“Hallowed be Thy Name”

The following is the third of twelve monthly reflections about the phrases of the Lord’s Prayer and what they tell us about family life.

            Some of the most memorable moments of my life have been the birth of my children.  The scenes and emotions of those days are unlike any other I have experienced.  One particular aspect that stands out is the responsibility of naming the child.  It is the exclusive right of the parents present, and it was one of the times that I felt the weighty significance of how a mother and father uniquely impact a child’s life.  Part of this feeling could be because I was always juggling many possible names in my head!  Not only did my wife Stephanie and I elect to wait to find out if our children were girls or boys, my wife also insisted on seeing the babies first before deciding between a few of the final candidates.  This second factor made me a little more nervous the first time.  After all, I had no idea how pain, medicine, exhaustion, and exuberance might affect our decision in that moment.  Thankfully, things went pretty well, and none of our children ended up with the name Epidural.

             Sometimes names seem insignificant.  Who has not seen and recognized a person’s face but gone blank on his or her name?  Yet, arbitrary as they sometimes are, names are important in our faith.  We are called by name in baptism as we enter the Church for the first time, and there are numerous references in the scriptures to God calling people by name for a specific task.  Our own names being spoken easily elicits our attention.  Just think of how we hear our name being said across the din of a talkative gathering, or how our mothers used our first and middle names to great effect when our behavior was out of line.  We respond to the familiar sound of our names, so it is only natural for God and the Church to use them for sacred purposes.

God’s name above all is holy as this month’s phrase from the Lord’s Prayer reminds us.  Our Jewish ancestors so revered God’s name of Yahweh that they would not even say it and instead spoke other names for God.  In fact, since our human language fails ever to capture the full meaning of who God is, we attribute all sorts of descriptors and additional names to try to describe this infinite mystery.  While we as Catholic-Christians practice the speaking of God’s name a bit differently than our forebears in faith, it is important to remember that God’s name is still sacred and not to be tarnished in flippant speech or cursing.

            The name of Jesus is very important as well.  It literally means “God saves,” so Jesus’ mission was inherent even in his name.  Of course, Mary and Joseph had to submit humbly as they accepted the proclaimed name of Jesus, but when an angel of the Lord tells you what to name a child, it is probably prudent to listen.  We attribute all sorts of other names and titles to Jesus as well for the same reason as when describing God.  Our language fails to capture the entirety of who Christ is and what he came to do.  But it is particularly important for us to treat the name of Jesus with upmost reverence.  As St. Paul reminds the Philippians, “…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.”

            As we seek to honor God’s name in our families as well as the names of each other, may we remember the sacred purpose of names.  They identify who someone is, and by association, what that person has contributed to our lives.  It is right for us to name God, the saints, our loved ones, and even our enemies in prayer.  After all, God always responds to our pleas, and every name is sacred to the Creator who called each of us into being.