The Two Doves

The World Community's use of the symbol is inspired by the fifth century mosaic in Galla Placidia, one of the early Christian Churches of Ravenna, which was originally built as an imperial tomb. There are antecedents of the symbol in both Roman and Greek art but its earliest roots are probably Phoenician.

The symbol of the drinking dove is archetypal. It is a transcultural metaphor for the sacred, which is experienced only through personal absorption in reality. The association with water in Christian iconography evokes the mystical symbolism of death, birth and regeneration or purification through baptism. Water is the ancient feminine principle in nature associated with the phases of the moon and of all life-giving power. As nectar, it was the Greek symbol of immortality, as wine it becomes the blood of Christ in Christian iconography.

The dove is a Christian symbol of the Holy Spirit. In Greek mythology it was the bird of Venus -- the bird of love. In Christian art, the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit came to be represented as doves perched in the Tree of Life or drinking the waters of wisdom and eternal life.

The Chalice evokes the mystery of sacrifice,which is at the heart of the Christian Eucharist where the Son offers himself to the Father in the love of the Holy Spirit and unites all creation in his oblation. A striking echo of this rich spiritual symbol is found in the Mundaka Upanishad of Indian tradition which describes:

"The birds, two sweet friends, who dwell on the selfsame tree. The one eats the fruit thereof and the other looks on in silence. The first is the human soul who resting on that tree, though active feels sad in its unwisdom. But beholding the power and glory of the higher spirit it becomes free from sorrow."

Here the dualism of the two birds suggests the underlying unity of the active and the contemplative lives of each human being. Martha and Mary are inseparable sisters in the life of all who worship God in the depth of their spirit. As John Main said:

"There is an essential harmony between Being and Action. God is pure activity. Pure stillness is not inactive. It is harmonized energy that has reached its highest and destined goal, and in this harmony the power and meaning of all movement is contained. Meditation is the realization of Being, of pure action. It cannot be a merely passive state because what is both energetic and still is, at the highest point of action, energy -- incandescent consciousness."

By Polly Schofield
Montreal, Canada

For Christian meditation resources online visit Medio Media at the Bookstore at left.

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