Cambridge Divinity Scholar to Discuss Filioque at Holy Spirit Lecture

Professor Sarah Coakley, the Norris-Hulse Professor of Divinity at the University of Cambridge, will give her take on the controversy behind the Latin term “filioque” in the Nicene creed at the 10th annual Holy Spirit Lecture and Colloquium.

Beyond the Filioque Disputes? Re-assessing the Radical Equality of the Spirit through the Ascetic and Mystical Tradition will be held on Friday, Nov. 11, at 7 p.m. in the Charles J. Dougherty Ballroom in the Power Center. It is free and open to the public.

The filioque is a controversial clause added to the original form of the Nicene creed used by the Western Church because it reveals that the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son—which is the English translation of the word filioque—while others believe that the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father.

Coakley argues that the divisive problems over the filioque might never have arisen if the Holy Spirit’s equality with the Father and Son had remained firmly established in the mystical tradition of the Church and had not been undermined by the historic treatment of the Holy Spirit as the third.

“Duquesne University is honored to host a scholar of Dr. Coakley’s stature as the 10th Holy Spirit Lecturer,” said the Rev. Radu Bordeianu, associate professor of theology and director of the Holy Spirit Lecture and Colloquium. “Her work challenges theology to engage contemporary issues in ways that are rooted in the historical and mystical traditions, while emphasizing their relevance to ever-changing pastoral realities.

“The Holy Spirit Lecture is thus a special opportunity to encounter a first-class scholar who will address the role of the Holy Spirit in the prayer life of the Church, as experienced by past ascetics and in contemporary churches,” said Bordeianu.

Coakley is a philosopher of religion and systematic theologian with strong interests in interdisciplinary engagement and in the reassessment of historical theology for contemporary life. She has previously taught at Lancaster, Oxford, Harvard and Princeton universities. She is also an Anglican priest of the diocese of Ely and an honorary canon of Ely Cathedral.

Registration for the Holy Spirit Lecture is requested. For more information, visit  www.duq.edu/holyspirit.