Indwelling intelligence within systems of belief

Implication of Indwelling Intelligence in Global Confidence-building (Part #10)

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• Andrew Murray: The Master's Indwelling (1953)
• Floyd Koenig: The Indwelling of the Holy Spirit
• James H. Dobbins. Indwelling Trinity: the Consummation Covenant (Real Presence Eucharistic Education and Adoration Association, 1997)
• God Indwelling Man (TruthBook.com)
• Robert Benjamin Crawford: The Indwelling God (Texas State University, University Honors Program, 2009)
• Cooper Abrams: The Mystery of the Indwelling Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 2:6-16)
• Major Ian Thomas: The Indwelling Life of Christ: All of Him in All of Me (Multnomah Books, 2006)
• David E. Pratte: The Indwelling of the Holy Spirit: Does the Spirit of God Dwell in His People Today? (Gospel Way, 2004)
• James M. Hamilton Jr.: God's Indwelling Presence: The Holy Spirit in the Old and New Testaments (B and H Academic, 2006)
• The Holy Spirit Indwelling the Believer (Power in the Holy Spirit)

The relationship of the Triune God of Christianity is intensified by the relationship of perichoresis, namely the mutual inter-penetration and indwelling within the threefold nature of the Trinity, God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. This indwelling expresses and realizes fellowship between the Father and the Son. It is intimacy. Jesus compares the oneness of this indwelling to the oneness of the fellowship of his church from this indwelling: That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us (John 17:21). The theological tradition has viewed the indwelling as fellowship, notably as a "cleaving together".

From the perspective of the metaphysical author Thomas Traherne (Mary Gregory Perkins, Thomas Traherne a Study of the Philosophy of His Poems and Centuries of Meditations, Loyola University, 1939):

Referring back to Plato's idea of pre-existence, he predicated a dual principle in man--the Spirit or over-Soul guiding the intellect and the body which being of matter must be eliminated as much as possible. Man's return to God is by way of knowledge and withdrawal from the world to effect a spiritual katharsis. The soul ascends to God by contemplating the indwelling 'Intelligence" or "Spirit". From this it rises to a contemplation of the One.

As noted by William E. Wallace (The Territorial Integrity of the Word of God, The Gospel Guardian, January 1968), there is considerable disagreement on how the Holy Spirit influences and indwells the Christian. For Wallace:

This is not to say the indwelling is "better felt than told" or that it is too mysterious to contemplate, but rather it is to say as God said: For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, ...For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. (Isaiah 55:8-9). So long as our positions do not violate the integrity of the word of God, we can well tolerate different ways of describing what the Holy Spirit does for us and how he dwells within us.

Despite being not "too mysterious to contemplate", to what degree can it be appropriately "felt"? Should claims in that respect be questioned in any way?

Helpful clarification is offered by the review of Dale Moody (The Word of Truth: a summary of Christian doctrine based on Biblical Revelation, 1981) regarding the 20th century development of a Spirit-Christology that sees Jesus as a Spirit-filled man. With a refreshing style, Moody distinguishes two models:

The kenosis model: The kenosis type of Christology tried to recover the unity between the eternal Son of God and the historical Jesus by interpreting the emptying of the Son of God into Jesus Christ in Philippians 2-7 as the laying aside of such attributes as omnipotence, omniscience, and omnipresence in order for Jesus to become man. The three "omnis" were called relational attributes in distinction from the immanent attributes of power, truth, holiness and love, which were retained... With Karl Barth's radical kenosis of God and Rudolf Butlmann's belief in the resurrection as a myth, a potent poison had accomplished the euthanasia of deity, leaving only humanity for our devotions.

Before fundamentalists engage in premature self-righteousness, let it be said that the idea that Jesus was "God in a bod", an idea reaching back to Cyril of Alexandria, escaped the conclusions drawn by the death of God theologians only because they were not logical... Even if Protestant orthodoxy and neo-orthodoxy have often hitched their theological wagon to the kenosis idea, it is doubtful that it is as satisfactory as the skenosis (indwelling) idea that follows....

The skenosis model: Anglican Christology has led the way in the reinterpretation of the skenosis type in Christology... What is here called the skenosis type is anchored to the Joannine text which says (1:14): And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld his glory, glory as of the only Song from the Father. This translation intends to emphasize that "became" is to be interpreted in the light of "dwelt" and the manifest presence of the Logos, the glory, is recalled as the tabernacling presence, the Hebrew shekinah (Divine Presence). (pp. 422-424)

It is appropriate to note the extent to which Christianity is preoccupied with a complementary form of "indwelling", a variant of "intelligence" illustrated by the following:

• Greg Herrick: Indwelling Sin's Power through Deceit; The Captivating Power of Indwelling Sin (Bible.org)
• Jerry B. Jenkins and Tim LaHaye: The Indwelling: The Beast Takes Possession (Left Behind series #7, 2000)

This preoccupation suggests the possibility of exploring the nature and strategic implications of that intelligence (Towards a Logico-mathematical Formalization of "Sin": fundamental memetic organization of faith-based governance strategies, 2004; Seven Deadly Sins of Fundamentalism assessing memetic weapons capability of neoconservatism, 2004). The preoccupation is of course consistent with the assertion by the leader of the world's superpower, Barack Obama, on acceptance of the Nobel Peace Prize, that: For make no mistake: evil does exist in the world. He specifically invoked the concept of "just war" in order to defeat evil.

Indwelling within the worldview of non-Christian religions: In contrast to the accessible literature on "indwelling" from a Christian perspective, the use of the term by other religions is less evident. Notable is the focus on "indwelling wisdom" rather than "indwelling spirit".

Whilst specifically extolling the "intelligence" as a characteristic of one of the Divine Names of Allah (Al-'Alim, The All Knowing, The Omniscient), within the Islamic worldview:

• In contrast to the triune nature of the Christian God and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in man, from an Islamic perspective (Light of Life), it is argued that: At best, the Sufis, the mystics of Islam, have hoped for and expected the indwelling of Allah in man, but they reject a justifying act through the cross as the only basis for this indwelling (cf. The Indwelling of the Infinite Within the Finite in Islam)
• Considerable significance is however attached, most notably in the Islamic mysticism characteristic of Sufis, to barakah as the beneficent force from Allah that flows through the physical and spiritual spheres as prosperity, protection, and happiness. It is the continuity of spiritual presence and revelation that begins with Allah and flows through that and those closest to Allah.
• The very notion of "indewelling" (hulul), is however contested (cf. Abû Nu*aym's al-Radd *alâ al-Hurûfiyya al-Hulûliyya ("Refutation of the Letter-Worshippers Who Believe in Indwelling"), as otherwise argued:
  • To hold that Allah is located in, above, or below the heaven is anthropomorphism; to hold that the mushaf is pre-eternal is indwelling (hulûl); finally, al-Ash*arî and his School never held that the Prophet - Allah bless and greet him - today is no longer a Prophet, but the reverse (Living Islam).
  • The complete Ash*ari position presupposes taqdis of Allah subhan wa Ta*ala, i.e. His absolute transcendence beyond anything created and any notion of indwelling or being part of anything (and it is "ex nihilo") (Living Islam).
• However, as al-Ghazali argues: We are aided in our ascent, by theindwellingintelligencewithin us.

Within the worldview inspired by Hinduism, for example:

• Phyllis Krystal: Seeking indwelling Divinity  (Sanathana Sarathi, 2001, Sai Baba)
• Swami Krishnananda: The Indwelling Spirit (Chandogya Upanishad, Divine Life Society)
• The Purusha, or the Divine Mind, which moves and animates the universe as the indwelling intelligence, is fully displayed in its perfection in the role inacted by the particular person considered to be an incarnation of God (M. M. Agrawal, Spirituality and Indian Culture, 2005, p. 21)

From a Buddhist perspective:

• for Sangye Khandro (How to Question the Unquestionable, Authoritarianism in Buddhism):

  If the mind experiences faith there is the opening through which blessings are received. When blessings are received, the causes for confusion and suffering can be identified and eliminated while the indwelling wisdom Buddha nature is able to blossom and begin to be sustained. Faith is therefore the most important quality necessary to possess in order to practice Buddhism in such a way that there will be actual, ever-lasting results.

• Nathan Johnson (Barefoot Zen: The Shaolin Roots of Kung Fu and Karate, 2000):

  If all conditions are shed, let go of to become "no-things", and if these limitations actually fade, your true nature or true self will be revealed. As the Zen expression goes, you will begin to see your true face before your parents were born. This true self can be regarded as a pristine consciousness, an indwelling intelligence. Unlike mere intellectual intelligence, the indwelling intelligence is a force within that watches and knows. It is made manifest when the focal point of consciousness has been withdrawn from the external world of objects....

Of unexpected relevance is the framework offered by the Ausar Auset Society as a Pan-African religious organization providing Afrocentric spiritual training to the African-American community through revival of the indigenous traditional African cultures dating from the earliest periods (Kamit [ancient Egypt], Indus Kush [pre-Aryan Vedantic India], Canaan [Palestine], and Kush/Nubia [Ethiopia/Sudan]). "Indwelling intelligence" is a specific preoccupation:

The most important accomplishment in your life, which you must pursue with the utmost urgency, is the experiencing of that part of your being that directs and coordinates the activities of the billions of cells that make up your physical body, and directs the activities of your spirit and subconscious. This indwelling intelligence that is obviously in possession of the knowledge of the workings of the universe, is God's consciousness itself. This is Ausar, your true Self. Your true, entire, only, and ultimate purpose for being on earth is the resurrection of this indwelling intelligence, that it may guide your endeavors in life with the same omniscience that it uses to guide your physiological and subconscious mental activities. Identification with, and living by the guidance of this indwelling intelligence is the true worship of God. It is the true process of religion. (Ausar, Metu Neter, 2, p. 111)

Indwelling intelligence of science: Much is made of the body of knowledge to which science contributes through its commitment to the advancement of human knowledge. This process is considered to be intimately related to the intelligence of its practitioners, and to their capacity for discovery and innovation. Science may be understood as a form of belief system, especially focused on its method -- as with the preoccupation of some religions with their spiritual disciplines. It is however doubtful that science itself would be recognized as exhibiting intelligence in any way, especially from the perspective of its practitioners. Their methodology may be intelligent -- in the name of science -- but attribution of intelligence to science would be highly controversial.

The body of knowledge is not static and is in process of rapid development with "scientific revolutions" and "paradigm shifts" that could be compared to the morphogenesis of biological forms. It can be understood as a form of container for a developing collective intelligence -- but only the appreciation of the future, through new understandings from the philosophy of science, could reframe the manner in which the intelligence of science is understood at the present time.

This framing could be compared to the nature of "indwelling" within religious belief systems. There too it could be considered questionable as to whether the religion itself -- Christianity, Islam, Hinduism -- is "intelligent" (even "supra-intelligent") rather than a container for the intelligence of its practitioners, whether individually or collectively as a community of believers. However it can also claimed and inferred that it is the vehicle for the divine. For many Christians, for example, including Catholics and some Protestants, the "Body of Christ" may also refer to the Christian Church as a group of believers. Catholics may be even more exclusively explicit with respect to their Church as the "Mystical Body of Christ" (cf. Papal Encyclical, Mystici Corporis Christi, 1943; William G. Most, The Catholic Church is the Mystical Body of Christ). For some Christians, notably the Roman Catholics, it is in the celebration of the Eucharist that the Real Presence of Christ is also especially evident.

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