Anyone who’s ever had the responsibility of naming a child knows how daunting the task can be. Sometimes parents can have their hearts set on a certain name during pregnancy, only to take one look at the child and realize that he could never be a Peter, or she could never be a Theresa, and then it’s back to square one.
A person’s name quickly becomes part of that person’s identity, intimately connected to who a person is. Fortunately for Mary and Joseph, they didn’t have to bear the weight of naming Jesus.
In the first chapter of the Gospel of Matthew, an angel tells Joseph in a dream to not be afraid, that Mary will bear a son and “you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins” (Mt 1:21).
Matthew goes on to say that all this was a fulfilment of what the “Lord had spoken by the prophet,” that “a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and his name shall be called Emmanuel” (Mt 1:22, 23).
By the utterance of these two names, Emmanuel and Jesus, the world is being told everything it needs to know about this little baby – God is with us, and he will save us from sin.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church expounds on the importance of the name of Jesus: “The name ‘Jesus’ signifies that the very name of God is present in the person of his Son, made man for the universal and definitive redemption from sins. It is the divine name that alone brings salvation and henceforth all can invoke his name, for Jesus united himself to all men through his incarnation, so that ‘there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved’” (CCC 432).
In these days of Advent (another significant name, meaning “to come”), are we allowing the concept of Emmanuel or the name of Jesus to really transform our lives? Of course, the problem is that this good news has become old news for many of us. We’ve been through so many Advents and Christmases that the danger of familiarity is real. If there are children in your life, this news is new to them, and it can become fresh for us as parents every Advent as we impart the message to our families.
St. Paul helps us to know the power of Jesus’ name. He says: “And being found in human form he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, 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” (Phil 2:8-11).
How do we teach our children to “take a knee” every time they hear the name of Jesus? Advent is the perfect time to teach them the significance of Jesus’ name and the many titles we hear him referred to in Scripture and Christmas carols. The motions we go through at this time of year won’t have meaning for children unless we take the time to explain.
Is the name of Jesus something special in your home? Is the name ever heard in your home? If the only times children hear the name of Jesus are once a week in church and then haphazardly in tones of anger or mockery on television, it is easy to deduce what level of respect the Lord’s name will incur.
There’s a beautiful reflection in an article called “Bowing at Holy Names in Mass and Elsewhere” by Antonio Ortiz at catholicculture.org. Ortiz reprints the story of an adult reflecting on the impact of growing up watching his father consistently bow his head at the mention of Jesus’ name in the Mass, which is a tradition some still follow today. Our actions in relation to the faith, especially as parents, have lasting effects on our children’s faith.
Gather the family around the Advent wreath and take some time to talk about Emmanuel, God with us. Who is Jesus? What do his name and his coming mean for us? Read from the first chapters of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, when Joseph and Mary are told who their Son is. Ponder the passage from St. Paul in the second chapter of his Letter to the Philippians and ask yourselves as a family how your household can show more reverence to the name of Jesus.
Lazzuri writes from her home in Nova Scotia, where she lives with her husband, six children, and her mom. She can be reached at clarelazzuri@gmail.com.
