Homily Transcript: January 1: The Holy Name of Jesus The Rev. R. Allan McCaslin
Readings: Numbers 6:22-27; Psalm 8; Galatians 4:4-7; Luke 2:15-21
From today’s gospel reading, “After eight days had passed, it was time to circumcise the child; and he was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb.” I speak to you in the Name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
A happy New Year to you all! Today is one of those unique times in history as New Year’s Day and the celebrated Feast of the Holy Name of Jesus falls on a Sunday: the Lord’s Day; the day of resurrection. This year is truly the year of our Lord – the Anno Domini (A.D.) – of Jesus Christ and I believe this will be a milestone year in the life of this parish.
But what’s with all the hubbub about the naming of Jesus? Isn’t his name like any other and, after all, what’s in a name anyway? That is a question that many ask. Parents spend hours trying to find the right name for their soon to be born child: a name that will reflect their hopes and desires for their child, as well as their hopes and desires as parents. Sometimes choosing a name that seems “just right” for a child can upset an entire family dynamic. In my own family, tradition dictated that I was to be named William Alexander which happens to mean “Warrior and Protector of the kingdom” but, through a rather convoluted process that takes far too long to explain, I was named Robert Allan instead which means “Shining flame and handsome.” We still wonder what my parents were thinking.
What’s in a name? Our reading from Numbers this morning concludes with the statement that the people of Israel, the children of God, put God’s name on them and, therefore, God blessed them. Naming is incredibly important because it reflects whose child we are and under whose protection we live and by whom and through whom we will be blessed. In Hebrew tradition, whoever has naming rights holds authority over the named being but it is an authority of responsibility. So, in Genesis when Adam names all the creatures of the earth, such reflects his responsibility for the care and nurture of those creatures. Need I mention that Adam named Eve? Not as in being superior to her, but rather, responsible for her protection and freedom. Naming anyone or anything is incredibly important.
Readings: Numbers 6:22-27; Psalm 8; Galatians 4:4-7; Luke 2:15-21
From today’s gospel reading, “After eight days had passed, it was time to circumcise the child; and he was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb.” I speak to you in the Name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
A happy New Year to you all! Today is one of those unique times in history as New Year’s Day and the celebrated Feast of the Holy Name of Jesus falls on a Sunday: the Lord’s Day; the day of resurrection. This year is truly the year of our Lord – the Anno Domini (A.D.) – of Jesus Christ and I believe this will be a milestone year in the life of this parish.
But what’s with all the hubbub about the naming of Jesus? Isn’t his name like any other and, after all, what’s in a name anyway? That is a question that many ask. Parents spend hours trying to find the right name for their soon to be born child: a name that will reflect their hopes and desires for their child, as well as their hopes and desires as parents. Sometimes choosing a name that seems “just right” for a child can upset an entire family dynamic. In my own family, tradition dictated that I was to be named William Alexander which happens to mean “Warrior and Protector of the kingdom” but, through a rather convoluted process that takes far too long to explain, I was named Robert Allan instead which means “Shining flame and handsome.” We still wonder what my parents were thinking.
What’s in a name? Our reading from Numbers this morning concludes with the statement that the people of Israel, the children of God, put God’s name on them and, therefore, God blessed them. Naming is incredibly important because it reflects whose child we are and under whose protection we live and by whom and through whom we will be blessed. In Hebrew tradition, whoever has naming rights holds authority over the named being but it is an authority of responsibility. So, in Genesis when Adam names all the creatures of the earth, such reflects his responsibility for the care and nurture of those creatures. Need I mention that Adam named Eve? Not as in being superior to her, but rather, responsible for her protection and freedom. Naming anyone or anything is incredibly important.
St. Paul in today’s reading from Galatians tells us that through Christ, we have become adopted as sons and daughters of God. We are chosen children of God and as chosen children, we carry God’s name and are heirs of all that God offers and provides. Paul says that our special status as adopted children entitles us to call God, “Abba Father.” And this name is deeply steeped in Roman and Hebrew tradition. Adopted children under Roman law could never be forsaken or sold into slavery. They were heirs of their adopted father forever. In Hebrew understanding, to refer to God as father is not about appealing to an authority figure fearful that he is itching to punish wayward children, but rather, an appeal to God’s compassion, yearning, and desire for relationship. Through Christ, we have become adopted children of God, marked with God’s own name: the holy Name of our Lord Jesus Christ. And it is through that holy Name, therefore, that we can, with boldness, call God our “father.”
Our gospel lesson this morning tells of Joseph and Mary’s decision to be faithful to the Hebrew tradition of taking a newborn son to Temple on the 8thday for circumcision. An important part of that rite, much like our own rite of baptism, is the naming of the child. This is the name by which the child will be known and identified. It affirms who he is and to whom he is entrusted for care and nurture. Luke tells us that Mary and Joseph named him “Jesus” as the Angel Gabriel had said.
And here’s where we get to the hubbub about the naming of Jesus. It is an important event that goes beyond fulfilling the words of Gabriel and Old Testament prophecy. Jesus is a deeply meaningful and ancient Hebrew name. The name Jesus in Hebrew is “Yeshua” or “Joshua” in our English, and it means “God saves.” Joshua! Does that name ring a bell? Joshua was the great patriarch of Israel who, with Caleb, was deemed by God as the only faithful men to believe God’s promise to Israel that they would really enter a promised land. Joshua and Caleb were the only two original Israelites who came out of Egypt who were allowed to cross over the Jordan River into the land of promise. While Moses had led the children of Israel out of bondage and slavery in Egypt into a seemingly endless wandering in a desert wilderness, it was Joshua who picked up Moses’ mantle and finished Moses’ job. It was Joshua who brought God’s people to their journey’s end. He brought them into the Promised Land.
Now, it is this newborn “Joshua,” - Yeshua - this Jesus who offers the world a new exodus taking God’s people out of bondage to sin and bringing us into the very kingdom of God. In this simple naming ceremony described in Luke’s gospel, we are reminded of God’s saving acts in the ancient past and the future saving acts of God in Christ that will come at Calvary.
What’s in a name? In the matter of Jesus Christ, it is everything and my sisters and brothers, we who are marked as Christ’s own have received that same name: we have become adopted children of God by God’s grace and in whom God is well pleased to bring us into God’s kingdom. And so on this day, this new year’s day with its tradition of making all sorts of resolutions, let us seek in this new year to model the name of our Lord Jesus Christ: to become identified as Christ in this community; to seek Christ and to be like Christ; to share Christ in all things and to follow the path God chooses to lay before us in this new year. None of us knows what lies ahead: what challenges, joys and sorrows we may encounter. But this we do know: we are adopted children of God who has graced us with the Name of Jesus, a name that is higher and more exalted than any other name on earth or in heaven, and, my beloved, that name is ours as well. Let us bring honor to God who, as our adopted father, has chosen and named us as his own children, and seek in all things to bless the Holy Name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Our gospel lesson this morning tells of Joseph and Mary’s decision to be faithful to the Hebrew tradition of taking a newborn son to Temple on the 8thday for circumcision. An important part of that rite, much like our own rite of baptism, is the naming of the child. This is the name by which the child will be known and identified. It affirms who he is and to whom he is entrusted for care and nurture. Luke tells us that Mary and Joseph named him “Jesus” as the Angel Gabriel had said.
And here’s where we get to the hubbub about the naming of Jesus. It is an important event that goes beyond fulfilling the words of Gabriel and Old Testament prophecy. Jesus is a deeply meaningful and ancient Hebrew name. The name Jesus in Hebrew is “Yeshua” or “Joshua” in our English, and it means “God saves.” Joshua! Does that name ring a bell? Joshua was the great patriarch of Israel who, with Caleb, was deemed by God as the only faithful men to believe God’s promise to Israel that they would really enter a promised land. Joshua and Caleb were the only two original Israelites who came out of Egypt who were allowed to cross over the Jordan River into the land of promise. While Moses had led the children of Israel out of bondage and slavery in Egypt into a seemingly endless wandering in a desert wilderness, it was Joshua who picked up Moses’ mantle and finished Moses’ job. It was Joshua who brought God’s people to their journey’s end. He brought them into the Promised Land.
Now, it is this newborn “Joshua,” - Yeshua - this Jesus who offers the world a new exodus taking God’s people out of bondage to sin and bringing us into the very kingdom of God. In this simple naming ceremony described in Luke’s gospel, we are reminded of God’s saving acts in the ancient past and the future saving acts of God in Christ that will come at Calvary.
What’s in a name? In the matter of Jesus Christ, it is everything and my sisters and brothers, we who are marked as Christ’s own have received that same name: we have become adopted children of God by God’s grace and in whom God is well pleased to bring us into God’s kingdom. And so on this day, this new year’s day with its tradition of making all sorts of resolutions, let us seek in this new year to model the name of our Lord Jesus Christ: to become identified as Christ in this community; to seek Christ and to be like Christ; to share Christ in all things and to follow the path God chooses to lay before us in this new year. None of us knows what lies ahead: what challenges, joys and sorrows we may encounter. But this we do know: we are adopted children of God who has graced us with the Name of Jesus, a name that is higher and more exalted than any other name on earth or in heaven, and, my beloved, that name is ours as well. Let us bring honor to God who, as our adopted father, has chosen and named us as his own children, and seek in all things to bless the Holy Name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
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