Conclusion
The idea of God’s spirit - who hovers as a bird over the waters of creation, who overshadows the baptismal water and the Eucharistic bread - as “Mother” was a concept that enlivened Christian reflection in northern Mesopotamia for several centuries of early Christianity.
Directly or indirectly present in earlier writings, an address to the Mother Spirit is most clearly visible in the images and appellations of epicletic prayers in the Act of Thomas. Rejected by such a prominent writer as Ephrem, the idea continued to be found among some Syriac writers for centuries. Ephrem himself regularly uses feminine imagery for the Spirit, although references to the grammatically feminine Spirit will gradually be replaced over the centuries by a grammatically masculine Spirit. Other writers of the time, including Aphrahat, do not shy away from the mother language. Aphrahat and others build on the images used in the Odes of Solomon or the Acts of Thomas, which themselves build on the biblical language used of God’s spirit. It is in these early, expressive and colorful writings stemming from the region that the most intriguing language for the Spirit can be found.Works Cited
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