Adrian Graffy is a Scripture scholar and parish priest in the Roman Catholic diocese of Brentwood, England. After receiving his doctorate at the Pontifical Biblical Institute in Rome he taught for over twenty years at St John’s Seminary, Wonersh. As Director of the Commission for Evangelisation and Formation in the diocese he and his team arranged study days which drew large numbers to hear well qualified speakers. They set up the ‘what good news’ website to accommodate the archive of talks. Fr Adrian is now parish priest in Gidea Park, director of the Scripture Working Group at the Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales, delegate to the Catholic Biblical Federation, and member of the Pontifical Biblical Commission
This study day was given at the Sion Centre for Dialogue and Encounter in Bayswater on Thursday 29th November 2018. Fr Adrian addressed the topic ‘From Zechariah to Agabus: the Holy Spirit in Luke-Acts’. He explores the frequent references to the Spirit in both the Gospel of Luke and the Acts of the Apostles. He traces how the Spirit given to individuals, like Zechariah and Elizabeth and to Jesus in the gospel, prepares for the outpouring of the Spirit in Acts to individuals and to communities, both Jewish and Gentile, as the gospel is preached ‘to the ends of the earth’.