On "Preach," Anthony SooHoo, S.J., draws on unexpected images from Celtic Christianity in his homily for Pentecost, Year C.

But it's also a symbol of the Holy Spirit; the olive branch ... doves were thought to bring rain. And to some California tribes, like the Miwok, the dove represented foolishness and naivete.

After the rain subsided, Noah used two species ... I didn’t! Furthermore, the dove symbolizes the Holy Spirit and hope in the secular world. In Noah’s case, the dove represents his family ...

This Friday, she’ll have the holy spirit in her hands serving as this year’s dove bearer in the annual Epiphany celebration. “It’s a symbolism but I truly believe the holy spirit does come ...

Among these many and varied images for the presence and action of the Holy Spirit are breath of life, dove, gentle breeze, raging wind, fire, radiant light, comforter, guide, giver of gifts ...

The ornithological metaphor is usually traced back to Luke 3:22 when, at Jesus' baptism by John in the Jordan, we are told that "the holy Spirit descended upon him in bodily form like a dove." ...

What does all of this have to do with the Holy Spirit? Isn’t the third Person of the Holy Trinity represented as a gentle dove (as in Jesus’ baptism by John, in Matthew 3:16)? Not always.