Then John gave this testimony: "I saw the Spirit come down from heaven as a dove and remain on him.
~John 1:32
A lot of translations use the words "like a dove" instead. "As a dove" means the same thing. It is trying to point out that the Holy Spirit descended in a particular way rather than as a particular thing. If I walk "like a chicken" I'll probably do it in such a way that I poke my head out with each step. It doesn't actually mean I have become a chicken.
John was trying his darndest to explain what he was seeing. Nobody really knows exactly what John saw. We only know how it moved. Doves tend to land in a different manner than other birds. They tend to come in and flutter briefly before they slowly hit their mark. John was giving us an explanation of motion... not of physical form.
The very idea of the Holy Spirit presenting himself as a bird is not only stupid... its rather confusing. The question has more to do with why he would do that. I don't see how someone's spirit has anything to do with an animal unless we are diving into some pretty strange paganistic beliefs. Is god's spirit an animal form? Short answer, NO!
The truth is that we don't know what form the Holy Spirit took. Hell, we don't even know if the Holy Spirit was even visible. This could have been like a "third eye" moment. John could have simply "felt" the motions of the spirit without actually seeing it. In either case, we have no proof. We only have evidence of motion. That's it.
Now, I am quite sure that this lack of understanding has led people to just give up and slap doves on everything... BUT IT'S WRONG! We know for a fact that it's wrong. If you want to show what the spirit of God looks like, you are better off just showing a light or something. Heck, you can even make the light shaped like a man. This may not be exactly correct, but it sure as hell is better than making it look like a freaking bird! The Holy Spirit is not a bird!
...
HE ISN'T A BIRD!
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I'm surprised the same people don't think Jesus was literally a sheep because he was called THE LAMB OF GOD. He's also called THE LION OF JUDAH but no one thinks Jesus is in the literal form of a big kitty.
ReplyDeleteThat was hilarious! We should bring that up whenever this issue arises. It makes so much sense. People are so dumb.
DeleteIndeed it makes no sense to take something as plain as the phrase "as a dove" to mean a literal dove. Like and as being a basic simile or a comparison. Basic misinformation like this is poisonous and confusing, that's why we gotta think for ourselves to weed through such nonsense.
ReplyDeleteIt is so over thought. Why in the world would he show up as a dove? It makes no sense!
DeletePeople use symbols to represent things that defy explanation. It does not change what those things really are. The time will come when the truth will be revealed.
ReplyDeleteAnd the the truth will be that it isn't a bird.
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