THE NAME OF GOD

When Moses was called by God to deliver the Covenant people out of bondage in Egypt, he asked what he should say to the people if they asked what God's name is.  It seems an odd request, but in the early chapters of the Book of Exodus, it turns out to be an important matter indeed.  In Hebrew thought, the name of something defined that thing and implied human ability to define it.  How God should be "named" was an important philosophical matter.  The  English translation of the Hebrew name is usually rendered as "I am who I am."  It seems to be a tautology which reveals little.  However, in Hebrew usage, it carries extraordinarily deep and unlimited meaning.

It means "I have always been who I have always been," recalling God's continual desire to offer lovingkindness to all God has created, even in the face of human obstinancy.  It means "I am this day who I am," recalling God's immediate presence in giving life in our own moment in time.  It means "I will always be who I am becoming," recalling the fact that God's life-giving acts continue beyond the time within which we as finite creatures must live our earthly lives.

It is a name which cannot capture the fullness of what it describes, preserving and proclaiming the theological truth that God's name is utterly unique and calls us to gratitude above all else.  It is the name above all other names.