Cultural conditioning is a form of mass brainwash. But it’s what creates our society. The Bible tells us to become “new” and to be simple, like little children. It tells us to seperate ourselves from the world and “put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him.” (Colossians 3:10)
I take this to mean that when we’re born again, we have to learn all over again, this time from Yashua’s teachings, and start to think anew.
Ancients like the Egyptians pictured the formless God as a black woman. Our culture depicts God as an old white man, often an angry one.
The Gospel of Philip is said to be one of the “Lost Books,” one of those removed from our current Bible. Whoever wrote the text felt the Holy Spirit (which comes from God) was feminine. But there may have been some translation error since it refers to God as masculine. The cultural paradigm at the time the book was written was matriarchal, so I sense the translators switched things up to fit their concepts – as they just couldn’t wrap their brains around the possibility of women being powerful. At that time, women were virtually slaves to their husbands.
(Fact: In the U.S. ex male slaves got the right to vote before white women.)
The text alludes to this:
“The names that are given to worldly things cause great confusion. They contort our perception from the real to the unreal. He who hears the word “God” does not think of the real, but rather has false, preconceived ideas. It is the same with the words “Father,” “Son,” “Holy Spirit,” “Life,” “Light,” “Resurrection,” and “Church (the called out ones),” and all other words. They do not recall the real, but rather they call to mind preconceived, false ideas.” (Gospel of Philip, Verse 10)
“In the days when we were Hebrews we were made orphans, having only our Mother. Yet when we believed in the Messiah (and became the ones of Christ), the Mother and Father both came to us.” (Gospel of Philip, Verse 6)
It also says: “The Holy Spirit is a feminine force.” (Verse 18)
Does this really matter? Maybe, maybe not. But it’s helped me to think of God as my Great Mother, and Yashua as my Father. And it helps my relationship become stronger, feeling that Yah is my All-Powerful mother and will protect me fiercely, as a mother Lioness protects her cubs. Blessings.
