The multi-faceted spirit

“In the beginning, when God created the universe, the earth was formless and desolate. The raging ocean that covered everything was engulfed in total darkness, and the Spirit (וְרוּחַ) of God was moving (מְרַחֶפֶת) over the water.”
~Genesis 1:1-2, GNT, with Hebrew

This morning, Milton (my dog) and I took our usual walk around the pond in our neighborhood. I always feel calmest during this part of my day, watching the wind brush over the surface of the water and feeling it caress my face. For me, the ripples on the lake and the brush on my skin are reminders of God’s presence. I think I’m drawn to water because of the Holy Spirit’s inexplicable connection to it—Her presence paired with the deep in the very first stanza of the creation poem.

The word for Spirit in Hebrew is וְרוּח (Ruah), an ancient word that may be translated as wind, breath, mind, spirit, or desire. This word can be translated in a way that describes a playful God—like a Sprite or a Nymph or a Fairy; or it can be translated in a way that attributes maternal traits to God—like a Mother, an Advocate, or a Hen; or it can be translated to depict a wise God—Sophia, The Spirit, or Sage. These three aspects of Spirit are akin to the ancient archetypes —Maiden, Mother, and Crone—the full life cycle of a woman and her unique gifts, embodied by the Holy Spirit as she moves through Scripture. 

At the Spirit’s first appearance in the Bible, she could be any one of these archetypes depending on how we translate the verb in verse 2 that describes Ruah’s action over the waters. מְרַחֶפֶת (Rahap) can be translated to move, shake, or flutter; to hover or brood over with tender love; and to grow soft or relax.

Move, shake, and flutter I attribute to the Spirit as maiden. She describes herself in Proverbs, “I was daily God’s delight, playing before God always, playing in God’s inhabited world and delighting in the human race (Proverbs 8:30-31, NRSVUE). She is the mischievous wind that wreaks havoc on our clothes and hair. She lifts skirts flirtatiously and inspires (or seduces) the direction of a tumbleweed. She could not get enough of the world God created, and she flitted over the waters of the deep, somersaulting and cartwheeling through the air. She is the inspiration of young lovers and the youthful life force that breathes vitality anew.

Hover and brood over with tender love I attribute to the Spirit as mother. She is always near, the mother hen gathering us all underwing (Matthew 23:37; Luke 13:34). She is the seat of creation—the maternal aspect in each of us that yearns to create art, a garden, an invention, a home, a city, a meal, or a child. This Mother Spirit brooded over the surface of the deep, protecting and nurturing the creation she had breathed into existence. And this Mother is an Advocate for us still (John 14:16).

Finally the Spirit as crone may be found in the translations to grow soft or relax. This is the feminine Spirit whose menses have ceased and her focus has shifted from creation to watchful wisdom. She is the Matriarch, brimming with life experience, relaxed in her own identity and imparting her wisdom on others (Proverbs 8). Her flight over the waters is soft and relaxed. She is in no hurry. She sagely reminds us that each phase of life has purpose. 

As I finished my loop around the lake, I felt complete in my meditation on this full expression of God. As She often does, the Spirit met me on the water, where She first met Creation at its genesis. I continue to marvel at how She shows up in the world and to me—this playful, maternal, wise God.