Enigmatic Mirror Press

This post is a slightly-modified version of a post originally appearing on the Mysterion website.

The small independent press producing the Mysterion anthology–basically Kristin and Donald and whomever they can subcontract work to–now has a name. We’re calling ourselves Enigmatic Mirror Press.

This is a reference to 1 Corinthians 13:12, which says, “For now we see through a mirror in darkness, but then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.” In Greek, the part that says “through a mirror in darkness” reads:

δι’ ἐσόπτρου ἐν αἰνίγματι

ἐσόπτρου transliterates to esoptrou, and means mirror, while αἰνίγματι transliterates to ainigmati, which means obscurity or darkness; ainigmati is the origin for the English word enigmatic. The verse itself is about the difference between our limited, mortal understanding here in this life, and the truer, fuller understanding that we will have later.  In the ancient world, all mirrors obscured, since they relied on polished metal rather than the metal-backed glass of modern mirrors. The difference between the distorted reflection in one of those mirrors and seeing someone face-to-face would have been obvious to the ancient reader. And the imagery reminds us that the understanding we lack is not only of concepts, but also of God, and that we do not yet know him as he fully knows us.

Our anthology’s name speaks to the mysterious in the Christian faith; our press’s name reminds us of the limits of our understanding–at least for now.