Holy Spirit = The Goddess of Christianity
Is Christianity Sexist?
Or have people just made it that way over time?
According to mainstream Christianity, God is a “He,” Christ is a “He,” and the Holy Spirit is also a “He.” But is this Biblically accurate?
CONTENTS: CLICK BELOW
Biblical Evidence that the Holy Spirit is Female
Evidence from a Lost Gospel
Lady Wisdom
So Why Do They Call Her “Him?”
Ancient Mystery of the Holy Spirit
Biblical Evidence that the Holy Spirit is Female
And it came to pass in those days, Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized in the Jordan by John. Just as he was coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens being torn apart and the Spirit coming down on him like a dove. – Mark 1:9-10
Now the Greek word for dove is Peristera, and it carries the feminine gender.
Moving beyond coincidence, we see a striking attestation to the Holy Spirit’s femininity in the first words of the Bible,
In the beginning, God, He created the heavens and the earth. The earth, she was without form and void, and darkness, he was upon the face of the deep, and the Spirit (Ruach) of God, She was soaring above the face of the waters. – Genesis 1:1-2
The Hebrew phrase Ruach Elohim is used throughout the Old Testament for “Spirit of God.” Ruach carries the feminine gender.
We see dualism within dualism in Genesis 1. For God is both male and female. The Creator is male while the Spirit is female. Also, we see two objects of degeneration away from God, an empty feminine earth and a masculine darkness, thus indicating the duality of gender within the forces of evil, Sama-El and Lilith. Thus, each side of the duality between God and evil attains further duality with regard to gender. Moreover, the Creator is listed first and the Spirit last, thus indicating God surrounds and supersedes the evil forces of father darkness and mother earth.
Evidence from a Lost Gospel
My Mother, the Holy Spirit, took Me by one of My hairs and carried Me to Mount Tabor. – Jesus Christ
This quote of Jesus, taken from The Gospel of Hebrews or Nazarenes, is not in the Bible, but it was an accepted scripture of the Nazarene Sect of Christianity – a group of Jewish Christians led by Jesus’ brother James, and later, by Jesus’ cousin Simeon. Therefore, it should be accepted as a legitimate basis for Christian doctrine. Even orthodox Christians as late as 320 AD still believed The Gospel of Hebrews was not heretical, for Eusebius tells us
Some have found a place in the list for ‘The Gospel of Hebrews’ since it has a unique appeal to Hebrews who believe in Christ. These books (in the list) would all be grouped together with the disputed books, but I feel compelled to list the latter separately, making a distinction between those books which, according to church tradition, are recognized as authentic – and those in a different category, not Biblical, but disputed and familiar to most clergymen, for we should not confuse these with the forgeries published by heretics…” – History of the Church 3:25
Lady Wisdom
Wisdom is personified in the book of Proverbs in such a way that She is equal with God. The Hebrew word for Wisdom, Chokmah, carries the feminine gender. Both ancient Jewish and ancient Christian authorities point to Her co-divinity with God, as we shall demonstrate. Speaking as Wisdom in the first person, Solomon wrote,
YHWH possessed (qanah) Me (Wisdom) from the beginning of His way, before his ancient works. I was appointed from before infinity, from the beginning, before the cosmos existed. – Proverbs 8:22-23
From this we can clearly see that Wisdom is coeternal with God – not created by God.
We should note that the RSV’s and JPS’s translation of the Hebrew word qanah as “created” is in the minority. More translations accept the meaning “to possess,” such as the KJV, NIV, the Standard Version, the Authorized Version of 1611, Webster’s, and World English - all of these acknowledge a meaning other than “created.” The New American Bible translates it “begot,” just as the Son was begotten, not created. In any case, the context makes the meaning plain enough. As Origen said,
We have not been able to find anything in Scripture which indicates that the Holy Spirit was formed or created – not even in the way Solomon speaks about Divine Wisdom. – Origen, 225 AD
Moreover, She is not found alone with God, but with the Word beside Her – and so the Blessed Trinity is revealed in Proverbs,
Listen to Wisdom (Chokmah, feminine) and set your heart towards Understanding (Tawboon, masculine). Yes, if you call out for Knowledge (Beenah, feminine) and lift up your voice for Understanding (Tawboon, masculine)… For YHWH gives Wisdom (Chokmah, feminine). Out of His mouth comes discernment and Understanding (Tawboon, masculine). – Proverbs 2:2-6
Given the similarity in meaning between the Hebrew Tawboon and the Greek Logos, both of which are masculine in gender, we can identify Tawboon with Logos, Understanding with Christ. Thus we have here Son and Spirit, Understanding and Wisdom, together with God, completing the Holy Trinity.
That the early church identified Lady Wisdom with the Holy Spirit is beyond a doubt. Here are some quotes from early Christians:
For the Word and Wisdom were always present with God, the Son and the Spirit, by Whom and in Whom He freely and spontaneously created everything. These are the Ones to Whom He said, “Let us make man in Our own image and likeness… Therefore, it was not angels who made us” – Irenaeus, 180 AD, Against Heresies 4.20.1
The Word, Who is the Son, was always with the Father. Wisdom, too, Who is the Spirit, was in God’s presence before anything was created. For the Spirit declared by Solomon, “By Wisdom God set the foundations of the earth, and by Understanding He set up the heaven. By His knowledge the Deep burst forth and the clouds dropped down the dew...” and again, “When he began the heavens, I was with Him…” Therefore, there is one God, Who, by the Word and Wisdom created and arranged everything.” – Irenaeus, 180 AD, Against Heresies 4.20.3-4
The ancient Jews confirmed Her divinity also, as their interpretations of Proverbs bear witness,
Wisdom came forth before all things, and prudent Understanding from eternity. – Sirach 1:4
Wisdom will praise Herself… “From eternity, in the beginning He brought Me forth, and for eternity I will never cease to exist.” – Sirach 24:1,9
She knows and understands everything – Wisdom of Solomon 9:11
Wisdom is more versatile than any motion. Since She is pure, she pervades and penetrates everything. She is the breath (Ruach/Spirit) of God’s power, and the spotless emanation of the Almighty’s glory. Thus, no unclean thing finds a place within Her. She is the reflection of eternal light, a spotless mirror of God’s works, the image of His goodness. She is only one, but She can accomplish anything, and being within Herself, She rejuvenates everything. Throughout all generations She lives within holy souls, making them God’s friends and His prophets. – Wisdom of Solomon 7:24-27
This last quote is especially interesting, since it points to the fact that ancient pre-Christian Judaism identified Wisdom with the Spirit of prophecy, a trait of the Holy Spirit.
So Why Do They Call the Holy Spirit “He,” Not “She?”
Certainly, English Bibles have been calling the Holy Spirit “He” according to the masculine gender for a long time. You might ponder, “There must be a reason for this.” Indeed there is! Jesus said,
But the Parakletos, Who is the Holy Spirit, Who the Father will send in My name, He will teach you everything…” – John 14:26
The pronoun “He” is demanded since the Greek word Parakletos, is a masculine noun. It means “advocate” (or “comforter” as Origen and the KJV would have it).
Many Christians regard the word Paraklete as a proper name for the Holy Spirit, but this assumption is false, because the Holy Spirit is not the only Paraklete.
If anyone sins, we have a Parakletos Who is with the Father – Jesus Christ the righteous. – I John 2:1
We see here, quite plainly, that Jesus Christ is a Paraklete along with the Holy Spirit, Who is another Paraklete.
I (Christ) will pray to the Father and He will give you another Parakletos, Who will live with you forever, even the Spirit of truth. – John 14:16
What does the term “another” mean except that there must be at least two Parakletes, the Son and the Spirit. Therefore, the word “Paraklete” cannot be a specific name for the Holy Spirit. It is not a proper name. It is only a descriptive noun whose gender is incidental and unimportant. Once this is grasped, the masculinity of the Holy Spirit becomes completely unnecessary.
Another reason for why the Holy Spirit is traditionally called “He” occurs because of Hebrew-Greek translation issues. As discussed above, the Hebrew word Ruach, a feminine noun meaning breath, wind, or spirit, was used frequently in the Hebrew Bible in the phrase Ruach Elohim which means “Spirit of God.” Thus, the Holy Spirit of the Old Testament is undoubtedly feminine. When the Hebrew was translated into Greek, the Greek word Pneuma was chosen to substitute for Ruach, since it also meant breath, wind, or spirit. But the gender was lost in translation, for Pneuma carries a neuter gender. Thus, the phrase Pneuma to Agion, which is used very commonly throughout the New Testament and means “Holy Spirit,” actually possesses a neuter gender. We can see the linguistic tension displayed by studying several translations of Acts 8:15-16,
Prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit, for it had not yet fallen on any of them – RSV
Prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Ghost: (For as yet he was fallen upon none of them) – KJV
Prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit, because the Holy Spirit had not yet come upon any of them - NIV
The RSV preserves the most literal meaning, calling the Holy Spirit an “it,” according to pneuma’s neuter gender.
The KJV calls the Holy Spirit “He” in an attempt to preserve the Personhood of the Trinity’s third member, but the literal translation demands the pronoun “It.”
The NIV attempts to sidestep the issue altogether, intentionally ignoring the actual Greek and spelling out the noun again when, in fact, the Greek text demands a pronoun instead.
Of course, the KJV’s solution to the problem has become the convention.
We must escape the web of doctrinal error caused by semantics and get back to the more ancient doctrine, the more pure doctrine, the true doctrine which proclaims:
“The Holy Spirit: Goddess of Christianity”
Ancient Mystery of the Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit is composed of seven parts.
Wisdom has built Her house. She has hewn out Her seven pillars. – Proverbs 9:1
Grace and peace be with you from Him Who is, Who was, and Who is to come, and from the seven Spirits Who are before His throne, and from Jesus Christ…”- Revelation 1:4-5
There are seven eyes on that stone - Zechariah 3:9
She says “Come, eat My bread and drink the wine I have mixed.” – Proverbs 9:5
For more on this topic, including how both the earliest Catholics and the Gnostics believed in the femaleness of the Holy Spirit, see www.jesusbelievesinevolution.com/english_27.html#Holy_Spirit_Female
