Talk will shed light on the Holy Spirit

By ANGELA CAVE- | Comments: 0 | Leave a comment

A well-known Catholic theologian, educator and author will speak on the Holy Spirit this month as part of the final year of the Albany Diocese's "Amazing God" evangelization initiative.

Sister Elizabeth Johnson, CSJ, Ph.D., a theology professor at Fordham University in Bronx, will give a lecture titled, "Filled with the Spirit," April 11 at the Carondelet Hospitality Center in Latham. She intends to shed light on perhaps the most misunderstood part of the three persons of God.

"We have sort of personal images for the father and the son," Sister Elizabeth told The Evangelist. "The Spirit becomes kind of amorphous."

German theologian Cardinal Walter Kasper has called the Holy Spirit the "Cinderella" of the Trinity, she noted - "doing all the work in the kitchen while the other two get to go to the ball."

Sister Elizabeth will use biblical references to explain what the Holy Spirit does for Catholics and why the Spirit is "God's own love present and active in the world. It has something to do with the indwelling and the presence, the closeness and the nearness of God."

She will analyze references to fire and wind, both elements that Christians equate to the Holy Spirit. Interestingly, the Hebrew word for wind, "ruah," also translates to "breath" and "spirit."

"It gives a sense of the wildness of the Spirit," the speaker remarked, "going wherever it wants to go, untamed."

Sister Elizabeth emphasized that the Holy Spirit is everywhere, not just in places of worship: "It's bigger than the Church can control. The Church depends on the spirit, not the other way around."

She'll focus on the Spirit's presence in many areas, including nature, giving Catholics the impetus to be better stewards of creation.

"The giver of life isn't just human life," she said. "God dwells within the lives of all the species, and they deserve our care."

Sister Elizabeth, a former president of the Catholic Theological Society of America who has written books on Jesus, God, Mary's role in the communion of saints and more, has been in religious life for 53 years. She hopes her lecture will help the Albany Diocese's leaders develop "a more vivid sense of the presence of God doing wonderful things among us - and calling upon us to join in.

"All throughout the Scriptures, it's the Spirit of God who raises Jesus from the dead," she continued. "I think it's so beautiful. Having a sense of the presence and action of God among us is very consoling in a world where an awful lot is happening that's upsetting. To know that in the center of that is the presence of God embracing us, enlivening us - it just puts a bounce in your step somehow."[[In-content Ad]]