Christian denominations Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρ� ...

have variations in their teachings regarding the

Holy Spirit In Judaism, the Holy Spirit is the divine force, quality, and influence of God over the Universe or over his creatures. In Nicene Christianity, the Holy Spirit or Holy Ghost is the third person of the Trinity. In Islam, the Holy Spirit acts as ...

. A well-known example is the Filioque controversy, the debates centering on whether the

Nicene Creed The original Nicene Creed (; grc-gre, Σύμβολον τῆς Νικαίας; la, Symbolum Nicaenum) was first adopted at the First Council of Nicaea in 325. In 381, it was amended at the First Council of Constantinople. The amended form is ...

should state that the Spirit "proceeds from the Father" and then have a stop, as the creed was initially adopted in Greek (and followed thereafter by the

Eastern Church Eastern Christianity comprises Christian traditions and church families that originally developed during classical and late antiquity in Eastern Europe, Southeastern Europe, Asia Minor, the Caucasus, Northeast Africa, the Fertile Crescent and ...

), or should say "from the Father and the Son" as was later adopted in Latin and followed by the

Western Church Western Christianity is one of two sub-divisions of Christianity (Eastern Christianity being the other). Western Christianity is composed of the Latin Church and Western Protestantism, together with their offshoots such as the Old Catholic ...

, "filioque" being "and the Son" in Latin.''The Holy Spirit: Classic and Contemporary Readings'' by Eugene F. Rogers Jr. (May 19, 2009) Wiley page 81 The majority of mainstream

Protestantism Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

hold similar views on the theology of the Holy Spirit as the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

, but there are significant differences in belief between

Pentecostalism Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a Protestant Charismatic Christian movement

and the rest of Protestantism. The

Charismatic Movement The charismatic movement in Christianity is a movement within established or mainstream Christian denominations to adopt beliefs and practices of Charismatic Christianity with an emphasis on baptism with the Holy Spirit, and the use of sp ...

within mainstream Christian Churches has a focus on the " gifts of the Spirit", but differ from Pentecostal movements. Non-trinitarian Christian views about the Holy Spirit differ significantly from mainstream Christian doctrine.

Roman Catholicism

"The Holy Spirit is the Third Person of the Blessed Trinity. Though really distinct, as a Person, from the Father and the Son, He is consubstantial with Them; being God like Them, He possesses with Them one and the same Divine Essence or Nature...It is by His operation that the Incarnation of the Word, is accomplished."Forget, Jacques. "Holy Ghost." The Catholic Encyclopedia
Vol. 7. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1910. 13 May 2021

The Church is accustomed most fittingly to attribute to the Father those works of the Divinity in which power excels, to the Son those in which wisdom excels, and those in which love excels to the Holy Ghost...The Holy Ghost is the ultimate cause of all things, since, as the will and all other things finally rest in their end, so He, who is the Divine Goodness and the Mutual Love of the Father and Son, completes and perfects, by His strong yet gentle power, the secret work of man's eternal salvation.

The Holy Spirit is the Master of Prayer. In Romans 8:26-27, Paul says, "In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And the one who searches hearts knows what is the intention of the Spirit, because it intercedes for the holy ones according to God’s will." To the Holy Spirit is attributed the operations of grace and the sanctification of souls, and in particular spiritual gifts and fruits. The gifts of the Holy Spirit are of two kinds: * The first, mentioned in Isaias (11:2-3), are specially intended for the sanctification of the person who receives them. They are wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety (godliness), and fear of the Lord. The fruits of the Holy Spirit are traditionally listed as charity, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, generosity, gentleness, faithfulness, modesty, self-control, and chastity. * The second, more properly called charismata, are extraordinary favours granted for the help of others. They are listed in (1 Corinthians 12:8-10): "The word of wisdom, the word of knowledge, faith, the grace of healing, the working of miracles, prophecy, the discerning of spirits, diverse kinds of tongues, interpretation of speeches". Around the 6th century, the word '' Filioque'' was added to the

, defining as a doctrinal teaching that the Holy Ghost "proceedeth from the Father and the Son". The Latin fathers affirm that the Holy Ghost proceeds from the Father and "from" the Son, the Eastern fathers generally say that He proceeds from the Father "through" the Son. In reality the thought expressed by both Greeks and Latins is one and the same, only the manner of expressing it is slightly different. While the Eastern-rite Catholic Churches are required to believe the doctrinal teaching contained in the ''Filioque'', they are not all required to insert it in the Creed when it is recited during the

Divine Liturgy Divine Liturgy ( grc-gre, Θεία Λειτουργία, Theia Leitourgia) or Holy Liturgy is the Eucharistic service of the Byzantine Rite, developed from the Antiochene Rite of Christian liturgy which is that of the Ecumenical Patriarchate ...

, so as to use the

liturgical text A liturgical book, or service book, is a book published by the authority of a church body that contains the text and directions for the liturgy of its official religious services. Christianity Roman Rite In the Roman Rite of the Catholic C ...

as it was in antiquity.

Eastern Orthodoxy

Eastern Orthodoxy Eastern Orthodoxy, also known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity, is one of the three main branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholicism and Protestantism. Like the Pentarchy of the first millennium, the mainstream (or " canonic ...

proclaims that the Father is the eternal source of the Godhead, from whom the Son is begotten eternally, and also from whom the Holy Spirit proceeds eternally. Unlike the Roman Catholic Church and

Western Christianity Western Christianity is one of two sub-divisions of Christianity ( Eastern Christianity being the other). Western Christianity is composed of the Latin Church and Western Protestantism, together with their offshoots such as the Old Catholi ...

in general, the Orthodox Church does not espouse the use of the '' Filioque'' ("and the Son") in describing the procession of the Holy Spirit. Filioque was mentioned for the first time at the

Third Council of Toledo The Third Council of Toledo (589) marks the entry of Visigothic Spain into the Catholic Church, and is known for codifying the filioque clause into Western Christianity."Filioque." Cross, F. L., ed. The Oxford dictionary of the Christian church. ...

in 589 and it was added by the

to the

Credo In Christian liturgy, the credo (; Latin for "I believe") is the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed – or its shorter version, the Apostles' Creed – in the Mass, either as a prayer, a spoken text, or sung as Gregorian chant or other musical sett ...

in the 11th century. The Holy Spirit is believed to eternally proceed from the Father, as

Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label= Hebrew/ Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and relig ...

says in , and not from the Father ''and'' the Son, as the

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

and

Protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

churches claim. The Greek Orthodox Church teaches that the Holy Spirit proceeds ''through'' the Son, but only ''from'' the Father. The Eastern Orthodox position is that the Son sent the Holy Spirit at Pentecost only "in time, in human history, as part of the economy of our salvation" but not from eternity. Eastern Orthodox doctrine regarding the Holy Trinity is summarized in the Symbol of Faith (Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed).

Oriental Orthodox The Oriental Orthodox Churches are Eastern Christian churches adhering to Miaphysite Christology, with approximately 60 million members worldwide. The Oriental Orthodox Churches are part of the Nicene Christian tradition, and represent ...

usage coincides with Eastern Orthodox usage and teachings on the matter. The

Assyrian Church of the East The Assyrian Church of the East,, ar, كنيسة المشرق الآشورية sometimes called Church of the East, officially the Holy Apostolic Catholic Assyrian Church of the East,; ar, كنيسة المشرق الآشورية الرسول� ...

also retains the original formula of the Creed without the Filioque.

Protestantism

The majority of mainstream

hold similar views on the theology of the Holy Spirit as the Roman Catholic Church, as described above. There are significant differences in belief between

Pentecostalism Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a Protestant Charismatic Christian movement

and the rest of Protestantism.

Methodism

Methodist theology Wesleyan theology, otherwise known as Wesleyan–Arminianism, Arminian theology, or Methodist theology, is a Christian theology, theological tradition in Protestant Christianity based upon the Christian ministry, ministry of the 18th-century eva ...

teaches:

Pentecostalism

Anthonis van Dyck - Die Ausgießung des Heiligen Geistes

While the Holy Spirit is acknowledged as God in all mainstream denominations, he is given particular emphasis in

Pentecostal Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a Protestantism, Protestant Charismatic Christianity, Charismatic Christian movementgifts, such as tongues and

prophecy In religion, a prophecy is a message that has been communicated to a person (typically called a ''prophet'') by a supernatural entity. Prophecies are a feature of many cultures and belief systems and usually contain divine will or law, or p ...

, to modern-day Christians. The Christian movement called Pentecostalism derives its name from the event of

Pentecost Pentecost (also called Whit Sunday, Whitsunday or Whitsun) is a Christian holiday which takes place on the 50th day (the seventh Sunday) after Easter Sunday. It commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles and other followers ...

, the coming of the Holy Spirit when Jesus' disciples were gathered in

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

. Pentecostals believe that when a believer is "baptized in the Holy Spirit", the gifts of the Spirit (also called the ''charismata'') are activated in the recipient to edify the body of Christ, the church. Some of these gifts are listed in . The Pentecostal movement places special emphasis on the work of the Holy Spirit, and especially on the gifts mentioned above, believing that they are still given today. Much of Pentecostalism differentiates the "

baptism with the Holy Spirit In Christian theology, baptism with the Holy Spirit, also called baptism in the Holy Spirit or baptism in the Holy Ghost, has been interpreted by different Christian denominations and traditions in a variety of ways due to differences in the doct ...

" from the salvific

born again Born again, or to experience the new birth, is a phrase, particularly in evangelicalism, that refers to a "spiritual rebirth", or a regeneration of the human spirit. In contrast to one's physical birth, being "born again" is distinctly and se ...

experience, considering it a usually distinct experience in which the Spirit's power is received by the Christian in a new way, with the belief that the Christian can be more readily used to perform signs,

miracles A miracle is an event that is inexplicable by natural or scientific lawsOne dictionary define"Miracle"as: "A surprising and welcome event that is not explicable by natural or scientific laws and is therefore considered to be the work of a divin ...

, and wonders for the sake of evangelism or for ministry within the church (the body of Christ) and the community. There are also some Pentecostals who believe that Spirit baptism is a necessary element in salvation, not a "second blessing". These Pentecostals believe that in the baptism in the Holy Spirit, the power of the Spirit is released in their lives. Many Pentecostals believe that the normative initial evidence of this infilling (baptism) of the Holy Spirit is the ability to speak in other tongues (

glossolalia Speaking in tongues, also known as glossolalia, is a practice in which people utter words or speech-like sounds, often thought by believers to be languages unknown to the speaker. One definition used by linguists is the fluid vocalizing of sp ...

), and that tongues are one of several spiritual manifestations of the presence of the Holy Spirit in an individual believer's life.

Restoration Movement and Churches of Christ

During the late 19th century, the prevailing view in the

Restoration Movement The Restoration Movement (also known as the American Restoration Movement or the Stone–Campbell Movement, and pejoratively as Campbellism) is a Christian movement that began on the United States frontier during the Second Great Awakening (17 ...

was that the Holy Spirit currently acts only through the influence of inspired scripture.Douglas A. Foster
"Waves of the Spirit Against a Rational Rock: The Impact of the Pentecosat, Charismatic and Third Wave Movements on American Churches of Christ,"

Restoration Quarterly ''Restoration Quarterly'' is a scholarly journal associated with the Churches of Christ. It focuses on issues of interest to the Churches of Christ and other groups associated with the Restoration Movement more generally.Douglas Allen Foster and A ...

, 45:1 (2003) This rationalist view was associated with Alexander Campbell, who was "greatly affected by what he viewed as the excesses of the emotional camp meetings and revivals of his day." He believed that the Spirit draws people towards salvation, but understood the Spirit to do this "in the same way any person moves another—by persuasion with words and ideas." This view came to prevail over that of

Barton W. Stone Barton Warren Stone (December 24, 1772 – November 9, 1844) was an American evangelist during the early 19th-century Second Great Awakening in the United States. First ordained a Presbyterian minister, he and four other ministers of the Washingt ...

, who believed the Spirit had a more direct role in the life of the Christian. Since the mid-late 20th century, many among the

Churches of Christ The Churches of Christ is a loose association of autonomous Christian congregations based on the '' sola scriptura'' doctrine. Their practices are based on Bible texts and draw on the early Christian church as described in the New Testament. ...

have moved away from this "word-only" theory of the operation of the Holy Spirit. As one student of the movement puts it, " r better or worse, those who champion the so-called word-only theory no longer have a hold on the minds of the constituency of Churches of Christ. Though relatively few have adopted outright charismatic and third wave views and remained in the body, apparently the spiritual waves have begun to erode that rational rock."

Non-Trinitarian views

Non-trinitarian views about the Holy Spirit differ significantly from mainstream Christian doctrine and generally fall into several distinct categories.

Unitarian and Arian

Groups with Unitarian theology such as Polish

Socinians Socinianism () is a nontrinitarian belief system deemed heretical by the Catholic Church and other Christian traditions. Named after the Italian theologians Lelio Sozzini (Latin: Laelius Socinus) and Fausto Sozzini (Latin: Faustus Socinus), uncle ...

, the 18th-19th Century Unitarian Church, and

Christadelphians The Christadelphians () or Christadelphianism are a restorationist and millenarian Christian group who hold a view of biblical unitarianism. There are approximately 50,000 Christadelphians in around 120 countries. The movement developed in the ...

conceive of the Holy Spirit not as a

person A person ( : people) is a being that has certain capacities or attributes such as reason, morality, consciousness or self-consciousness, and being a part of a culturally established form of social relations such as kinship, ownership of prope ...

but an aspect of God's power.

believe that the phrase ''Holy Spirit'' refers to God's power, mind or character depending on the context. Though

Arius Arius (; grc-koi, Ἄρειος, ; 250 or 256 – 336) was a Cyrenaic presbyter, ascetic, and priest best known for the doctrine of Arianism. His teachings about the nature of the Godhead in Christianity, which emphasized God the Father's ...

believed that the Holy Spirit is a person or high angel, that had a beginning, modern

Semi-Arian Semi-Arianism was a position regarding the relationship between God the Father and the Son of God, adopted by some 4th-century Christians. Though the doctrine modified the teachings of Arianism, it still rejected the doctrine that Father, Son, ...

groups such as

Dawn Bible Students The Dawn Bible Students Association is a Christian organization and movement, and a legal entity used by a branch of the Bible Student movement. It was founded with the intention of becoming a publishing house to begin printing and distributing t ...

and

Jehovah's Witnesses Jehovah's Witnesses is a millenarian restorationist Christian denomination with nontrinitarian beliefs distinct from mainstream Christianity. The group reports a worldwide membership of approximately 8.7 million adherents involved in ...

believe that the Holy Spirit is not an actual person but is God's "power in action", "breath" or "divine energy", which had no beginning, and which proceeds only out of the Father, and through the Son, which the Father uses to accomplish his will. Jehovah's Witnesses do not typically capitalize the term, and define the Holy Spirit as "God's active force".

Binitarianism

Armstrongites, such as the

Living Church of God The Living Church of God (LCG) is one of several groups that formed after the death of Herbert W. Armstrong, when major doctrinal changes (causing turmoil and divisions) were occurring in the former Worldwide Church of God (WCG) during the 1990 ...

, believe that the Logos and God the Father are co-equal and co-eternal, but they do not believe that the Holy Spirit is an actual person, like the Father and the Son. They believe the Holy Spirit is the Power, Mind, or Character of God, depending on the context. They teach, "The Holy Spirit is the very essence, the mind, life and power of God. It is not a Being. The Spirit is inherent in the Father and the Son, and emanates from Them throughout the entire universe". Mainstream Christians characterise this teaching as the heresy of Binitarianism, the teaching that God is a "Duality", the Father and the Word, or "two-in-one", rather than three.

Modalist groups

Oneness Pentecostalism Oneness Pentecostalism (also known as Apostolic, Jesus' Name Pentecostalism, or the Jesus Only movement) is a nontrinitarian religious movement within the Protestant Christian family of churches known as Pentecostalism. It derives its distincti ...

, as with other modalist groups, teach that the Holy Spirit is a ''mode'' of God, rather than a distinct or separate person from the Father. They instead teach that the Holy Spirit is just another name for the Father. According to Oneness theology, the Holy Spirit essentially ''is'' the Father. The United Pentecostal Church teaches that there is no personal distinction between God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. These two titles "Father" and "Holy Spirit" (as well as others) do not reflect separate "persons" within the Godhead, but rather two different ways in which the one God reveals himself to his creatures. Thus, the Old Testament speaks of "The Lord God and his Spirit" in Isaiah 48:16, but this does not indicate two "persons" according to Oneness theology. Rather, "The Lord" indicates God in all of His glory and transcendence, while the words "His Spirit" refer to God's own Spirit that moved upon and spoke to the prophet. The Oneness view is that this does not imply two "persons" any more than the numerous scriptural references to a man and his spirit or soul (such as in Luke 12:19) imply two "persons" existing within one body.

Latter Day Saints

In the

Latter Day Saint movement The Latter Day Saint movement (also called the LDS movement, LDS restorationist movement, or Smith–Rigdon movement) is the collection of independent church groups that trace their origins to a Christian Restorationist movement founded by Jo ...

, the Holy Ghost (usually synonymous with Holy Spirit) is considered the third distinct member of the '' Godhead'' (Father, Son and Holy Ghost), and to have a body of "spirit," which makes him unlike the Father and the Son who are said to have bodies "as tangible as man's." According to LDS doctrine, the Holy Spirit is believed to be a person, however having a body of spirit, he is able to pervade all worlds. Mormons believe that the Holy Spirit is part of the " Divine Council" or "Godhead", but that the Father is greater than both the Son and the Holy Spirit. However, a number of Latter Day Saint sects, most notably the

Community of Christ The Community of Christ, known from 1872 to 2001 as the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (RLDS), is an American-based international church, and is the second-largest denomination in the Latter Day Saint movement. The churc ...

(second largest Latter Day Saint denomination) and the

Church of Christ Church of Christ may refer to: Church groups * When used in the plural, a New Testament designation for local groups of people following the teachings of Jesus Christ: "...all the churches of Christ greet you", Romans 16:16. * The entire body of Ch ...

(Temple Lot), and those sects separating from the

and

, follow a traditional Protestant trinitarian theology.

Other groups

The

Unity Church Unity, known informally as Unity Church, is an organization founded by Charles and Myrtle Fillmore in 1889. It grew out of Transcendentalism and became part of the New Thought movement. Unity is known for its '' Daily Word'' devotional publi ...

interprets the religious terms Father, Son, and Holy Spirit metaphysically, as three aspects of mind action: mind, idea, and expression. They believe this is the process through which all manifestation takes place. As a movement that developed out of Christianity,

Rastafari Rastafari, sometimes called Rastafarianism, is a religion that developed in Jamaica during the 1930s. It is classified as both a new religious movement and a social movement by scholars of religion. There is no central authority in control o ...

has its own unique interpretation of both the

Holy Trinity The Christian doctrine of the Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the central dogma concerning the nature of God in most Christian churches, which defines one God existing in three coequal, coeternal, consubstantial divine persons: God th ...

and the Holy Spirit. Although there are several slight variations, they generally state that it is

Haile Selassie Haile Selassie I ( gez, ቀዳማዊ ኀይለ ሥላሴ, Qädamawi Häylä Səllasé, ; born Tafari Makonnen; 23 July 189227 August 1975) was Emperor of Ethiopia from 1930 to 1974. He rose to power as Regent Plenipotentiary of Ethiopia (' ...

who embodies both God the Father and God the Son, while the Holy (or rather, "''Hola''") Spirit is to be found within Rasta believers (see ' I and I'), and within every human being. Rastas also say that the true church is the human body, and that it is this church (or "''structure''") that contains the Holy Spirit.

References

{{Reflist, 2 Christian symbols Christian terminology God in Christianity Pneumatology Filioque Holy Spirit