Numbers 6:22 – 27
Psalm 8
Galatians 4:4 – 7
Luke 2:15 – 21
This is the homily given at St. John’s, Huntingdon, Pennsylvania on Sunday, January 1, 2023 by Fr. Gene Tucker.
“WHAT’S IN A NAME?”
(Homily texts: Numbers 6:22 – 27 & Luke
2:15 – 21)
Names
are all around us.
Consider,
for example, that when filling out some form or another, the person completing
the form will be asked for their name (first, middle, last, etc.). When we talk
about someone, we mention their name, and certainly not a number or some other
nondescript mention of the person (assuming we know the person’s name).
Sometimes,
a person’s name is inherited, or is a reminder of a person in the family (often
along with some memorable aspect of that person’s role in the family). My older
grandson is just such an example: He is named for my father, although my
father’s been gone for a long time now, and my grandson never had the
opportunity to meet him. Still, though, when my grandson is the subject of
conversation (and especially when he is present), some mention of my father’s
personality, character, or talents often gets into the conversation. We in the
family think it’s important that my grandson knows something about the now-long-deceased
family member whose name he bears.
In
biblical times, such a connection as I’ve just mentioned between my father and
my grandson was of utmost importance. For example, consider Luke’s report of
the naming of John the Baptist. (See Luke 1:57 – 66.) When John had been born,
John’s mother, Elizabeth, was asked what this new son was to be named. She
said, “John”. But those who asked him replied, saying, “But none of your
relatives is called by this name,” So John’s father was also consulted, and he
confirmed that the son’s name was to be John. From this incident, we can gather
that, quite often, a child was named after a parent or some other relative. This
was one way to preserve and to carry forward that person’s name and presence
into the future.
More
biblical evidence comes from descriptions of a person, when we read statements
like, “So-and-so, the son of ____.”
In
biblical times, a person’s name was more than an identifier or a label that
made it easy to know who what being talked about, etc.
In
those times, mention of a person’s name was virtually the same as having that
person physically present, even when they weren’t. The person’s name was connected
in a much more wholistic way than we are used to thinking about today. In this
connection, perhaps we can understand that God’s name was critically important,
for, in our reading from Numbers this morning, we read that God’s name itself
is the agent of blessing for God’s people. Notice, as you make your way through
the Old Testament, how often it is God’s name that appears in the texts.
Referring to God’s name was just the same as having God to be physically
present. Such an understanding strikes me as being a very sacramental[1] way
of thinking, for the invisible God is present in a tangible way in everyday
life by the mentioning of the divine name.
All
of this brings us to the matter of the naming of Jesus on the eighth day of His
life, and at the time of His circumcision. In the Bible, a person’s name had a
definition, a meaning. (Oftentimes, today, we aren’t aware that the names we
use have a definition, a meaning.)
Jesus’
name means “God saves”. Matthew’s account of Jesus’ naming contains this statement
from the angel who visited Joseph in a dream: “Joseph, son of David, do not
fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the
Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he
will save his people from their sins.” (Matthew 1:20b – 21)
In
Hebrew, Jesus’ name is Jeshua. It is the same name as the person we call
Joshua, Moses’ successor and the one who led God’s people into the Promised
Land. (I think we use a different pronunciation of the Hebrew to differentiate
between the Old Testament leader, Joshua, and Jesus.)
But
notice the shared characteristic between Joshua and Jesus: Both of them led
their people into a promised land, a place which represented the completion of
God’s saving act in bringing His enslaved people out of bondage (in Joshua’s
case, from bondage in Egypt, and in Jesus’ case, out of the bondage of sin, as
Matthew alludes to). The result for both Joshua and Jesus is that “God saves”.
So,
what’s in a name? Turns out, when we’re thinking about the heroes of our faith,
quite a lot.
AMEN.
[1] A Sacrament is defined as being an “outward and visible sign of an inward and invisible grace”.
