ABSTRACT
To this point, we have explored the convergence of names and friendship in traditional Christian theology and philosophy as studies of singularity. In the work of both Thomas and Aristotle, naming, as a way of singularly identifying, has been closely related to both friendship and necessary knowledge. For Thomas, this is especially true for relation to God: without the eminent discourse by which one names God and “knows” God in faith, one could not love God for God’s own sake in charity. The identity of naming, through eminent discourse, guides and stabilizes the path of friendship.
