The Story in a Name

More than a name

I can be given but never bought; spoken, never caught. Precedes you in a room, oft' forgotten very soon. The label for a soul, in your life I play a role. I am whispered in your ear, but I belong to you, my dear. I am used to call you near, something every person has to hear. When you are called, I am used, without me, you’d be confused. What am I?

I'm a lover of riddles. Riddles are a chance to test yourself, to see how well you can think abstractly and problem solve. They tax you, they challenge you, and yet they are simple abstract puzzles which we are given to resolve. Life, to differing degrees, is a series of riddles which you must solve. Today, in this article, I wish to dive into one such riddle with you.

If you are not sure what the answer to the riddle at the top of the page is, the answer is in the article title. It is a name, specifically your name. Have you ever thought about the wonder in a name? A label which you've been given, the title by which you are known, a prophecy for your future - but we'll speak about all of this later. I find it interesting how we have something intangible, something unquantifiable, a thing which cannot be measured, yet which identifies us, defines us in a way, and at times is used as a power over us.

I will stop speaking about the abstract poetry of a name now and speak about the true reason for this article. I am here to speak to you about the importance in a name, the power in it, and to ask you about the story that is contained in your name. In the Jewish roots of our faith there was this idea of names having power - much more than how we think about it today. Rather than spoiling the conversation, I will allow you to hear about these ancient ideas in their proper sections.

Do you like your name? Do you care to learn the names of others? We should see names as important, as they are the very identifiers which define us from another person. A name is important - why? Because even God knows your name, He addresses you by it. It is not as if there is a secret name which you have that will be discovered after you die, because if that were the case then names would be unimportant. No, God calls you by your given name - "I have called you by name". In 1 Samuel 3 we see God identify the one-day prophet by his name, and we see the same with Abraham, Moses, Jacob, Martha, Simon, and Saul. He knows your name. He cares about your name. Do you care about it?

Think about this - the God outside of time, existing beyond eternity, knows your name. So, in that sense, your name is eternal as well. This is not some temporary label for while you're hanging out on earth, it is the identifier of your whole personhood.

Authority

Have you ever wondered why one of the Ten Commandments was "you shall not take the name of the Lord your god in vain"? In the ancient world there was this idea that when you spoke the name of someone, they would in some mysterious way become present in your midst. In a sense, to speak someone's name, you summon them. This was present as an idea in many cultures when it came to their deities, and to their demons, and the Hebrew people believed the same. And so, to say God's name in vain, as the ancient Hebrew people believed, would make the Lord present to you right then, He would in some way stand before you.

Why is this so bad, to "summon" God frivolously? I'm sure you could come up with several reasons why this would be a bad idea, but there is one major reason; imagine you, the dirty, lowly, sin-riddled creature that you are, standing before the mighty glory and wonder of our pure and overwhelming God. Unless God limits how much glory He exposes us to, we would be burned away, consumed by His glory - not out of cruelty, but exposure of His love scorches the imperfections wrought by sin. Those of us who have not been purified, those of us who still reject God in different ways for which we need to go to Confession for repentance and forgiveness - which would be all of us on the earth - if we were to stand before God right now in His full glory we would be in Hell. This is one of the ancient articulations of Hell, it's that those unrepentant, those who reject God at the final judgement, are exposed to the full love of God just as those in Heaven are, but because they hate God the burning love from Him feels like a great flame upon their skin and their souls. To summon God unworthily is to call down Hell upon yourself. This Commandment was given to protect us.

We Catholics still believe in this idea today, that by saying the name of Jesus He then becomes present amongst us. "Where two or three are gathered in my name, there I am present", "knock, and the door shall be opened", "and surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age". The shortest prayer in our faith is to simply say the name of Jesus. Some of the oldest prayer ropes had people repeating what is called "the Jesus prayer" which comes in its longer form as "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner" and the shortest form is simply repeating "Jesus". You could say in one sense that we "summon" Him, but more accurately we are inviting Him in.

This is why we should be intentional with names. We should not be fearful of names like Lucifer's, for we know a greater power than him in our Lord, but neither should we be flippant in our treatment of those such as the great deceiver. Names have meaning, they have power, they either declare reality or they recognize the reality already present. Satan means "adversary", and this name recognizes who he is to we Christians and to God.

But as I said, to bestow a name is not simply to recognize a reality over someone, but also to declare a reality. To name something you impose your power over it. To have power over something means that you may name it. To name something shows your authority over it, or them. We can see this power in Scripture a number of times where a name was changed.

Let's look at the three times God changed a name, and you should recall the stories that follow after the changes. We have Abram and Sarai who become Abraham and Sarah, from who came the people of God. We then have Jacob who became Israel, father to the twelve tribes of Israel. Then we have Simon who is renamed Peter, who became the steward of our God and King for the earth.

Yes, these are commonly remembered stories from Scripture, but there are other instances, and I will mention just one. In Daniel 1:6-7 we see the four young men renamed after the kingdom of Israel is captured. Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah are then renamed to Belteshazzar, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego respectively. The Hebrew names they had related to how they served the God of Israel, and their new names were meant to signify that they had been conquered men and now belonged to the gods of Babylon. And yet these men continued to go by their true names amongst each other.

Similarly in the Book of Ruth, Naomi says in verse 19 that she shall now be called Mara, because the Lord has dealt bitterly with her. She deems to change her name, but in verse 22 we see that she is still called Naomi. Though she feels forgotten by God, He has not forgotten her, and He doesn't allow her bitterness to become her identity, the thing she is known for.

The names Mara and Mary share an origin. The woman Naomi, which means "sweetness" in Hebrew, thought to change her name to "bitter" because of her misfortune. Then the woman named Mary, "bitter", brings forth the sweetness of our salvation by bearing and birthing our Lord.

We should all be very intentional with what names we give to others. When a parent names a child, keep in mind that a name has a purpose, that it has a power. God renamed Peter to be the rock upon which His Church would be built, and Jacob to Israel because he wrestled with God, and Abram (exalted father) to Abraham (father of many) - each of these were signifiers of their purpose in life. Ethan means "firm, enduring, strong", Judah means "to praise", Noah means "rest, comfort", Jonathan means "gift of God", Elizabeth means "God is my oath", Sarah means "ruler, princess" - each name has a meaning. What future are you laying out for your children? If you name your child Jonathan then he is promised to be a gift of God to the world. If you name your child Kennedy, the name means "ugly head". Desdemona means "unlucky", Dolores means "sorrows", Byron means "place of the cow sheds", Calvin means "bald".

Am I saying that you may never give these "bad" names to your children? No, that's not what I'm saying, not exactly. In the Old Testament, and to some degree today, when one nation conquered another the whole people would receive a different name by their conquerors, and the individuals would have their names changed if they were made slaves or servants. God tells Zechariah and Elizabeth that their son will be named John, we see our Messiah named Jesus, Emmanuel, and once again there are those three times in Scripture where the Lord changed a person's name. Bestowing a name is not just choosing something that sounds nice. God thinks it important enough to give good names, and so I think you should too.

What is your story?

I would like to invite you to explore your name for a moment. We Christians do not believe in fate of course, we profess free will, that God is not a puppet master pulling the strings and making us do what He wishes. We can choose. But, God has foreknowledge, and I would propose that He gives you some sort of gift related to your name.

What I mean is, God has a plan. Clearly, yes, but it goes deeper than many of us realize. For example, the names in Scripture. Let's look at the genealogy in Genesis 5, and I would like to share with you the story told by the names. Below you will see the names and their associated meaning.

Adam = Man Seth = Appoint Enosh = Mortal Kenan = Sorrow Mahalalel = The Blessed God Jared = Come down Enoch = Teaching Methuselah = His death shall bring Lamech = The despairing Noah = Rest, comfort

If you put the names in order you can get a sentence like this from the name's meanings: "Man is appointed mortal sorrow; but the Blessed God shall come down teaching that His death shall bring the despairing rest." From the very time of the fall, God has been telling us that He would bring us back to Him, that His Son would come to redeem us.

How interesting, yes? Now look at Revelation 7 and the names listed there. These names are the same sons of Israel, from whom comes the Hebrew people, but there is a change in Revelation 7, it does not list the tribes in birth order as it normally would, but arranges them in a different way. Look below and see the meanings of the names, and then at the sentence they form.

Judah = I will praise the Lord Reuben = He has looked on me Gad = Granted good fortune Asher = Happy am I Naphtali = My wrestling Manasseh = Making me to forget Simeon = God hears me Levi = Joined to me Issachar = Purchased Me Zebulun = Dwelling Joseph = God will add to me Benjamin = Son of His right hand

In a full sentence it comes out to something like this: “I will praise the Lord for He has looked on me and granted me good fortune. Happy am I. My wrestling, God is making me to forget. God hears me and is joined to me. He has purchased me a dwelling. God will add to me the Son of His right hand.”

At the beginning of our Scripture we see a promise from God that He will bring about redemption for us, and at the end of our Scripture we see that He promises us peace, and a place beside His Son. Full circle. How beautiful.

And so, we see the story of families, of generations, of individuals, of God's handiwork through many people. Now I return to you and ask, what does your name mean? What is its root meaning? What is the legacy your name will have? Underlying all of this, what are the wonders God is wanting to work through you? I don't pretend that this is the situation with everyone, but I see in my life that the "blessings" of my name (as it would have been understood by the Hebrews) are the very things I feel weakest in, as if that is where the Enemy is attacking me the most. What good is God wanting to work through you, and are you allowing Him to do so?

Next, what do you want people to feel when they speak your name? When you are not there, what gravity does your name have? When people think of you, are you someone who has made an impact on their life, or are you just another face in their memory? I am not telling you to be a Mother Theresa, or a John Paul II, but rather someone that isn't easily replaced or forgotten.

There are a thousand, a million people who could do the job you're doing, and you can be replaced at a moment's notice. You're not special, you're a tool in your workplace. But, those people around you, when you are let go or move onto a new opportunity, will they notice your absence because your virtues are no longer present in the workplace? As a sibling, is your presence celebrated or tolerated? As a spouse, are the friends of your beloved telling him or her how fortunate they are at marrying you - because if they are not, then your legacy will be anything but impressive.

My point - I should bring this back around. A name is a bestowed meaning, but it's also the font for your virtue. When they hear about "Sarah", what feelings do they have? What memories do they have with this Sarah? When they hear about "Adam", how does their mood change? A good test for the power of your name is one that you'll never get to see: how others respond to hearing your name when you are gone. When you have moved away, or after you've died, what in them is lacking now that you are gone? There is a quote from C. S. Lewis that illustrates this well which I will share here.

If, of three friends (A, B, and C), A should die, then B loses not only A but "A's part in C," while C loses not only A but "A's part in B." In each of my friends there is something that only some other friend can fully bring out. By myself I am not large enough to call the whole man into activity; I want other lights than my own to show all these facets.... Hence true friendship is the least jealous of loves. Two friends delight to be joined by a third, and three by a fourth, if only the newcomer is qualified to become a real friend. They can say, as the blessed souls say in Dante, "Here comes one who will augment our loves." For in this love "to divide is not to take away."

The legacy of a person is in their name, and in their whole person, and in the children they have, and the impact in the lives of others which lasts beyond their own life. This starts with a name. Not only the meaning behind it, but the meaning of how a person feels when they hear your name. The very mention of a name can summon the memories and of that person, almost bringing that person into reality before you. A name is more than just a sound to identify ourselves with.

And so I ask of you reading this for the last time, what is the story of your name? What story is left behind when you are gone? What is the story being written today? Make no mistake, a story is being written about you right now. Your name has given you a purpose since it's been bestowed upon you, but now it is up to you to bestow a reputation for your name that others will feel when you are not around. Is your name said with a smile, or with a grimace? Your name has an innate meaning, and an acquired meaning by what you do. Be aware of both of these.

Written for VME Catholic, by Ethan Hall