In the New Testament (Mark 11:1-11) it is told that as Jesus approached the Mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples to a nearby village to fetch him a donkey, or exactly an Onager or wild donkey. Upon their return, Jesus rode the donkey into Jerusalem, where he was met by cheering crowds.
“Jesus rode a donkey to show he was humble and wanted something simple. Many people remembered his miracles, so they put their cloaks and palm branches to honor him and they shouted 'Hosanna! ' ” says Sofia, 8.
The story of Lokael: The Donkey Who Carried Jesus is also the story of Jesus, His triumphal entry into Jerusalem, His fulfilling of scripture, and His resurrection - told through the eyes of Loshem, a lowly donkey, and her colt, Katen – whom later Jesus names Lokael.
Nestor ultimately leads Mary and Joseph to Bethleham where our Savior is born.
And if you look closely, all donkeys across the world, whether they are grazing in pastures or gracing the big screen, share one mysterious feature — they have a dark cross on their backs, running down their spines and across their shoulders. "They've all got them, even the dark ones.
In contrast to Grecian works, donkeys were portrayed in Biblical works as symbols of service, suffering, peace and humility. They are also associated with the theme of wisdom in the Old Testament story of Balaam's ass, and are seen in a positive light through the story of Jesus riding into Jerusalem on a donkey.
Mary rides on a donkey as she travels with Joseph to Bethlehem. The angel Gabriel appears to Joseph and Mary and instructs them to travel to Egypt. Mary rides on a donkey as she travels with Joseph to Bethlehem. Mary and Joseph travel toward Bethlehem.
He makes a grand entrance into the city on a donkey to fulfil the prophesy of Zechariah, “Tell the city of Zion, Look, your king is coming to you! He is humble and rides on a donkey and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.” The crowds throw palm branches and put blankets on the road before Jesus.
Jesus then rode the donkey into Jerusalem, with the three synoptic gospels stating that the disciples had first put their cloaks on it. Matthew 21:7 maintains that the disciples laid their cloaks on both the donkey and its colt.
The Christian donkey or the Jerusalem Donkey. The cross on the donkey's back is widely thought to be from the Easter story.
The ox and the donkey have been an indispensable part of pictorial representations of the birth of Jesus since the time of early Christianity.
Most of the animals associated with Mary have a symbolic meaning. The dove points to her virginity and Spirit-centeredness. The unicorn symbolizes Jesus, and rests frequently in Mary's lap. She gives him love and calms his ardor to punish a thankless world.
The most popular legend tells us as the baby Jesus shivered in the manger on the night He was born, a small tabby cat jumped into the humble crib to warm Him with its fur. Mary touched the little tabby cat to thank it for its gift of love and warmth, bestowing her initial “M” on its forehead.
Obviously we weren't there to witness, but we know from Scripture that God can use anything he wants, to speak to us. In this account, the voice of God comes through a donkey to convict Balaam of how his desire for prize money was blinding him, and separating him from the work God had called him toward.
The greatest reason for David's choice of a mule rather than a horse may have been God's prohibition for kings (Deu 17:16): they were not to multiply horses to themselves. David was careful in this. Solomon, to his own destruction, was not (1Ki 10:26, 28).”
The white she-donkeys in Judges 5:10 are a highly significant symbol because it relates to the prophecy that the Messiah will enter Jerusalem on a donkey. The important notion in regard to the New Testament is “binding the ass's colts”, where it is tacitly understood that there are “tied asses”.
We have found our two animals at the manger (both the 200 B.C. Greek Old Testament, and the Nativity accounts in the Greek New Testament render “crib” as “manger”). These two animals make quite a statement, both unsettling and comforting at once.
The four Gospels that tell the story of Jesus make no mention of animals being present at his birth.
There are as many as forty references to dogs in the Bible and we learn that the dog was common and well known thousands of years ago. Dogs of those times were used as shepherds and guardians of the flocks and home.
Deeply rooted in Catholic symbolism, the blue of her cloak has been interpreted to represent the Virgin's purity, symbolize the skies, and label her as an empress, for blue was associated with Byzantine royalty.
From the second century onwards, Christians saw virginity as an ideal, an alternative to marriage and children. Mary was seen to exemplify this choice, along with Jesus and the apostle Paul.
In the New Testament (Mark 11:1-11) it is told that as Jesus approached the Mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples to a nearby village to fetch him a donkey, or exactly an Onager or wild donkey. Upon their return, Jesus rode the donkey into Jerusalem, where he was met by cheering crowds.
The Bible describes the Angels around God's throne as having features and characteristics like those of a lion, a bull and an eagle (Ezekiel 1). God Himself is likened in Scripture to a lion, a leopard, a bear (Hosea 13:7, 8), and to an eagle (Deuteronomy 32:11).
The Ichthys symbol (or "Jesus fish") is a sign typically used to proclaim an affiliation with or affinity for Christianity. The fish was originally adopted by early Christians as a secret symbol, but the many variations known today first appeared in the 1980s.