What is paradise? What is heaven? What does it look like?

One of the most obscure, yet over-quoted passages in the Bible, refers to “streets of gold.” At that point, many of us would say, “Okay, this is where I get off this train.” It would become another stumbling block in our efforts to embrace Christianity.

It might help to recognize that this passage is from the book of Revelations – the most disputed portion of the entire Bible. Revelations is crammed with symbolism that has been the subject of debate since the ink was dry on the original scroll. In contemporary terms, we might ask “What kind of drug was John on when he wrote these verses?”

While the book of Revelations might be the extreme example, the entire Bible is filled with symbolism. And in our quest to understand, we might wonder why God would choose to use symbolism to relay His messages. Why not just use plain language that we all understand?

The answer is pure logic.

The truth is that there is no language that we all understand. Each of us interprets words and phrases according to our own, unique perspective and experience. The most basic word or phrase could have a different meaning to each of us.

Imagine something as simple as the word “apple.” The prevailing image that word might evoke would be a common red apple. Yet, another person, with a different life experience might visualize a green apple of a gold colored one.

And it gets more complicated.

Imagine describing the color “green” to someone who has been blind from birth. Without a common point of reference (visual), how would you be able to communicate the concept of “green?”

Now try to imagine how you would be able to grasp the traits of a spiritual realm, when those traits have no counterpart in human, earthly experience. Your only recourse would be to use language, imagery and concepts that are familiar to us all. Symbolism.

Probably the most universal image of heaven is a physical location where the sun is always shining, the flowers are always in bloom, and the weather is so perfect that we are all running around in our tee shirts. In other words, an idyllic setting based on human senses and experiences.

But what if heaven is not so much a place as it is an existence in a spiritual realm with traits that have no counterpart in earthly experience. How would we describe such an existence? How could we convey the concept of a richness beyond comprehension?

We might say it had streets of gold.