Kairos: The Name

The ancient Greeks had two distinct notions when describing time. “Chronos,” or chronological time, is measured in mundane units like minutes, hours, days, and years. This is the predictable and sometimes relentless measure of time that tells us when we have to be at work, the next deadline is due, vacation is over, or even a measure of what we did or did not accomplish throughout the day. While “chronos time” is essential for organizing our lives, it can become guilt-ridden (“I never get enough done”), exasperating (“I don’t know how much longer I can do this”), or just plain boring.

Kairos, on the other hand, is the “in-between time” where “something special happens”. Theologian Paul Tillich described kairos time as “the fullness of time,” or “moments in which conditions are ripe for events to transcend linear time and take on greater, even eternal, significance”. One literary journal that takes its name from the term defines kairos as “the right moment” or “the opportune.”

The two meanings of the word apparently come from two different sources. In archery, it refers to an opening, or “opportunity” or, more precisely, a long tunnel-like aperture through which the archer’s arrow has to pass. Successful passage of a kairos requires, therefore, that the archer’s arrow be fired not only accurately but with enough power for it to penetrate. The second meaning of kairos traces to the art of weaving. There it is “the critical time” when the weaver must draw the yarn through a gap that momentarily opens in the warp of the cloth being woven. Putting the two meanings together, one might understand kairos to refer to a passing instant when an opening appears which must be driven through with force if success is to be achieved. (Eric Charles White, 1987)

As we look together at your life story, different times of kairos will become evident. These events shape and mold who you are and how you live your life with others. While we can’t go back and change the event or what happened (good or bad), the meaning and significance of the event can change through our work. Our time together, while in the midst of chronos, will be an opportunity to experience a time of change where “something special happens”; a moment of kairos.