the "Economic Trinity", how we relate to God. Here we speak of Christ breathing the Spirit upon His apostles, giving them the authority to pronounce forgiveness of sins; or how the Spirit is poured out upon all flesh on Pentecost--who comes like a storm-squall transforming a gathering of people into the Church. Because He has been given to us, He dwells in us, giving life and uniting us human beings to the very life of God. The Spirit in us means that we are Christ's, and if Christ's then we are the Father's. The Spirit in us means that we are joint heirs, adopted children, with Christ the Son; and therefore His Father is our Father, His life is our life.

I know this is extremely wordy, and I apologize for that.

In short, the Spirit is the breath and love shared reciprocally between Father and Son; He is real, actual, not simply a force or feeling. He exists "between" Father and Son, and He in us means us in God, dwelling in the innermost intimacy of the one God.

-CryptoLutheran

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To be crucified with Christ means to be in the business of dying. Our arms should be outstretched, unable to make a fist or be armed to injure. To be crucified is to be too busy suffering, serving, and loving everyone that we don't have time to think ill or wish one harm. "When Christ calls a man, He bids him, 'Come and die.'" (Dietrich Bonhoeffer)

What you're describing makes it sound like the Holy Spirit is a separate god from the Father and Jesus. They're all one God.

God is not a man, either (with the exception of the human body of Jesus'). Neither the Father or the Spirit are male or female. When spoken of in masculine terms like "Father," it's for the convenience of it, and the kind of meaning those words had back then. Certain character traits that are seen as masculine or feminine exist in God, just as they do all of us.

In short, the Holy Spirit is not female, but He's not male either.

As for who the Holy Spirit is, each of the Trinity can be thought of as holding different roles. The Holy Spirit draws the elect to Jesus. Jesus redeems people and brings them to the Father. The Father sees the saved in the same way He sees Jesus, as His own children.

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^^^'Cause I get tired of digging it up so I can link it.

One way of expressing it is: the Father is God above us, Jesus is God beside us, the Holy Spirit is God within us.

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Lord, make me an instrument of your peace on this forum. Where there is hatred, grant that I may sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is discord, unity; where there is doubt, faith; where there is error, Your truth and not my personal opinion; where there is despair, hope; where there is sadness, joy; where there is darkness, light. O, Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled by people here as to console them; to be understood by them, as to understand them; to be loved by them, as to love them: For it is in giving that we receive; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned; and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.

Hi,

What interest you about the trinity. Or is it just a study topic. If you want my take on it go to Know God Personally there is a detailed document on there about the trinity. It is a link half way down the page.

As for gender God is always seen in the masculine, spoken of as he. Jesus came as a man not as a woman. Women are very important in God's eyes, and Jesus spent a lot of time talking to women, but God is not female.

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The Holy Spirit is the third link of the Holy Trinity.

Father, Son and Holy Spirt, three in ONE.

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Prayers go up and blessings come down.
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Thanks for all the responses. After reading them I have the following to say and ask...(I apologize if you have already covered this and I have misunderstood).

Firstly, I believe that God and Jesus are connected but not the same God if that makes sense. I, of course, realize this is not a popular view. So I am trying to get an understanding of the holy spirit.

In response to the question posted by FutureAndHope...this is kind of a bit of both.

When is the concept of the Holy Spirit conceived? At the beginning of creation? At the time of Moses?

Given some of the responses in regards to what the holy spirit did in bible times, what would its role be now? Assuming that the holy spirit is not the same as the spirit within us.

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There is something pagan in me that I cannot shake off. In short, I deny nothing, but doubt everything. - Lord Byron

Jesus is God.
Jesus is God's Word and Spirit which has been put in a human body. Jesus is God spiritually. (I think ofit like having a bowl of water (God) then you take some of that water and you put it in a plastic bag (human body). Not a very precise description, but it helps me.

Here are some interesting sites which would cover the issue better than I would.
Reformation Theology: The Holy Spirit in the Old Testament
What was the role of the Holy Spirit in the Old Testament?