Paraclete comes from the Greek word meaning "one who consoles" or "one who intercedes on our behalf", which first appears in the Gospel of John (16:7). Christian theology afterwards identified Paraclete with the Holy Spirit.

The word appears in Greek New Testament manuscripts and using the Roman alphabet is rendered "parakletos", it appears only a few times.

Christ is quoted in the New Testament using this word; in John 14:26 the greek word parakletos is used as an alternative term for "Holy Spirit".

Yet in I John 2:1 "parakletos" is used again this time however in reference to Christ.

Paraclete or "Parakletos" is important to Christians, because it sheds much light on the nature of God and Christ and the Holy Spirit and brings into question the concept of the Trinity, often a source of great confusion.

In Islam, the New Testament's term Paraclete is considered to refer prophetically to Muhammad, an tradition already mentioned by the first sira writer, Ibn Ishaq.

In Manicheanism, it is taken to refer to Mani.