Pneumatology in Contemporary Perspective

A remarkable turn to pneumatology has been witnessed in contemporary theology during the last several decades. In his article, “The Cinderella of Theology: written in 1957, G. J. Sirks noted that after a long period of concentration on Christology in contemporary theology, emphasis began to shift in the direction of pneumatology. He made a profound statement in saying, “The first half of the 20th Century was a time of Christology; the second half will have to be a time for Pneumatology, the Doctrine of the Spirit.” It seems his prediction had merit, as a transition has been made from a period of christocentric theology to that of pneumatology theology in the closing decades of the 20th Century, and on into the 21st Century there seems to be no signs that this change is losing momentum. In his last years, even Karl Barth, the master architect of christocentric theology in the 2oth Century envisioned such development of pneumatic theology in which his chritologically formulated theology would be recast into a pneumatic setting. It is often pointed out that the recent pneumatological turn in contemporary theology came as the fruition of this master’s vision planted in his disciples, while at the same time it was their revolt against his rigid christocentricism.
Many theologians after Barth have reacted against the Christological bias and transcendental overtones in Barth’s theology which make it difficult to conceive a genuine correlation between God and creation, and so the cosmic dimension of the Spirit’s renewing work. The recent theological writings which are oriented toward divine immanence, the secular world, creation, and eschatology all reflect such critical response to Barth’s christologically restricted theology, and represent serious attempts to overcome the inability of Barthian christocentrism to relate theology to the quest for renewal in the vast territory of the world.
The new pneumatological orientation in contemporary theology is not only a protest against excessive christocentrism, but it also provides a way of responding to the pressing issues raised by the modern world. Confronted with pressure for a new comprehensive theological paradigm that corresponds to the emerging global issues of our time, contemporary theologians have found it imperative to turn from a “theology of the word” to a “theology of the world.” They stress that theology must be fundamentally oriented to the world, and our theological horizon must be expanded to embrace the whole range of reality in the world. These new accents in contemporary theology are expressed in various fashions, as seen in the quest for the immanence of god, secular Christianity, emphasis and approach they are all concerned with rediscovering a theological rationale for the global scope of the Spirit’s renewing works.
This pneumatological development in contemporary theology presents a tremendous challenge to historic or traditional Christian theology. It summons us to rediscover an appreciation of the world-wide scope of the Spirit’s renewing work; it calls for traditional theology to engage in critical examination of its own way of thinking about the Holy Spirit. Alongside this positive challenge, the current development also poses a serious threat to major tenets of Christian doctrine. In their attempt to construct a new model of theology which is expanded to its cosmic breadth, contemporary theologians all too often begin with certain universal frameworks which are drawn from philosophical categories that can hardly be reconciled with the biblical perspective. In their discussions of the Spirit’s work, what is most often lost in the New Testament distinctive of the Sprit’s work.
ecological theology, and theology of hope. Despite their differences in