Seeking the Welfare of the City: Toward an Evangelical Appropriation of the Pneumatology of Colin Gu

In the history of public theology, the Holy Spirit's role in creation has been underexplored. If the Holy Spirit is the agent of transformation in creation, why have so many theologians neglected the Spirit's activity in the context of public theology? One of the causes of such neglect derives from a long-held belief in dualism or its assumption. As a result, generally speaking, theologians have neglected the eschatological aspect of the Spirit's work over creation, and instead have devoted much of their attention to the immanent/spiritual aspect of the Spirit's work. Hence, a theology is needed that recaptures the eschatological aspect of the Spirit's work over creation, and Colin E. Gunton's pneumatology that is trinitarianly formulated and eschatologically conceived brings a fresh approach to public theology and moves us toward a full-bodied, holistic, and trinitarian public theology that takes into account the triune God. This study attempts to draw upon the resources uncovered in Gunton's pneumatology to outline applications for Christian engagement of the public square for the twenty-first century. The book concludes with criteria for discerning the Spirit's work in the public square to give us practical ways to see how the Spirit may be working in the public square for transformation.