MagisterCultuum
Great Sage
Both the Hebrew words Ruach and Shekhinah are grammatically feminine, as Hebrew has no such thing as a neuter gender. While the Greek πνεῦμα (pneuma) is grammatically neuter, the holy spirit is also called the παράκλητος (Parecletos), which is grammatically masculine. (I've heard that some, especially Roman Catholics, consider Paraclete to be the proper name of the holy spirit, but the term in fact a title meaning counselor and refers explicitly to Christ in at least one place in the bible. The holy spirit is not The Paraclete, but Another (of the same rather than different kind) Paraclete.) The Latin word Spiritus is grammatically masculine, as is the German Geist. Romance and Germanic languages tend to follow suit, making the words for spirit grammatically masculine throughout the west.
The gender we use does not really matter, as it is only grammatical gender, not physical gender. While Christ took on a male form in his time on earth, the father and the holy spirit are never traditionally conceived as having physical form or physical gender.
I think the main reason "he" is used is because it is generally considered the generic, default pronoun used when gender is unknown or irrelevant. As the feminine was not the default, using it would tend to emphasize the presence of a gender where it ought to be absent. Referring to someone as an "it" is considered disrespectful, and a denial of personhood. I remember reading a footnote in one bible that acknowledged the spirit's lack of gender but warned against using "it" for the holy spirit because it robbed Him of his personhood and place in the trinity,
The gender we use does not really matter, as it is only grammatical gender, not physical gender. While Christ took on a male form in his time on earth, the father and the holy spirit are never traditionally conceived as having physical form or physical gender.
I think the main reason "he" is used is because it is generally considered the generic, default pronoun used when gender is unknown or irrelevant. As the feminine was not the default, using it would tend to emphasize the presence of a gender where it ought to be absent. Referring to someone as an "it" is considered disrespectful, and a denial of personhood. I remember reading a footnote in one bible that acknowledged the spirit's lack of gender but warned against using "it" for the holy spirit because it robbed Him of his personhood and place in the trinity,