"Heaven's Glowing Fire" And Authentic Relationships

Years ago in his lecture on Blessed Community, Quaker Philosopher Thomas R. Kelly said: "Fellowship searches friendships, burning, dissolving, ennobling, transfiguring them in Heaven's glowing fire."

I think all hearts yearn to know and to be known... To have the privilege of being invited into the deep parts of another person's life; as well as to be able to invite another into the deep parts of ours. Its been my experience, that even the best of our friends and family, never really know more than 85% of who we really are... It's amazing how that last 15% can really get in the way...

Innately, if we are honest, we all long for the kind of "fellowship" that burns, dissolves and ennobles us, in order that we might be "transfigured" and become what we should have been in the first place... i.e. pre-Fall. The longing to know and to be known, for the Christian, is always the call to participate substantively in authentic community. The pathway to "heaven's glowing fire" is the shorter, but more painful path, is the one that runs directly through it.