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Pneumaformity: Transformation by the Spirit in Paul
According to Paul, it is by the Spirit, through Christ, that God transforms people, communities, and the cosmos
Prominent recent studies elevate the themes of "Christoformity" and "Cruciformity" in Paul, but few sufficiently account for how a believer is actually transformed into the image of Christ. Pneumaformity fills the gap in Pauline studies by surveying Paul's letters for teachings on the Spirit's agency in the life of God' people. This study aptly demonstrates that the Holy Spirit is the instrument through whom such radical living is possible. This study dives into Paul's teachings on the following aspects of the Spirit's agency and
Keown shows how Paul infuses his christological language with pneumatological realities, offering readers a fuller understanding of the Spirit's work in individuals, the church, and the world.
Prominent recent studies elevate the themes of "Christoformity" and "Cruciformity" in Paul, but few sufficiently account for how a believer is actually transformed into the image of Christ. Pneumaformity fills the gap in Pauline studies by surveying Paul's letters for teachings on the Spirit's agency in the life of God' people. This study aptly demonstrates that the Holy Spirit is the instrument through whom such radical living is possible. This study dives into Paul's teachings on the following aspects of the Spirit's agency and
Keown shows how Paul infuses his christological language with pneumatological realities, offering readers a fuller understanding of the Spirit's work in individuals, the church, and the world.
440 pages, Paperback
Published September 17, 2024
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
January 15, 2025
Rarely have I been more disappointed with a book. Mark Keown's Pneumaformity: Transformation by the Spirit in Paul, came highly recommended by scholars like Scot McKnight, David deSilva, and Stanley Porter. They—and the author himself—contend that this work is built on the opus by Gordon Fee, God’s Empowering Presence, and is in the tradition of Michael Gorman’s, Cruciformity: Paul’s Narrative Spirituality Of the Cross. While I must give credit to the scope and detail of the work, unfortunately, this book falls far short of the hype.
First, while clearly built on Fee’s work, it’s hard to see how Keown builds on that work other than grouping texts under various headings. If what academia needed was a summary of various ways in which the Spirit is involved in the work of God (in contrast to Fees textual approach), even then this book misses the mark, lacking any index of Scriptures, authors or topics. As a result, the book is largely inaccessible for study purposes.
In terms of building on Gorman’s work, other than the title, it is hard to see parallels. The book comes across as an extended run-on summary of texts under various topical headings related to the Spirit’s work in transformation. Again, this is no small work. But, aside from the use of original languages, it reminds me of Bible School entry-level work on pneumatology. The discussion is frequently surface, simply grouping texts around Biblical terms and metaphors. Where substantive engagement is provided, it falls short or being much more than a discussion of grammatical or lexical choices. Whereas Gorman expands the concept of cruciformity into various theological themes and practical implications, Keown’s work simply hovers over the text, showing how various passages come around the topics covered in each chapter. But he leaves it there. There is little discussion of what the various terms and metaphors Paul uses may actually mean and look like in the life of a believer. Indeed, it is not until page 418 that he finally asks, “What does a Pneumaform life look like?” His answers are provided, like the rest of book, in a summary manner, only hinting in the six pages he devotes to this question at that which truly needs to be explored in greater detail and depth.
The result is a 400+ page work that fails to engage the mystery of the Spirit’s work in the life of the Christian. What is needed is something much more than a summary of texts and exegetical considerations that point to the Spirit’s work. What is needed is an engagement with the text that explores what it means that the Spirit is involved in these various aspects of transformation.
First, while clearly built on Fee’s work, it’s hard to see how Keown builds on that work other than grouping texts under various headings. If what academia needed was a summary of various ways in which the Spirit is involved in the work of God (in contrast to Fees textual approach), even then this book misses the mark, lacking any index of Scriptures, authors or topics. As a result, the book is largely inaccessible for study purposes.
In terms of building on Gorman’s work, other than the title, it is hard to see parallels. The book comes across as an extended run-on summary of texts under various topical headings related to the Spirit’s work in transformation. Again, this is no small work. But, aside from the use of original languages, it reminds me of Bible School entry-level work on pneumatology. The discussion is frequently surface, simply grouping texts around Biblical terms and metaphors. Where substantive engagement is provided, it falls short or being much more than a discussion of grammatical or lexical choices. Whereas Gorman expands the concept of cruciformity into various theological themes and practical implications, Keown’s work simply hovers over the text, showing how various passages come around the topics covered in each chapter. But he leaves it there. There is little discussion of what the various terms and metaphors Paul uses may actually mean and look like in the life of a believer. Indeed, it is not until page 418 that he finally asks, “What does a Pneumaform life look like?” His answers are provided, like the rest of book, in a summary manner, only hinting in the six pages he devotes to this question at that which truly needs to be explored in greater detail and depth.
The result is a 400+ page work that fails to engage the mystery of the Spirit’s work in the life of the Christian. What is needed is something much more than a summary of texts and exegetical considerations that point to the Spirit’s work. What is needed is an engagement with the text that explores what it means that the Spirit is involved in these various aspects of transformation.
January 1, 2026
I hate to end my year with this, but this.... was not great. If you are looking for a clearly organized summary of the Holy Spirit in Paul's writings, this book is wonderful for you!
However, given its purpose was exploration of theological concepts and implications for Christians now, surrounding the Holy Spirit's transforming work within a faith community, this provided little of this. The summaries were a surface-level look at the concept of pneumaformity, which just was not the expectation from a theological book. It reads more like a commentary on verses that happen to mention the Holy Spirit. This can be useful for teaching on the Spirit or talking about certain topics for new Christians or introductory Bible classes. But this was created for higher level theology and fell flat in its depth of conversation. Given how long the book was, I was prepared for a lot more, but it was very rambly writing that repeated the same shallow ideas.
I also had qualms about the way the Greek was used in this text. Most of the times a Greek word/phrase was used, the book did nothing to explain verb tense, noun forms, or word derivations that many of the points needed in order for the book to make sense. Despite the shallow theology, one needs a background in Greek in order to understand it best, which makes little sense. Further development of Greek translations and explanations would have made this more coherent. Some of the translations were flat out inaccurate!
I want to note for readers that this author, based on what was written, leans in favor of predestination, which he discusses some. He also holds more traditional gender role values and holds more conservative views on the queer community. Personally, these are not things I stand with (and they definitely were not a large part of the reason why i rated this so low). While important to read authors we disagree with, I will say this was something I noticed (though it did not really impact his points as a whole).
Overall, decent summary. But shallow, which meant I was dragging myself.
However, given its purpose was exploration of theological concepts and implications for Christians now, surrounding the Holy Spirit's transforming work within a faith community, this provided little of this. The summaries were a surface-level look at the concept of pneumaformity, which just was not the expectation from a theological book. It reads more like a commentary on verses that happen to mention the Holy Spirit. This can be useful for teaching on the Spirit or talking about certain topics for new Christians or introductory Bible classes. But this was created for higher level theology and fell flat in its depth of conversation. Given how long the book was, I was prepared for a lot more, but it was very rambly writing that repeated the same shallow ideas.
I also had qualms about the way the Greek was used in this text. Most of the times a Greek word/phrase was used, the book did nothing to explain verb tense, noun forms, or word derivations that many of the points needed in order for the book to make sense. Despite the shallow theology, one needs a background in Greek in order to understand it best, which makes little sense. Further development of Greek translations and explanations would have made this more coherent. Some of the translations were flat out inaccurate!
I want to note for readers that this author, based on what was written, leans in favor of predestination, which he discusses some. He also holds more traditional gender role values and holds more conservative views on the queer community. Personally, these are not things I stand with (and they definitely were not a large part of the reason why i rated this so low). While important to read authors we disagree with, I will say this was something I noticed (though it did not really impact his points as a whole).
Overall, decent summary. But shallow, which meant I was dragging myself.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews