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Ethics and the Spirit in Paul (2): Religious-Ethical Empowerment through the Relational Work of the Spirit

The Expository Times: International Journal of Biblical Studies, Theology and Ministry

Published online on

Abstract

This article, and its companion "Ethics and the Spirit in Paul (1): Religious-Ethical Empowerment through Infusion-Transformation?", deal with the question of how, according to Paul, the Holy Spirit enables religious ethical life. The first essay challenges the "infusion-transformation" approach to Pauline pneumatology which builds on a Stoic concept of the Spirit as a material substance that transforms the substance of its recipients in order to enable ethical behaviour. This article argues that in Paul (as well as in a significant number of texts from early Judaism) the Spirit transforms and empowers people for ethical living primarily through initiating and sustaining an intimate relationship with the divine and with the community of faith.