What is God's Name: Reflections on the 'Faces' of God

Recently the Church restored to the liturgical calendar the feast of the Holy Name of Jesus. That made me joyful and is part of the reason I am writing these reflections about God's name. Too often we hear the name of Jesus used in profanity, in anger or just as an exclamation. But it is called the Holy Name of God because we recognize that it is the name of the Son of God. It was designated by God to be given to Mary's Child before he was born and the reason was given also: "... because he shall save his people from their sins" (Mt.1:21); that is to say he is The Saviour-long-awaited... The name is indeed holy: it merits reverence.

What other name, what other person has been the subject of so much writing, artwork and sculpture? One could say that faith has diminished but they just can’t let Jesus be!

Recall how, even at his weakest moment, in the Garden of Olives, when the crowd came to take him, Jesus stood before them and asked: "For whom are you looking?" They answered: "Jesus of Nazareth " and when he replied: "I am he" they all fell to the ground. Who was in charge there?

On a rainy Sunday, en route to visit Warkworth Penitentiary, as we turned on the cloverleaf, the car went into a sudden skid. In the twinkling of an eye I cried out: "Jesus, save us"! We leapt across three lanes of traffic, hit the guardrail, bounced back into the first lane of traffic without stopping, without touching another vehicle, without a scratch. Silence in the car! We caught our breath. Then Gwen asked our driver: "What went through your mind?" He answered, "I heard Mary Alban say ‘Jesus, save us!' and thought: That's looked after. All I have to do is drive!"

There is no other name by which we are to be saved.

By Mary Alban Bouchard CSJ
Photo by Mary Doreen Smith CSJ