Wounds and Sins (Letters to My Sons)
(This is another excerpt from the writing project I'm doing, a series of letters to my sons that will hopefully also become a book on following Jesus as we grow from boys into men. Although hopefully this letter is applicable to anyone.) My sons, The names we give things matter. The Egyptians told the story of Isis, who after the sun god Ra was bitten by a snake managed to learn his true name and thus gain power over him. When Polyphemus tries to trap Odysseus, it is by trying to learn his name, and as long as Odysseus maintains the moniker “Nobody,” he is beyond vengeance. Even in Scripture there is an echo of this idea. When the Lord blesses Jacob, it is through renaming him Israel, “he who wrestles with God,” (Genesis 32:22-32) The third commandment tells us we are not to use God’s name for vanity. (Exodus 20:7) Abraham and Paul and Peter are all names given later in life, as a result of God’s working. I’m not suggesting all such myths are true, but what they gestu...
