REFINING ABRAHAM KUYPER’S VIEW OF THE SPIRIT’S WORK AMONG OTHER FAITH COMMUNITIES WITH MICHAEL WELKER’S PNEUMATOLOGY

Churches in Indonesia today face the vital challenge of developing a theologically robust foundation for engaging in mission while fostering peaceful living with other religious communities, without resorting to dualism or demonization. Contemporary pneumatology provides vital resources for constructing such a theological framework, particularly through the articulation of the Spirit’s work among non-Christian faith communities. In pursuit of this aim, this study engages Abraham Kuyper’s programmatic vision of the Holy Spirit’s work among religious communities, which is then critically refined through Michael Welker’s contemporary pneumatology that facilitates discernment and enables interdisciplinary and interreligious dialogue. The study proposes: (1) a clarification of the embodied and embedded nature of religion, (2) a nuanced framework for discerning the Spirit’s presence among non-Christian faith communities in light of biblical traditions, and (3) a differentiated account of the church’s indispensable role in this ongoing discernment.