…to someone who was a saint, even better. There is only an indescribable gratitude to his soul — his Over-soul —without end.

Ralph Waldo Emerson is one of those figures in this life who I feel an almost palpable paternal love and affection for, for having met, for having been instructed by him. (In fact, in a decision which could only be described as impulsive, I actually decided to attend the Harvard Divinity school – – over acceptances to Union Theological Seminary and Yale Divinity School – – in part due to the influence of his eternal essay, “The Divinity School Address,“ which got him banned from Harvard for over 30 years. But that is another story.)

On this day, it gives me a chance to reflect on the great merit to have encountered Emerson, at such an early age, and in his native language and his cultural and regional milieu, the better to hear his clear and perfect voice.

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