Most parents choose rather than receive the name they give their child. They speak various names aloud, pairing them with the child’s surname. Some names they savor while others they find distasteful and discard immediately. They ponder the name’s meaning, potential nicknames, and the circumstances surrounding the coming of their child, until they finally choose a name they believe most fitting, a name with hope for a bright future.
I wonder what it was like for Mary, who knew about the name “Emmanuel” from a prophecy (see Isaiah 7:14) that came hundreds of years before the angel Gabriel visited her. Emmanuel means “God with us.” We only know that Mary received the name of Jesus (meaning “God saves us”) from the angel Gabriel without question. Joseph received the name of Jesus from an angel of the Lord in a dream:
“Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home. For it is through the holy Spirit that this child has been conceived in her. She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” (Matthew 1:20-21)
So, while Mary received rather than chose her baby’s name, she and Joseph certainly understood and embraced the importance and meaning of the name given to them by the angel. They knew also that Jesus would be the Christ, or “Anointed One.”
A Holy Name
In ancient times it was forbidden to the Israelites for human lips to speak God’s name. Some of our Jewish brothers and sisters, both in ancient times and today, do not pronounce the divine name when reading Scripture, written in Hebrew with the consonants YHWH. (All ancient Hebrew words are written without vowels, but vowel markings have been added to them in more recent times.) They say “Adonay” (“Lord”) or “ha-Shem” (the Name) instead (source). Jews writing in English will often write “G-d” instead of “God.” Both practices are intended to revere the Holy Name.
As a child, I was taught reverence for the Holy Name of Jesus or God. In our household we were prohibited from using any form of His name unless we were speaking about Him or to Him. For example, I never heard my parents or seven siblings say “Gee” or “geesh” since they are shortened forms of the Holy Name. Even “golly” and “gosh” were off limits as slang for God. These family rules did not seem severe to me, perhaps because I also associated the name of Jesus with beauty, sweetness, wonder, and power. Songs we often sang at church or heard on the stereo in our home elevated Jesus’ name in my heart and mind. Still, I never heard of the practice of making reparations for sins against the Holy Name until I became Catholic.
Though He is Maker of Heaven and Earth, Jesus allows us to speak His name with our human lips. In His humility He deigns, via His Holy Name, to be invoked by lips that have gossiped, boasted, and cursed; lips that have spoken unkept promises; lips that have refused to sing His praises.
Recently, I heard someone speak the Holy Name like a curse word. When I heard it, I unobtrusively made the Sign of the Cross and breathed a quick prayer: “Blessed be the name of Jesus Christ now and forever.” Many Catholics have adopted this practice, which serves as reparation, or making up for, sins against the Holy Name. It’s not a difficult habit to cultivate and one I encourage others to try.
We’ve been discussing a sin against the Second Commandment, which warns us not to take God’s name in vain (see Exodus 20:2). But a less-acknowledged sin against the Second Commandment may be more insidious and therefore more dangerous. We might be tempted to use the name of God to inflate our own importance. We sometimes hear things such as, “Buy my products, believe me, follow me, vote for me because God is with me.” If we do not tremble at the thought of making such claims, we should. When we use God’s name for our own agenda, we use His name in vain. An intimate prayer life will help to guard against dishonoring the Holy Name.
You may have noticed that some Catholics bow their heads at the name of Jesus spoken during liturgical celebrations, especially during the Gloria and the reading of the Gospel. This simple and effective way to show reverence for the Holy Name is helpful even for small children.
Saint Paul tells us, “God greatly exalted him and bestowed on Jesus the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:9-11).
A Powerful Name
The Church teaches that when Christ became Man, He handed over His name to human beings (Catechism of the Catholic Church § 2666). We could then speak the Holy Name of God for the first time. The following is from the same paragraph of the Catechism: “The name ‘Jesus’ contains all: God and man and the whole economy of creation and salvation. To pray ‘Jesus’ is to invoke him and to call him within us. His name is the only one that contains the presence it signifies.”
What an astonishing truth! “His name is the only one that contains the presence it signifies.” When we pray the name of Jesus, He immediately makes Himself present. Peter understood this when he commanded a man crippled from birth “in the name of Jesus Christ” to get up and walk. The lame man was healed (see Acts 3:1-10).
A Sweet and Beautiful Name
“But Israel I will feed with the finest wheat, I will satisfy them with honey from the rock.” // Psalm 81:17)
Jesus’ Body and Blood is fed to us in the Holy Eucharist. This sweetness is our most intimate connection with Jesus on this side of Heaven.
One of my favorite songs extols Jesus’ name with the lyrics, “Your name is like honey on my lips . . .” These poetic words, sung by a lover, remind me of the psalmist’s words quoted above. Because we already know Him intimately in Holy Communion, when we say Jesus’ name with reverence and love we fall even more in love with everything about Him and cherish the sweetness and beauty of His Holy Name.
Both today on this Memorial of the Most Holy Name of Jesus, and during this whole month of January which is dedicated to the Holy Name of Jesus, let us speak His name with love and reverence, ever more aware of the power, sweetness, and beauty of His Holy Name.
Lani Bogart was born in Hawaii and grew up in Ohio and Michigan. She was a small child when she began to love Jesus. She’s at home in Texas with her woodworker Deacon husband near their children and grandchildren, Lani is also an active spiritual director and trauma healing volunteer. You can read more at Lanibogart.blog
Lani Bogart nació en Hawaii y creció en Ohio y Michigan. Era una niña pequeña cuando empezó a amar a Jesús. Está en su casa en Texas con su esposo, un carpintero diácono, cerca de sus hijos y nietos. Lani también es una directora espiritual activa y voluntaria de curación de traumas. Puedes leer más en Lanibogart.blog
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