I believe it was the American mystic and contemplative, Thomas Merton, who wrote, If I know your name, do I know you any better? Merton may have been plumbing the depth of the human soul when he said this, but I suspect, like me, he may have had a hard time remembering names. An old man once told me that I was hiding behind heavens door when God was handing out the name memory software for my brain. For some reason, names do not stick with me, which is unfortunate. A friend, with whom I share my first name, has several different names that friends and family have called him over the years. He is called: Pete, Pe-te, Pierre, Pedro, Stinky, Cephas, Simon, Puck, Stone, Pebble, Rock, Pet-ah, and Dad. These are not aliases, they are just variations of his name, or expressions of his personality or relationships. They are all names to which he answers. None of the names alone fully defines him. No one person fully knows him, even if he or she knows all his names. Only God knows us completely and never forgets. Isaiah says, Adonai called me before I was born, while I was in my mothers womb he named me. Perhaps God named us, too, before we were born. Certainly only God knows us completely to the depths of our souls, today and always. Lets Pray: Beloved God, we await the time when Youll irresistibly call us by name; then well know that we are fully known and loved by You. Amen. Heres a Thought: God knows us intimately. Source: Isaiah 49:1 Thomas Merton: I kept this quote above my desk hand written on a piece of paper while I was at Yale Divinity School. I was deep into the history of Christian Mysticism at the time, and regretfully, I cannot name the source. -Rev. PBP
Posted on: Wed, 13 Aug 2014 10:25:51 +0000
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