The Holy Spirit was furthermore equated with the (grammatically feminine) Wisdom of God by two early Church fathers, Theophilus of Antioch (d. 180) and by Irenaeus (d. 202/3).
[5] This breaking of the grammatical agreement expected by native language readers is an indication of the author's intention to convey the personhood of the Holy Spirit.
[10] Historian of religion Susan Ashbrook Harvey considers the grammatical gender to have been significant for early Syriac Christianity: "It seems clear that for the Syrians, the cue from grammar—ruah as a feminine noun—was not entirely gratuitous.
"[13] For Semitic languages, such as ancient Syriac, the earliest liturgical tradition and established gender usage for referring to the Holy Spirit is feminine.
[15] Some recent authors (1980s to present), while retaining masculine reference to Father and Son, have used feminine language for the Holy Spirit.
These authors include Clark H. Pinnock,[16] Thomas N. Finger,[17] Jürgen Moltmann,[18] Yves M.J. Congar,[19] John J. O'Donnell,[20] Donald L. Gelpi,[21] and R.P.
[26] These texts were particularly significant when Christians were debating whether the New Testament teaches that the Holy Spirit is a fully divine hypostasis, as opposed to a created force.
[citation needed] In 1977, one of their leaders, Lois Roden, began to formally teach that a feminine Holy Spirit is the heavenly pattern of women.
They see in the creation of Adam and Eve a literal image and likeness of the invisible Godhead, male and female, who is "clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made".
[35] The B'nai Yashua Synagogues Worldwide,[36] a Messianic group headed by Rabbi Moshe Koniuchowsky, holds to the feminine view of the Holy Spirit.
[46] There was a well established place in liturgy, prayer and doctrine for the Holy Spirit as the Mother amongst the Moravian Brethren, exemplified by Count Zinzendorf especially.
[47] In the Secret Book of John, an ancient codex from the Nag Hammadi Library used in Christian Gnosticism, the divine female principle Barbelo is referred to as the Holy Spirit.