I and Thou

As the final orienting movement, the recognition of the world of Thou is consummated in the eternal Thou: “Every particular Thou is a glimpse through to the eternal Thou; by means of every particular Thou the primary word addresses the eternal Thou” (61). The recognition of the Eternal Thou has been present from the start of human history, and has gone by many names. While the primal recognition of this Thou is always from the start as Thou, it has, over time, sometimes transferred over to the world of It. People looking to know and to categorize speak of the Eternal Thou—who is God—and will make this transferal, but He is always still Thou: “all God’s names are hallowed, for in them He is not merely spoken about, but also spoken to” (61, emphasis added). Regardless of how this Thou is thought or spoken of, it always remains Thou in the mind (even if subconsciously), since the Eternal Thou cannot be limited in any way.

The implications of this Eternal Thou as the supreme being and that which is truly real, that which truly exists, is that there is no actual separation between the world of It and the world of Thou—there is no