A few days ago my son, Clarke and his wife, Annie welcomed their second beautiful daughter, Cora. I will never be able to hear the name Cora again without thinking of her sweet face and being overcome with the desire to squeeze those little cheeks. I digress.
We all know that a name is more than just a word, it represents something much deeper. This is why the Church dedicates the entire month of January to the Holy Name of Jesus. The name that is above every name, the very essence of who He is.
The name that saves
The word, Jesus, itself literally means “God saves” and it is here that we find the heart of the Gospel message: that Jesus is the one sent to save us from our sin and give us hope for eternal life with God.
Calling upon His holy name invokes power and mercy and is a prayer in itself. It is simple but so often it is all we need. Lacking courage? JESUS. Seeking hope. JESUS. Praise? Evangelization? Healing? JESUS! JESUS! JESUS!
Common not casual
We have to be careful that our frequent usage does not result in it becoming commonplace. We must carry with it a deep sense of reverence and respect as well as a responsibility to defend it when necessary. Some people even give a slight bow of the head when they say or hear the name of Jesus (a practice I’m working on taking up myself).
Why now?
This month the Church gives us an opportunity to renew such a simple but profound practice of honoring Jesus. And the timing of this dedication is not random. Traditionally, Jewish boys were named 8 days after their birth so this would place the Christ child’s naming at the 1st of the month.
We know very little about St Joseph, in fact there is no record of him saying anything in all of Scripture. But we do know of a dream he had where an angel told him, “You are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins” (Matt 1:21).
So one of the few things we can say with certainty is that eight days after his birth in the stable in Bethlehem, St Joseph stood over his child and spoke the name Jesus.
If we are to be known for one thing, let it be that we spoke reverently the name Jesus.