The Meaning of Persons

The Meaning of Persons, is a book classified as a book of Psychology of the personality. The author, doctor Paul Tourier, was a prolific writer, and the "Father" of some new paradigms in the medical field. Paul Tournier is a giant of medicine, psychology and the Christian faith. It was very interesting to consider that every person shows some outside unreal mask about him or herself. At the same time, every person must find, sincerely his own being. This is the central idea of the book, being from where the author takes his stand. Tournier assures that every man "there is a part of impenetrable mystery even to himself". The relationships we maintain with our peers greatly depend on who we are. It is extremely important to improve ourselves in order to improve our relationships. If we are surrounded by people every day of our lives, then every effort that we put forth to improve our relationships, will be worthwhile. A human being is a whole within its self. The Swiss doctor in this book shows us many cases of people that were affected physically, and because of that began to suffer psychologically. A typical case would be the loss of an arm or leg. The person's whole personality is affected. This holistic vision of man helps us to realize that a person cannot divided into parts or sections. Every man is an inseparable essence. From this truth, a new one can be derived. There are as many personalities as people on the face of the earth. While it may be possible to classify certain aspects of human personalities, every individual person manages his or her own personality. The person and the community are important for the author. In other words, a person could not exist outside of his or her community. Only in human inter -relationship can a person discover his or her real personality. From a spiritual point of view, this reminds me of something that the Bible tells us that the prophet Isaiah experienced when he was called to the ministry. When Isaiah saw God's glory, he became more aware if his own person. God cleanses Isaiah from sin and gives him a job to do in his community. That is why I consider that spiritual growth is the primary foundation to knowing oneself and others. For those of you that can read Spanish, I also recomend: Como Relacionarse Mejor: Manual de Tecnicas Para Desarrollar Relaciones Mas Satisfactorias, Dinamicas y Duraderas (Serie Recursos Ministeriales)

The Meaning of Persons by Dr. Tournier is a must read for those seeking to make contact with that image of God we all have inside; and to contact that same image in others. It turns out to be the thou Dr. Tournier writes about. I am struck by his comment that personages associate while persons communicate. It's all about establishing a no-pretense dialogue with others. If you are Christian, you will find that Dr. Tournier's wisdom answers your questions about who that person is inside of you, how you may develop it, and how you may recognize its counterpart in others. Not a preachy book, it offers golden wisdom based on his years of dealing with personages whom he helped to find their person. I read it again and again. Each time I find new wisdom.

I find Tournier's writing very agreeable. He goes into the task of seperating the personage from the person. Basing it on dialect with others and having communication with your own spiritual self Tournier provokes many interesting thoughts. A good read.

I believe Paul Tournier began his career as a medical doctor in Geneva, Switzerland, in the 1940's, but so many people who came to him about their physical problems complained about their religious and emotional difficulties, that he trained to become a psychotherapist. He was a scientist as well as a devout Christian, and one of the main ideas of his books is the restoration of the doctor-patient human relationship in the practice of medicine. In that he may have been a forerunner of the holistic style of medicine that emerged about twenty yars later."The Meaning of Persons" is a good book to start with, if you are inclined to read books on healing with a Christian point of view. His style is intimate, readable, and charming, and his translators are very good. You will want to read more of his books.