The Holy Spirit in 1st Clement
Have you ever wondered why the Holy Spirit isn’t mentioned as much in the Bible as God the Father and Jesus the Son? You wouldn’t be the first to notice this. A brief overview of the Church Fathers shows a similar pattern.
Like Scripture, the Holy Spirit isn’t name dropped a lot in the earliest writings of the Fathers, but when He is, the Spirit is given high reverence. While later Fathers like Basil and Gregory of Nyssa gave more elaborate writings on the Third Person of the Holy Trinity, we don’t see too much in the Apostolic Fathers.
While 1st Clement doesn’t give a theological treatise on the Holy Spirit, the epistle does reference the Spirit multiple times. Considering how early this epistle is believed to have been written, possibly within the late 1st century, Clement’s understanding of the Holy Spirit gives us a crucial look into how the early Church understood the Spirit and His role within the Church.
The Holy Spirit is the Author of Scripture
The majority of times 1st Clement references the Holy Spirit is when Scripture is quoted. Clement sees the Spirit as the author and speaker of the Bible.
“The ministers of the grace of God have, by the Holy Spirit, spoken of repentance.”
Throughout the epistle when quoting Scripture, Clement interchangeably references the Biblical author of a writing being inspired by the Holy Spirit, or the Spirit directly doing the speaking. One example is in chapter 13:
“Let us therefore, brethren, be of humble mind, laying aside all haughtiness, and pride, and foolishness, and angry feelings; and let us act according to that which is written, for the Holy Spirit says,
‘Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory in his might, neither let the rich man glory in his riches, but let him that glories glorify the Lord, in diligently seeking Him, and doing judgment and righteousness.’”
In this quote Clement paraphrases Jeremiah 9:23 to illustrate his point, giving credit to the Holy Spirit as the author.
In addition to the Old Testament, 1st Clement is one of our earliest sources to claim 1st Corinthians as an inspired writing:
“Take up the epistle of the blessed Apostle Paul. What did he write to you at the time when the gospel first began to be preached? Truly, under the inspiration of the Spirit, he wrote to you concerning himself, and Cephas, and Apollos, because even then parties had been formed among you.”
The Holy Spirit Unifies
As discussed in a previous blog, 1st Clement opens the epistle reminding the Corinthians of their previous good works. The Corinthian church loved one another, cared for visitors, prayed for the lost, confessed their sins to one another, and focused on Jesus Christ. Clement says that a full outpouring of the Holy Spirit came over the congregation. (1st Clement 2.2)
Clement’s train of thought aligns with Paul’s. Clement is not suggesting the Holy Spirit wasn’t already present in the Corinthian church, or that it was only after the good works of the church that they received the Spirit. As mentioned previously, Clement acknowledges 1st Corinthians, in which Paul affirms that those born again under Christ have received the Holy Spirit. (1st Corinthians 2:12-13, 3:16)
Paul still acknowledges in his writings that Christians can grieve the Holy Spirit despite being sealed by Him. (Ephesians 4:30) While Clement’s audience had Christians who were filled with the Spirit, their positive actions showed their faith and worked alongside the Spirit.
Church Authority
Towards the end of the epistle, Clement and his church inform the Corinthians that they hope they take to heart their loving rebuke and call to repentance. They go so far to say their call to repentance has been given by the Holy Spirit:
“For you will give joy and exultation to us if, being obedient to what was written by us through the Holy Spirit, you do away with the disgusting anger of your jealousy according to the petition which we have made with peace and harmony in this very letter.”
There’s a few ways one could interpret what Clement is saying. Considering how Clement previously mentioned Scripture being spoken by the Holy Spirit, he and his church are at least in some regard stating their epistle to be inspired. It is also important to recognize that the early Church had different categories of understanding divine inspiration of writings. In other words, it’s possible Clement is suggesting the epistle is inspired, but not necessarily equal to Scriptures such as Genesis or Isaiah.
1st Clement would be acknowledged by many in the early Church as inspired Scripture, and while it eventually wouldn’t be included in the New Testament canon, it was still regarded as a valuable writing for the Church.
At the very least, the passage shows the level of authority Clement and his church is professing. Catholic scholar Kenneth Howell suggests this quote implies the sacred authority of the Roman Church. (Howell, 2012, Pg. 134)
Personally, I think Howell makes a fair point and it can be seen as consistent with Roman Catholic tradition. However, I would add that other Apostolic Fathers wrote with bold testimony of being inspired by the Spirit. The most direct example would be Ignatius of Antioch sharing a prophetic word to the Philadelphians. (7.2) Like Clement, Ignatius’ prophetic word is a call to the church to obey and be unified. In conclusion, 1st Clement’s claim of speaking to the Corinthians through the Holy Spirit wasn’t necessarily unique to the Roman church.
Conclusion
1st Clement sees Scripture as written by the Holy Spirit. This same Spirit also equips and assures followers of Christ. (1st Clement 42.3) Clement’s solution to the Corinthian church’s division is to seek the wisdom of the Spirit through Scripture, turn back to the humble example of Jesus Christ, and with a repentant heart seek the fullness of the Holy Spirit.
Bibliography
Schaff, P. (2016). The Complete Ante-Nicene, Nicene, and Post-Nicene Collection of Early Church Fathers. Toronto, Canada.
Howell, K. (2012). Clement of Rome & The Didache: A New Translation and Theological Commentary. Zanesville, OH. CHResources.
Grant, R. (1965). The Apostolic Fathers: A New Translation and Commentary. Volume 2: First and Second Clement. Eugene, OR. Wipf and Stock Publishers.
Brannan, R. (2017). The Apostolic Fathers: A New Translation. Bellingham, WA. Lexham Press.
Thumbnail Image: Titian. (1545). Pentecost.