The God Who Must Not Be Named

In the Bible, names matter. They aren’t mere ornaments or masks hiding deeper, private identities. According to Scripture, one’s name is one’s identity. To reveal one’s name is thus to manifest oneself. That’s why, when one’s life is so profoundly interrupted as to constitute an utterly new beginning—a revelation, an election, a conversion—one’s old name will no longer do. Abram becomes Abraham, Jacob becomes Israel, Simon becomes Peter, and Saul becomes Paul.