In the American evangelical zeitgeist, it is lost in profane dismissals of scriptural and ancient reality. If you point out that half or more of the terms used in the ancient languages for God were feminine terms, they dismiss that it could possibly mean God could be feminine or that there could be a feminine side to the Trinity. In the original Hebrew, the term for spirit is in the feminine.

Here's something I thought as a teen – it's a bit of a simplistic comparison to the standard idealized nuclear family:

• Dad loves us and is out in the world making things work for us. The brother forges the way things will be in the family, loves us, defends us, and protects us. And, mom's love is everything she is; she is ever present, trying to guide our steps and development.

• God the Father is love, created a world for us and is all around us in creation. God the Son showed us The Way of God's love in the world, and defends us before God. And, God the Holy Spirit is the God who is love within us, is with us always, trying to guide us and help us evolve into living reflections of the image of the God who is love.