Devotion to the Holy Name of Jesus

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[Pyro7480]

Devotion to the Holy Name

Luke 2:21 "...Et vocatum est Nomen eius IESUS" ("And His Name was called JESUS")

Psalm 90:14 "Because he hoped in me I will deliver him: I will protect him because he hath known My Name."

Zacharias 10:12 "I will strengthen them in the Lord, and they shall walk in His Name, saith the Lord."

Apocalypse 3:8 "I know thy works. Behold, I have given before thee a door opened, which no man can shut: because thou hast a little strength, and hast kept my word, and hast not denied My Name."

Apocalypse 15:4 "Who shall not fear Thee, O Lord, and magnify Thy Name?..."

Throughout Sacred Scripture, God Himself names those who have a great role to play in our salvation. As recorded in the fifth chapter of Genesis, He named the first man Adam, which means "Man of the Earth", and He changed the name of our spiritual Father from Abram to "Abraham," which means "Father of Many Nations," and changed that of Abraham's wife, Sarai, to "Sarah," which means "Princess" and foretells that she would be the spiritual mother to kings (Genesis 17). Our first Pope had been named "Simon" before he became "Peter" to signify his status as the earthly rock of the Church as Christ is the Foundation and Head. And so, too, the Name "Jesus" has meaning: His Holy Name means "God Saves" ("Emmanuel"), and that Our Lord would receive this Name was foretold by the divinely inspired Prophet Isaias:

Isaias 7:14-15
Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign. Behold a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and his name shall be called Emmanuel. He shall eat butter and honey, that he may know to refuse the evil, and to choose the good.

Our Lady learned how she was to name her Child from the Archangel Gabriel:

Luke 1:26-33
And in the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God into a city of Galilee, called Nazareth, To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary. And the angel being come in, said unto her: Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women. Who having heard, was troubled at his saying, and thought with herself what manner of salutation this should be. And the angel said to her: Fear not, Mary, for thou hast found grace with God. Behold thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and shalt bring forth a son; and thou shalt call his name Jesus. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the most High; and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of David his father; and he shall reign in the house of Jacob for ever. And of his kingdom there shall be no end.

... and St. Joseph heard it from an angel in a dream:

Matthew 1:18-25
Now the generation of Christ was in this wise. When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child, of the Holy Ghost. Whereupon Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not willing publicly to expose her, was minded to put her away privately. But while he thought on these things, behold the angel of the Lord appeared to him in his sleep, saying: Joseph, son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife, for that which is conceived in her, is of the Holy Ghost. And she shall bring forth a son: and thou shalt call his name JESUS. For he shall save his people from their sins. Now all this was done that it might be fulfilled which the Lord spoke by the prophet, saying: Behold a virgin shall be with child, and bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us. And Joseph rising up from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him, and took unto him his wife. And he knew her not till she brought forth her firstborn son: and he called his name JESUS.

Then, when He was circumcised on the 8th day after His Nativity, He received the Holy Name:

Luke 2:21
And after eight days were accomplished, that the child should be circumcised, his name was called JESUS, which was called by the angel, before he was conceived in the womb.

And what of it? St. Peter sums it up:

Acts 4:10-12
Be it known to you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God hath raised from the dead, even by him this man standeth here before you whole. This is the stone which was rejected by you the builders, which is become the head of the corner. Neither is there salvation in any other. For there is no other Name under heaven given to men, whereby we must be saved.

When we say the Name "Jesus" (or "Iesus," "Iesu," "Yeshua," etc.) , with deep reverence, we are re-realizing the core Truth of the holy Faith: "God Saves" -- and all gratitude and humility are summoned. Say that Holy Name, ponder it, feel it in your mouth and in your heart! "IESUS -- GOD SAVES!" When you pronounce it, know its meaning and humble yourself before it; feel in your heart how you are addressing and referring to Lord Christ. "IESUS -- SAVIOR!"

So holy is His Name that uttering it piously is an indulgenced act. So revered is it that:

-Catholic men remove their hats any time and anywhere it is heard or spoken by them, and all Catholics bow their heads when speaking it or hearing it. (The custom of bowing the head at the mention of His Name was formally written into law at the Second Council of Lyons, A.D. 1274, convened by Pope Gregory X: "Those who assemble in church should extol with an act of special reverence that Name which is above every Name, than which no other under Heaven has been given to people, in which believers must be saved, the Name, that is, of Jesus Christ, Who will save His people from their sins. Each should fulfil in himself that which is written for all, that at the Name of Jesus every knee should bow; whenever that glorious Name is recalled, especially during the sacred Mysteries of the Mass, everyone should bow the knees of his heart, which he can do even by a bow of his head.")

-when His Name is taken in vain, the Catholic in the room will (or at least should) make reparation by praying "Sit nomen Dómini benedíctum!" ("Blessed be the Name of the Lord!"), to which another Catholic who might be in the room replies, "Ex hoc nunc, et usque in sæculum!" ("from this time forth for evermore!") or "per ómnia saecula saeculórum" ("unto ages of ages").

-inspired by the example and words of St. Bernardine of Siena (see below), we place the monogram of His Name ("IHS") over our doors for protection, in the same way that the Israelites in Egypt used lamb's blood during the first Passover:

Exodus 12:21-24
And Moses called all the ancients of the children of Israel, and said to them: Go take a lamb by your families, and sacrifice the Phase. And dip a bunch of hyssop in the blood that is at the door, and sprinkle the transom of the door therewith, and both the door cheeks: let none of you go out of the door of his house till morning. For the Lord will pass through striking the Egyptians: and when he shall see the blood on the transom, and on both the posts, he will pass over the door of the house, and not suffer the destroyer to come into your houses and to hurt you. Thou shalt keep this thing as a law for thee and thy children for ever.

-His Name is invoked in times of fear and temptation, and devils flee at the sound of it.

This Catholic attitude of deep respect toward the Holy Name is exactly as it should be according to Sacred Scripture:

Philippians 2:8-10
He humbled himself, becoming obedient unto death, even to the death of the cross. For which cause God also hath exalted him, and hath given him a name which is above all names: That in the Name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those that are in heaven, on earth, and under the earth:

It is "in His Name" that the Gentiles shall hope (Matthew 12:21); "in the Name of Jesus Christ" that the Apostles baptized (Acts 2:38), healed (Acts 3:6, 16), cast out demons (Acts 16:18), preached (Acts 9:27), and anointed (James 5:14); it is "by the Name" of Jesus that signs and wonders were seen (Acts 4:30).

And it is in His Name that we should place our faith, do our works, and say our prayers:

I John 3:23
And this is his commandment, that we should believe in the Name of his Son Jesus Christ: and love one another, as He hath given commandment unto us.

Colossians 3:17
All whatsoever you do in word or in work, do all , giving thanks to God and the Father by Him.

John 16:23-24
...Amen, amen I say to you: if you ask the Father any thing in My Name, He will give it you. Hitherto you have not asked any thing in My Name. Ask, and you shall receive; that your joy may be full.

Formalized devotion to the Holy Name is the fruit of the work of St. Bernardine of Siena, A.D. 1380-1444, the Franciscan who reformed his Order and preached fiery sermons all over Italy. An excerpt from one:

By word of mouth, by letters, by miracles, and by the example of his own life, Saint Paul bore the Name of Jesus wherever he went. He praised the Name of Jesus "at all times," but never more than when "bearing witness to his faith."

Moreover, the Apostle did indeed carry this Name "before the Gentiles and kings and the sons of Israel" as a light to enlighten all nations. And this was his cry wherever he journeyed: "The night is passing away, the day is at hand. Let us then cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light; let us conduct ourselves honorably as in the day." Paul himself showed forth the burning and shining-light set upon a candlestick, everywhere proclaiming "Jesus, and Him crucified."

And so the Church, the Bride of Christ strengthened by his testimony, rejoices with the psalmist, singing: "O God from my youth you have taught me, and I still proclaim your wondrous deeds." The psalmist exhorts her to do this, as he says: "Sing to the Lord, and bless His Name, proclaim His salvation day after day." And this salvation is Jesus, her savior.

During these very popular sermons, he would hold up for veneration the monogram of Christ's Name -- the letters "IHS" -- surrounded by rays. This ancient monogram is a Latinization of the Greek monograms for Iesous Christos, "IH XP" and "IC XC," and it became even more popularized after St. Bernardine encouraged a playing card maker in Bologna -- a man whose business had been ruined because of the Saint's preaching against gambling -- to make holy cards depicting it instead of making his usual fare. St. Bernardine's apostleship of the Holy Name was carried on by St. John Capistran, A.D. 1385-1456, and to them both is attributed the Litany of the Holy Name.

Because of the influence of St. Bernardine's work, the Feast of the Holy Name was later added to the calendar (celebrated on the 1st Sunday of the year, or 2 January if this Sunday falls on the 1st, 6th, or 7th). The office of this Mass was written by Bernardine dei Busti, and it makes use of the beautiful 12th century hymn, Iesu Dulcis Memoria which speaks of His Name and was written by another who had devotion to it, St. Bernard of Clairvaux ((A.D. 1090-1153). The entire month of January is devoted to the worship of the Holy Name and to Christ's Divine Childhood.

Honor the Holy Name of Our Lord, and use it with only the deepest reverence. As St. John the Evangelist described his vision of the end of time when writing from the island of Patmos:

Apocalypse 22:1-4
And He showed me a river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb. In the midst of the street thereof, and on both sides of the river, was the tree of life, bearing twelve fruits, yielding its fruits every month, and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. And there shall be no curse any more; but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and His servants shall serve Him. And they shall see His face: and His Name shall be on their foreheads.

[broadsword]

Another good thing, which I do, is to bow your head EVERY time you say or hear the Holy Name of Jesus, even if said in vain.

I also ask people who use His name as an epithet, "Are you praying or just taking His name in vain?" Even if they are not religious, it shames them.

[murphE]

I am shocked at how common it as become to use Our Lord's name in vain, especially in films, television, talk shows etc. Have you noticed?

[kstewskis]

excellent suggestion.

[kjvail]

Wonderful tagline, I do so love Tolkien.

Thanks for the post, this is something I had not heard before, it explains some things I have seen in the Mass I go to.

[broadsword]

Yes. No matter how deeply I get into a movie or book, misuse of the Holy Name takes me right out of it and fills me with disgust. It is just so unnecessary.

[Pyro7480]

I'm glad you liked it sinkspur, and a Happy New Year to you too!

[Pyro7480]

We have a Holy Name Society at the indult Church I attend now.

Do you attend Mater Ecclesiae in New Jersey? If I remember correctly, they have a Holy Name Society there.

[Pyro7480]

I'm glad you like the tagline, Siobhan. I hope you and your family had a blessed Christmas and a Happy New Year. I think you made a splendid point linking devotion to the Holy Name to devotion to St. Joseph (perhaps that is one reason why I am attracted to the Holy Name devotion). My mother taught me when I was young to bow my head at the Name of Jesus.

A year ago, on the Feast of the Holy Name, Fr. Harbert, an English priest, offered the Traditional Latin Mass at my indult parish, and he gave an excellent homily on the Holy Name and the Jesus Psalter, a prayer said by English Catholics during the persecution after the Protestant Revolution. I printed out the Psalter off the Internet, and tried saying it. It got buried in one of the piles of papers in my room, but when I went to England in September, I found a nice booklet at the Brompton Oratory that has the entire Psalter in it. I bought one for myself, and got one for Fr. Harbert. I started saying it again recently, and I can attest to the power of the Psalter, since one says the Holy Name of Jesus over 150 times (hence it's name) in it. I'm going to post a short history on the Psalter and link to the page where I found it later tonight.

[Canticle_of_Deborah]

It's new to me. I think it is a great practice.

[pascendi]

Thanks Stubborn; happy new year to you and everyone.

I have a feeling its going to be a tough one though.

[Arguss]

"Do you attend Mater Ecclesiae in New Jersey?"

No, I attend St. Stephen's in Syracuse NY

[Salvation]

**I also ask people who use His name as an epithet, "Are you praying or just taking His name in vain?"**

Good idea!

[Salvation]

http://www.ewtn.com/library/CHRIST/CEHOLYNA.TXT

The Holy Name of Jesus Christ

In this article, we shall consider the two words which
compose the Sacred Name.

JESUS

The word Jesus is the Latin form of the Greek Iesous,
which in turn is the transliteration of the Hebrew
Jeshua, or Joshua, or again Jehoshua, meaning "Jehovah
is salvation." Though the name in one form or another
occurs frequently in the Old Testament, it was not
borne by a person of prominence between the time of
Josue, the son of Nun and Josue, the high priest in the
days of Zorobabel. It was also the name of the author
of Ecclesiaticus of one of Christ's ancestors mentioned
in the genealogy, found in the Third Gospel (Luke, iii,
29), and one of the St. Paul's companions (Col., iv,
11). During the Hellenizing period, Jason, a purely
Greek analogon of Jesus, appears to have been adopted
by many ( I Mach., viii, 17; xii, 16; xiv, 22; II
Mach., i, 7; ii, 24; iv, 7 26; v, 5 10; Acts, xvii, 5
9; Rom., xvi, 21). The Greek name is connected with
verb iasthai, to heal; it is therefore, not surprising
that some of the Greek Fathers allied the word Jesus
with same root (Euseb., "Dem. Ev.", IV; cf. Acts, ix,
34; x., 38). Though about the time of Christ the name
Jesus appears to have been fairly common (Jos., "Ant.",
XV, ix, 2; XVII, xiii, 1; XX, ix, 1; "Bel. Jud.", III,
ix, 7; IV, iii, 9; VI, v, 5; "Vit.", 22) it was imposed
on our Lord by God's express order (Luke, i, 31; Matt.,
i, 21), to foreshow that the Child was destined to
"save his people from their sins." Philo ("De Mutt.
Nom.", 21) is therefore, right when he explains Iesous
as meaning soteria kyrion; Eusebius (Dem., Ev., IV, ad
fin.; P. G., XXII, 333) gives the meaning Theou
soterion; while St. Cyril of Jerusalem interprets the
word as equivalent to soter (Cat., x, 13; P.G., XXXIII,
677). This last writer, however, appears to agree with
Clement of Alexandria in considering the word Iesous as
of Greek origin (Paedag., III, xii; P. G., VIII, 677);
St. Chrysostom emphasizes again the Hebrew derivation
of the word and its meaning soter (Hom., ii, 2), thus
agreeing with the exegesis of the angel speaking to St.
Joseph (Matt., i, 21).

CHRIST

The word Christ, Christos, the Greek equivalent of the
Hebrew word Messiah, means "anointed." According to the
Old Law, priests (Ex., xxix, 29; Lev., iv, 3), kings (I
Kings, x, 1; xxiv, 7), and prophets (Is., lxi, l) were
supposed to be anointed for their respective offices;
now, the Christ, or the Messias, combined this
threefold dignity in His Person. It is not surprising,
therefore, that for centuries the Jews had referred to
their expected Deliverer as "the Anointed"; perhaps
this designation alludes to Is., lxi, 1, and Dan., ix,
24 26, or even to Ps., ii, 2; xix, 7; xliv, 8. Thus the
term Christ or Messias was a title rather than a proper
name: "Non proprium nomen est, sed nuncupatio
potestatis et regni", says Lactantius (Inst. Div., IV,
vii). The Evangelists recognize the same truth;
excepting Matt., i, 1, 18; Mark, i, 1; John, i, 17;
xvii, 3; ix, 22; mark, ix, 40; Luke, ii, 11; xxii, 2,
the word Christ is always preceded by the article. Only
after the Resurrection did the title gradually pass
into a proper name, and the expression Jesus Christ or
Christ Jesus became only one designation. But at this
stage the Greeks and Romans understood little or
nothing about the import of the word anointed; to them
it did not convey any sacred conception. Hence they
substituted Chrestus, or "excellent", for Christians or
"anointed", and Chrestians instead of "Christians."
There may be an allusion to this practice in I Pet.,
ii, 3; hoti chrestos ho kyrios, which is rendered "that
the Lord is sweet." Justin Martyr (Apol., I, 4),
Clement of Alexandria (Strom., II, iv, 18), Tertullian
(Adv. Gentes, II), and Lactantius (Int. Div., IV, vii,
5), as well as St. Jerome (In Gal., V, 22), are
acquainted with the pagan substitution of Chrestes for
Christus, and are careful to explain the new term in a
favourable sense. The pagans made little or no effort
to learn anything accurate about Christ and the
Christians; Suetonius, for instance, ascribes the
expulsion of the Jews from Rome under Claudius to the
constant instigation of sedition by Chrestus, whom he
conceives as acting in Rome the part of a leader of
insurgents.

The use of the definite article before the word Christ
and its gradual development into a proper name show the
Christians identified the bearer with the promised
Messias of the Jews. He combined in His person the
offices of prophet (John, vi, 14; Matt., xiii, 57;
Luke, xiii, 33; xxiv, 19) of king (Luke, xxiii. 2;
Acts, xvii, 7; I Cor., xv, 24; Apoc., xv, 3),and of
priest (Heb., ii, 17; etc.); he fulfilled all the
Messiannic predictions in a fuller and a higher sense
than had been given them by the teachers of the
Synagogue.

A. J. MAAS
Transribed by Joseph P. Thomas
In Memory of Archbishop Mathew Kavukatt

[New Advent Catholic Website]
http://www.knight.org/advent

From the Catholic Encyclopedia, copyright © 1913 by the
Encyclopedia Press, Inc. Electronic version copyright ©
1996 by New Advent, Inc., P.O. Box 281096, Denver,
Colorado, USA, 80228. (knight@knight.org)


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[broadsword]

The vast majority of Americans have a Christian past to one degree or another, even if they have fallen away. I think it is because of that that my question strikes most of them so.

[infidel dog]

Thank you for keeping me on your list. Keep up the good work, and a very happy 2005 ANNO DOMINI to you!

[AAABEST]

Thank you for being on my list. And a most happy and blessed new year to you and yours as well.

[infidel dog]

Say, old Pal, I notice you have been sparring with the Kooky Kalvinist Krew on the "John Calvin, Man of Compassion" blurb... I'm afraid I couldn't resist putting on the gloves myself. You might enjoy my reply to Gamecock, if you have a chance to check it out...

[Salvation]

American Cathlic's Saint of the Day

January 3, 2005

Most Holy Name of Jesus

In a world of fiercely guarded corporate names and logos, it should be easy to understand this feast. The letters IHS are an abbreviation of Jesous, the Greek name for Jesus.

Although St. Paul might claim credit for promoting devotion to the Holy Name because Paul wrote in Philippians that God the Father gave Christ Jesus “that name that is above every name” (see 2:9), this devotion became popular because of 12th-century Cistercian monks and nuns but especially through the preaching of St. Bernardine of Siena, a 15th-century Franciscan.

Bernardine used devotion to the Holy Name of Jesus as a way of overcoming bitter and often bloody class struggles and family rivalries or vendettas in Italian city-states. The devotion grew, partly because of Franciscan and Dominican preachers. It spread even more widely after the Jesuits began promoting it in the 16th century.

In 1530, Pope Clement V approved an Office of the Holy Name for the Franciscans. In 1721, Pope Innocent XIII extended this feast to the entire Church.

Comment:

Jesus died and rose for the sake of all people. No one can trademark or copyright Jesus' name. Jesus is the Son of God and son of Mary. Everything that exists was created in and through the Son of God (see Colossians 1:15-20). The name of Jesus is debased if any Christian uses it as justification for berating non-Christians. Jesus reminds us that because we are all related to him we are, therefore, all related to one another.

Quote:

“Glorious name, gracious name, name of love and of power! Through you sins are forgiven, through you enemies are vanquished, through you the sick are freed from their illness, through you those suffering in trials are made strong and cheerful. You bring honor to those who believe, you teach those who preach, you give strength to the toiler, you sustain the weary” (St. Bernardine of Siena).

[Salvation]

Saint/Feast of the Day Ping!

Please notify me via FReepmail if you would like to be added to or taken off the Saint/Feast of the Day Ping List.

[ELS]

How many of you do this?

I do it in English, but I am going to try to memorize the Latin and do it in Latin.