Pneumatologia. Refleksja Kościoła o Duchu Świętym. Specyfika i promocja

Abstract

Pnematology has long occupied a central position in contemporary theology. The situation has not always been such in the history of the development of Christian doctrine. What is more, the attitude or reserve towards the Third Person of God has apparently prevailed. This Person has often been identified with a source of unrest that may threat the hierarchic order in the Church. The turn to experience in contemporary theology, not the first one over the centuries, has opened anew the space for an appropriate and adequate pnematological reflection, such that is respective to the rank to which the Holy Spirit aspires in the history of salvation. The penumatological tum has become possible owing to such theologians as Barth, Möhler, Congar, Mühlen, Schillebeeckx, Kasper and others. At the level of the Magisterium of the Church the decisive role here was played by Vatican Council II. In the practical dimension (with regard to piety and experience) the charismatic regeneration of the churches is universally pinpointed. The Council in fact did not propose any separate, exhaustive interpretation of pneumatology, nevertheless it put forward a postulate to imbue the whole of the Christian doctrine with the Holy Spirit. Collaborating with theologians, the Magisterium of the Church is successfully carrying out this postulate. Among its most important fruits, it is worth stressing the following: the teaching about the pneumatological presence of Christ, the inhabitation of the Holy Spirit, and about the dynamic and personalistic dimension of grace. The pneumatological aspect has decided about the regeneration of ecclesiology, especially in the aspect of communio and as the universal sacrament of salvation. There is no doubt that without the Holy Spirit and pneumatology ecumenism would not be possible. The place in which theology is exceptionally combined with the practical dimension of the Church, especially expressed in the context of the Liturgy, is Christian initiation. The reflection on the Holy Spirit obviously leads us to the source of Christian life, i.e. the sacraments of initiation. Therefore it seems justified to pay more attention to Christian initiation, both on the part of the Magisterium and theologians. It has recently been neglected and highly formalised. Apparently, it is indispensable to go back to the primary models of initiation and confront them with the current practice in Christian churches.