Boff's book reminds this reviewer, in part, of a theological handbook: it summarizes key points of a wide-ranging variety of theological topics pertaining to the Holy Spirit, but without exploring them comprehensively and in depth. After naming the crises caused by the contemporary erosion of meaning and indifference to the plight of the poor, it identifies significant events—such as the election of Pope Francis and the Catholic Charismatic Renewal—as signs of the Spirit's activity in human history. It posits markers of the Spirit's vivifying presence in all the layers of creation, from subatomic particles to the highest aesthetic and ethical expressions of the human spirit, and finds parallels to the biblical experience of the Spirit as vital energy in religiously diverse expressions of fundamental human experiences. It surveys the scriptural roots of the Christian understanding of the Spirit, reviews selected moments in the development of that understanding, and briefly sketches key insights of systematic theological reflection on the Spirit. To reinforce his depiction of the pervasiveness of the Spirit throughout creation, Boff introduces the thought of selected “philosophers of the Spirit” (including Joachim of Fiore, Hegel, and Tillich) whose work has reflected sensitivity to the dimension of spirit. He dwells on the “pneumatization of the feminine” in Mary, when the Spirit permanently “formed a single reality with her” (119) to bring about the humanity of the Son. He notes the activity of the Spirit in the continuing evolution of the cosmos, in the existence of all creatures, in the depths of the lives of human persons, in the church, and, particularly, in the resistance of the poor against oppression and in their strivings for authentic human fulfillment. The section on spirituality parses the meaning of the Spirit's gifts and the myriad ways that it (Boff's preferred third-person pronoun for the Spirit) infuses all human endeavors, concluding with a meditative journey through three classic hymns. The book's greatest strength lies in its beautiful and at times deeply moving reflective commentary upon all of these elements.

Given the broad scope of this brief introduction to a theology of the Holy Spirit, it is not surprising that it does not treat the issues with as much depth as might be desired. Its possible use in a graduate classroom would require supplementation with deeper theological treatments (classics such as Augustine, Bonaventure, Aquinas, and Congar receive only cursory attention). Particularly disappointing is its supposition that exploration of the Spirit's role in the unfolding of the universe as this is elaborated in the new cosmology has heretofore been neglected by theologians. Boff's own coverage of this topic fails to dialogue with or even mention far more compelling accounts, such as those by Denis Edwards and Elizabeth Johnson.

His linking of the “pneumatization” of Mary with the evolutionary preparation of “the female nature” to be a receptor of the Spirit (124) is troubling for its perpetuation of the notion that receptiveness is an essentially feminine characteristic, even though Boff speaks in this context of the “feminine side of both men and women” (125). Even more theologically controversial is the affirmation that Saint Joseph personifies God the Father (an idea developed in one of Boff's previous works): “The Father slowly emerges in the evolutionary process until he finds a righteous, God-fearing father who can receive him” (65), so that the Persons of the Trinity give themselves into the evolving created order until they “emerge” or dwell fully in a particular member of the Holy Family. With a theologian of Boff's stature, it is frustrating that theological precision is sometimes sacrificed to spiritual dynamism, as in the statement that the trinitarian Persons “emerge together, each one unique but always connected to the others, in such a profound and radical way that they become one” (100).

Despite these criticisms, this is a helpful and accessible book for introducing contemporary believers to a theology and spirituality centered upon the Holy Spirit. Given its reminders of all that the Spirit means to the life of human beings and their world, this is worthwhile in itself.