Since Pentecost is approaching, in today’s post we will consider some of the biblical images for the Holy Spirit, and in so doing, strive to learn more about what God the Holy Spirit does for us. These descriptions do not reduce the Holy Spirit to simply fire, water, or tongues. Rather, the Holy Spirit is described as being like these things but at the same time greater than they are.
1. Wind
Scripture says,
When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting (Acts 2:1).
Note that the text speaks of the Spirit as being like a mighty rushing wind. It but does not say that He is a mighty rushing wind, for the Holy Spirit cannot be reduced to mere physical things, even if He is like them.
This text brings us to the very root meaning of the word “spirit.” Spirit refers to breath. This etymology is preserved in the word “respiration,” which is the act of breathing. So, the Spirit of God is the breath of God, the Ruah Adonai.
- … the Spirit (ruah) of God was moving over the face of the waters (Genesis 1:2)
- … then the LORD God formed man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul (Genesis 2:7).
The very Spirit of God was breathed into Adam! As we know, though, Adam lost this gift and died spiritually when he sinned. As a result, we lost the Spirit of God and died spiritually. St. Paul says plainly that we were dead in our sins (cf Col 2:13).
We see in this passage from Acts anamazing and wonderful resuscitation of the human person, as these first Christians experience the rushing wind of God’s Spirit breathing spiritual life back into them. God does CPR; He brings humanity, dead in sin, back to life! The Holy Spirit comes to dwell in us once again as in a temple (cf 1 Cor 3:16).
This image of the rushing wind reminds us that the Holy Spirit brings us back to life and sustains us. If Christmas is the feast of God with us, and Good Friday is the Feast of God for us, then Pentecost is the Feast of God in us. The Holy Spirit, like a rushing wind, breathes life back into us.
2. Fire
Scripture says, And tongues, like flames of fire that were divided, appeared to them and rested on each one of them.
The Bible often speaks of God as fire, or in fiery terms:
- Moses saw God as a burning bush. God led the people out of Egypt through the desert as a pillar of fire. Moses went up onto a fiery Mt. Sinai where God was.
- The LORD reigns; let the earth rejoice; let the many coastlands be glad! Clouds and thick darkness are round about him; righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne. Fire goes before him and burns up his adversaries round about. His lightnings lighten the world; the earth sees and trembles. The mountains melt like wax before the LORD, before the Lord of all the earth. The heavens proclaim his righteousness; and all the peoples behold his glory (Psalm 97).
- Scriptures call God a Holy fire, a consuming fire (cf Heb 12:29), and a refining fire (cf Is. 48:10; Jer 9:7; Zec 13:9; & Mal 3:3).
So it is that our God, who is a Holy Fire, comes to dwell in us through His Holy Spirit. As a Holy Fire, He refines us by burning away our sins and purifying us. As Job once said, But he knows the way that I take; when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold (Job 23:10).
Fire changes everything it encounters. Nothing goes away from fire unchanged; it may be consumed, converted, purified, warmed, mollified, or steeled—but nothing goes way unchanged.
Thus, God the Holy Spirit, like a Holy Fire, is within us. It is changing and transforming us, burning away sin, refining us, enlightening us, stirring the flame of God’s love in us, and bringing us up to the temperature of God’s glory. He is kindling a fire that gives light and warmth in our darkest and coldest moments. Little by little we become a burning furnace of God’s love and we give warmth to those around us.
As fire, God is also preparing us for judgement, for if He is a Holy Fire, then who may endure the day of His coming or of going to Him? What can endure the presence of Fire Himself? Only that which is already fire. Thus, we must be set afire by God’s love.
So, in the coming of the Holy Spirit, God sets us on fire to make us a kind of fire. In so doing, He purifies us and prepares us to meet Him one day, to meet Him who is a Holy Fire.
3. Tongues
The fire is described as tongues. Through this we learn that one of the chief fruits of Spirit is to help us witness to others. What is a witness? It is one who speaks of what he has seen, heard, and experienced.
Of this need to witness, the Lord said,
- You will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8).
- You are witnesses of these things. I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high (Luke 24:48-49).
- When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father—the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father—he will testify about me. And you also must testify, for you have been with me from the beginning (John 15:26-27).
The spirit comes as tongues in order to strengthen us for our mission, for witness. And, oh, how this witness is needed today! Evil has triumphed because the good have remained silent; pulpits have been silent; parents have been silent. The tongues of fire remind us that God wants bold and fiery saints who are courageous witnesses in a doubting, deceitful, scoffing world.
Many martyrs have died courageously over the years, yet many of us today are afraid because we think that someone might raise an eyebrow at us. Pray for the courage of tongues, the courage to speak.
4. Water
Jesus often used water as an image of the Spirit:
On the last and greatest day of the festival, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.” By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified (John 7:37-39).
In the Gospel of John, the giving over of the Holy Spirit is described powerfully, even at the very moment of crucifixion:
Jesus said, “It is finished.” With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit. Now it was the day of Preparation, and the next day was to be a special Sabbath. Because the Jewish leaders did not want the bodies left on the crosses during the Sabbath, they asked Pilate to have the legs broken and the bodies taken down. The soldiers therefore came and broke the legs of the first man who had been crucified with Jesus, and then those of the other. But when they came to Jesus and found that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. Instead, one of the soldiers pierced Jesus’ side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and water. The man who saw it has given testimony, and his testimony is true. He knows that he tells the truth, and he testifies so that you also may believe(John 19: 30-35).
In this flow of water, the Spirit comes forth in a kind of Johannine Pentecost. It is a classic Johannine play on words that he relates that Jesus “gave over his Spirit,” a phrase that can mean that He died or that He gave us of His Holy Spirit.
The Fathers of the Church also see water as a fitting image for the Spirit.
- St. Irenaeus said, Like dry flour, which cannot become one lump of dough, one loaf of bread, without moisture, we who are many could not become one in Christ Jesus without the water that comes down from heaven. And like parched ground, which yields no harvest unless it receives moisture, we who were once like a waterless tree could never have lived and borne fruit without this abundant rainfall from above. Through the baptism that liberates us from change and decay we have become one in body; through the Spirit we have become one in soul … the devil had been cast down like lightning. If we are not to be scorched and made unfruitful, we need the dew of God (Against the Heresies Lib. 3, 17. 1-3: SC 34, 302-306).
- St. Cyril of Jerusalem said, But why did Christ call the grace of the Spirit water? Because all things are dependent on water; plants and animals have their origin in water. Water comes down from heaven as rain, and although it is always the same in itself, it produces many different effects, one in the palm tree, another in the vine, and so on throughout the whole of creation. It does not come down, now as one thing, now as another, but while remaining essentially the same, it adapts itself to the needs of every creature that receives it. In the same way the Holy Spirit, whose nature is always the same, simple and indivisible, apportions grace to each man as he wills. Like a dry tree which puts forth shoots when watered, the soul bears the fruit of holiness when repentance has made it worthy of receiving the Holy Spirit. Although the Spirit never changes, the effects of this action, by the will of God and in the name of Christ, are both many and marvelous. The Spirit makes one man a teacher of divine truth, inspires another to prophesy, gives another the power of casting out devils, enables another to interpret holy Scripture. The Spirit strengthens one man’s self-control, shows another how to help the poor, teaches another to fast and lead a life of asceticism, makes another oblivious to the needs of the body, trains another for martyrdom. His action is different in different people, but the Spirit himself is always the same. In each person, Scripture says, the Spirit reveals his presence in a particular way for the common good (Cat. 16, De Spiritu Sancto 1, 11-12.16: PG 33, 931-935. 939-942).
Thus, water is another fundamental image of the Holy Spirit, for all things are dependent on water to sustain their existence as well as to activate and empower their gifts. I cannot speak more profoundly than did these two saints and Fathers, so I will let their own words suffice.
5. Dove
We know that the Holy Spirit descended on Jesus in the form of a dove. Scripture says,
… and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased (Luke 3:22).
Again, note the use of simile and analogy. The Holy Spirit is not a bird or a body of any sort. Rather, He is seen in bodily form as being like a dove. The Holy Spirit is God; He is the Third Person of the Holy Trinity.
The image of the Holy Spirit as a dove is reminiscent of the story of Noah:
After forty days Noah opened a window he had made in the ark and sent out a raven, and it kept flying back and forth until the water had dried up from the earth. Then he sent out a dove to see if the water had receded from the surface of the ground. But the dove could find nowhere to perch because there was water over all the surface of the earth; so it returned to Noah in the ark. He reached out his hand and took the dove and brought it back to himself in the ark. He waited seven more days and again sent out the dove from the ark. When the dove returned to him in the evening, there in its beak was a freshly plucked olive leaf! Then Noah knew that the water had receded from the earth (Genesis 8:6-11).
The dove announced to Noah that the bitterness and death that overwhelming sin had brought was now at an end. The dove brought Noah a sign of peace and a sign that the promise of God to cleanse the world was now fulfilled. Noah, having passed through the flood within the safety of God’s ark, may walk in newness of life.
So, too, for us. In the Holy Spirit is peace, shalom. The long reign of sin is ended, and grace is now available to us. We, having passed through the waters of baptism, may walk in newness of life. The Holy Spirit descends on us like a dove, bringing peace, promise, and every good grace.
Here we have five images that help us to ponder the Holy Spirit’s work in us. Surely there are other images and other ways of describing His work, but these five speak powerfully.
This video, “Romancing the Wind,” features a performance of a kite ballet:
FAQs
What are the 5 symbols of the Holy Spirit? ›
The symbols of the Holy Spirit are: Dove, Fire, Oil, Wind and Water. The Dove: This can be seen in the description of the baptism of Christ (Matt.
How is the Holy Spirit involved in mission? ›The ultimate missional role of the Holy Spirit is to make Jesus Christ known to the world and his saving power through his death and resurrection. The Holy Spirit is seen as the continuing presence of Christ, and his agent to fulfil the task of mission.
What is the role of the Holy Spirit in mission and evangelism? ›In evangelism, the Holy Spirit works in two main ways: 1) to empower us as witnesses and 2) to use the gospel to bring about belief. “'But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth'” (Acts 1:8).
What are the seven five of the Holy Spirit? ›The seven gifts of the Holy Spirit are an enumeration of seven spiritual gifts first found in the book of Isaiah, and much commented upon by patristic authors. They are: wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety, and fear of the Lord.
What are the 7 functions of the Holy Spirit? ›The seven gifts of the Holy Spirit are wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety, and fear of the Lord. While some Christans accept these as a definitive list of specific attributes, others understand them merely as examples of the Holy Spirit's work through the faithful.
What are four holy spirits? ›The Four Positions of the Holy Spirit: "Beside Us", "Within Us", "Upon Us", and "Filling Us"
What are the 5 ways the Holy Spirit helps you to pray? ›I think there are at least five ways of praying in the Spirit: 1) praying God's Word; 2) listening to God and praying; 3) partnering in prayer with Christ your Intercessor; 4) praying the God-given desires of your heart; 5) praying with divine love.
What are the activities of the Holy Spirit in the Church? ›Numerous outpourings of the Holy Spirit are mentioned in the Acts of the Apostles, in which healing, prophecy, the expelling of demons (exorcism), and speaking in tongues (glossolalia) are particularly associated with the activity of the Spirit.
What are three ways the Holy Spirit was involved in the missionary spread of Christianity? ›The Holy Spirit was involved in the missionary spread of Christianity by coming to repentant sinners who were baptized and aided them in making decisions, assigning Paul and Barnabas to a certain task, ruling on what laws Gentile converts to Jesus must follow, and guiding Paul and Timothy to preach only in certain ...
What are the three important elements of the Holy Spirit's mission with regard to the church? ›What are three important elements of the Church's mission? The Holy Spirit, given to the Church's members by Christ, builds, animates, and sanctifies the Church. The Holy Spirit animates or gives life to the Church.
What are the 3 types of evangelism? ›
Those three components are designed to follow along with Cru's three modes of evangelism. The three are natural mode, body/life mode and ministry mode. Natural mode is relationally connecting to people God has put in your life.
How does the mission show evangelism? ›Evangelism is the practice of spreading the Christian belief in salvation. Mission refers to the idea of missionary work, where Christians travel to an area to provide aid or education. Missionary work often includes an element of evangelism.
What are the 12 of the Holy Spirit? ›The Catholic Church follows the Latin Vulgate version of Galatians in recognizing twelve attributes of the Fruit: charity (caritas), joy (gaudium), peace (pax), patience (patientia), benignity (benignitas), goodness (bonitas), longanimity (longanimitas), mildness (mansuetudo), faith (fides), modesty (modestia), ...
What are the 7 characteristics of the Holy Spirit Bible verse? ›“The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control” (Galatians 5:22-23, NLT). What really stands out to me is that these characteristics are a true work of the Spirit, not of our flesh.
What are the gifts of the Holy Spirit in 1 Corinthians 12? ›The gifts mentioned in our current passage are wisdom, knowledge, faith, gifts of healings, working of miracles, prophecy, discerning of spirits, tongues, and interpretation of tongues.
What happens when the Holy Spirit comes upon you? ›Acts 1:8 says, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” This power that comes from the Holy Spirit allows you to stand strong for the things of God.
What are the 9 fruits of the Holy Spirit? ›“The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control…” Those who are in Christ are distinguished from unbelievers in that they have been gifted with the Holy Spirit, enabling them to bear fruit.
What is the Holy Spirit and why do we need it? ›As part of Heavenly Father's plan of happiness, He has given us the gift of the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost helps us avoid temptations and helps us stay clean from sin. The Holy Ghost warns us so we can stay safe from danger. He comforts us and leads us through challenges.
Who are the three persons of the Holy Spirit? ›Trinity, in Christian doctrine, the unity of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit as three persons in one Godhead.
How did God give us the Holy Spirit? ›Once reunited in glory, Jesus would go to the Heavenly Father to send His Spirit. The Spirit of God would begin to dwell within His people. Now we would become individual temples of the Holy Spirit. When we believed in the Gospel, and trusted Jesus to save us, that is when we were sealed with the Holy Spirit.
What is the power of the Holy Spirit? ›
Holy Spirit reveals the mystery of God and it also testifies against sin, (Amos 3:7; 2nd Kings 17:13). Abstaining from sin is a way to please God. Holy Spirit helps us to conquer the temptation of sin when it raises its ugly head. He teaches us the do and don'ts of God's kingdom and will grant us eternal life.
What is the impact of the Holy Spirit in the Church? ›Ultimately the effect of the Holy Spirit is to take all that God has given us – our gifts, experiences, passions, and knowledge – and set them to work, bringing glory to Christ in the church and in the world. Apart from him, our best yields but little; yet with him, our little yields so much.
How do you practice the presence of the Holy Spirit? ›- Reading the Bible. ...
- Pray. ...
- Read a Christian teaching or devotional book or memoir. ...
- Join a small group. ...
- Admit that you can't do it all on your own. ...
- Say you're sorry and/or forgive.
- “Seek heavenly guidance one day at a time. ...
- “Sincere desire and worthiness invite the spirit of revelation into our lives.”
- “(1) Sincerely desire to receive the Holy Ghost, (2) appropriately invite the Holy Ghost into our lives, and (3) faithfully obey God's commandments.”
Let us keep these sacred principles in mind and make them an integral part of our lives: that is, to proclaim the gospel, to perfect the Saints, and to redeem the dead.
What are two of the four missions of the Church? ›With a four-fold mission of the church to “proclaim the gospel, perfect the saints, redeem the dead, and serve the poor and needy,” as their guide, they find various ways to meet those demands.
What three types of gifts does the Holy Spirit give to the Church? ›Others categorize them into "gifts of knowledge" (word of wisdom, word of knowledge, distinguishing between spirits), "gifts of speech" (tongues, interpretation, prophecy), and "gifts of power" (faith, healing, miracles).
What are the 3 power gifts of the Holy Spirit? ›The reason we call them the power gifts, is because each one of these gifts, do something. The gifts that fall into this category are; the gift of special faith, gifts of healings, and the working of miracles.
What are the three spiritual senses of Scripture and what does each explain? ›Indeed, at times these terms were used interchangeably by the early Church Fathers. By the medieval period, three distinct spiritual senses emerged: the allegorical sense (which included typology), the tropological or moral sense, and the anagogic or future sense.
What are the 4 methods of evangelism? ›- 1 Open-air preaching.
- 2 Trickle-down evangelism.
- 3 Door-to-door evangelism.
- 4 Ashes to Go evangelism on Ash Wednesday.
- 5 Evangelizing through a sermon.
- 6 Lifestyle evangelism.
- 7 Friendship evangelism.
- 8 Child evangelism.
What are the four types of preaching? ›
- Verse-by-verse preaching. Verse-by-verse preaching is the systematic reading and explanation of a biblical text. ...
- Thematic expository (or doctrinal) preaching. ...
- Narrative expository preaching. ...
- Topical expository preaching.
In Christian tradition, the Four Evangelists are Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, the authors attributed with the creation of the four canonical Gospel accounts. In the New Testament, they bear the following titles: the Gospel of Matthew; the Gospel of Mark; the Gospel of Luke; and the Gospel of John.
What is biblical foundation of mission? ›Four cornerstones are said to make up the foundation of mission: the sovereignty of God and his will to save humanity, history as sacred and reveal- ing, the created world as the arena of revelation, and salvation and religious experience as a catalyst for mission.
How did Jesus show His mission? ›During His life on the earth, He cared for the poor, He healed the sick (see Luke 17:12–19), and He never turned away little children (see Matthew 19:13–14). His love is endless and available to all of us. Jesus taught that we must forgive. Even as He died on the cross, Jesus forgave the people who killed Him.
What are the 7 gifts of the Holy Spirit in order? ›The gifts are 1 ) wisdom, 2) understanding, 3) counsel, 4) fortitude, 5) knowledge, 6) piety, and 7) fear of the Lord. This list is based on Is 11:2. The imparting of the gifts of the Spirit is associated with baptism, as well as Confirmation and Ordination.
What are the fruits of the spirit in Galatians 5 22? ›Galatians 5:22-23 says this, “But the Fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law.”
What is the Holy Spirit also called? ›Jesus called him allos parakletos (another Counsellor or Helper or Advocate or Comforter of the same kind – with Jesus).
How do you know the Holy Spirit is in Scripture? ›- Matthew 3:11: The holy Ghost sanctifies us. ...
- John 3:5: We must receive the Holy Ghost to enter God's kingdom. ...
- John 14:26: The Holy Ghost can comfort us and teach us all things. ...
- John 15:26: The Holy Ghost testifies of Jesus Christ.
The voice of the Spirit is described in the scriptures as being neither loud nor harsh, not a voice of thunder, neither a voice of great tumultuous noise, but rather as still and small, of perfect mildness, as if it had been a whisper, and it can pierce even the very soul and cause the heart to burn.
What are the 7 jobs of the Holy Spirit? ›The seven gifts of the Holy Spirit are an enumeration of seven spiritual gifts first found in the book of Isaiah, and much commented upon by patristic authors. They are: wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety, and fear of the Lord.
What are the 7 spiritual gifts in Romans 12? ›
The seven motivational gifts found in Romans 12—(a) perceiving, (b) serving, (c) teaching, (d) encouraging, (e) giving, (f) ruling, and (g) mercy—when viewed as a profile provide a base for person-job fit suitable for use with all people regardless of faith tradition.
What is the gift of the Holy Spirit in Acts 2? ›Introduction. The disciples were filled with the Holy Ghost on the day of Pentecost and were blessed with the gift of tongues as they preached the gospel. Peter proclaimed that Jesus is “both Lord and Christ” (Acts 2:36) and invited people to repent, be baptized, and receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.
What is the symbol of the Holy Spirit in Matthew 3 11? ›By fire he signifies the strength of grace which cannot be overcome, and that it may be understood that He makes His own people at once like to the great and old prophets, most of the prophetic visions were by fire.
What are the 12 virtues of the Holy Spirit? ›The Catholic Church follows the Latin Vulgate version of Galatians in recognizing twelve attributes of the Fruit: charity (caritas), joy (gaudium), peace (pax), patience (patientia), benignity (benignitas), goodness (bonitas), longanimity (longanimitas), mildness (mansuetudo), faith (fides), modesty (modestia), ...
What are the holy trinity symbols? ›- Symbols.
- Symbols of the Holy Trinity. Circle. ...
- Borromean Rings. According to the Athanasian Creed we worship one God in Trinity, and Trinity in unity and so Borromean rings have been used to represent this idea. ...
- Triangle. ...
- Trefoil. ...
- Triquetra. ...
- Fleur-de-lis. ...
- Fish.
In Christian Iconography, a dove also symbolizes the Holy Spirit, in reference to Matthew 3:16 and Luke 3:22 where the Holy Spirit is compared to a dove at the Baptism of Jesus.
What is the symbol of the Holy Spirit in Matthew 3 16? ›Based on this verse the dove has long been a symbol for the Holy Spirit in Christian art. France notes that the wording in Matthew is vague, the Spirit could be descending in the shape of a dove or it could be descending in the manner of the dove.
What does Matthew 3 verse 12 mean? ›The eschatological imagery is quite clear. The wheat represents those who are truly repentant, the chaff those like the Pharisees and Sadducees who are not. The messiah will clear the world, and those that are worthy would be brought into his "barn" while those that were unworthy will burn in unquenchable fire.
What does Matthew 3 5 mean? ›He is the voice crying in the wilderness as he prepares the way for the Lord. John calls the crowds who travel to hear him to repent from their sins. The kingdom of heaven is close! He also warns of God's judgment, specifically on Israel's spiritually-barren religious leaders.
What are the three functions of the Holy Spirit? ›The Holy Ghost, a member of the Godhead, bears witness of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. He is the source of personal testimony and revelation. He can guide us in our decisions and protect us from physical and spiritual danger. He is known as the Comforter, and He can calm our fears and fill us with hope.
What are the characteristics of the Holy Spirit? ›
The Holy Spirit produces behavior traits that are representative of Jesus. The apostle Paul referred to these characteristics as the fruit of the Spirit. “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control” (Galatians 5:22-23, NLT).
What are the 5 virtues in the Bible? ›This Christ draws others together, male and female, rich and poor, and forms them to share in His mission. The virtues that particularly characterise Him are five missionary ones: simplicity, humility, meekness, mortification and zeal.
What is the image of the Trinity? ›The Trinity is most commonly seen in Christian art with the Holy Spirit represented by a dove, as specified in the gospel accounts of the baptism of Christ; he is nearly always shown with wings outspread. However depictions using three anthropomorphic figures appear occasionally in most periods of art.
What are the 3 parts of the Holy Trinity? ›A Trinity doctrine is commonly expressed as the statement that the one God exists as or in three equally divine “Persons”, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Every term in this statement (God, exists, as or in, equally divine, Person) has been variously understood.
What are the 4 symbols of the church? ›- One: the Church is one. ...
- Holy: the Church is holy, because it is the Body of Christ with Jesus as the head. ...
- Catholic: the word catholic literally means 'universal.
Holy Spirit, also called Paraclete or Holy Ghost, in Christian belief, the third person of the Trinity.
How do you experience the Holy Spirit in your personal life? ›If you want to be open to the Holy Spirit, it's often useful to pray and meditate in a quiet place. You can also feel the Holy Spirit when you pray and read the Bible and the Book of Mormon. When you take time to study God's words, you show Him that you truly want to know Him and learn from Him.
Why is the Holy Spirit a fire? ›A number of Old Testament passages help us understand the Holy Spirit as fire in the New Testament. Primarily fire represents the presence of God, as when Moses encountered God at the burning bush, and later when God appeared in a pillar of fire to lead his people in the wilderness (Exodus 3:2; 13:21).