You and I mark time in a variety of ways. Our “markers” are points at which we are regularly reminded where we are time-wise as life progresses. As a retiree, I mark time during each day chiefly by mealtimes. Additionally, we have a grandfather’s clock, desk clocks, and a cuckoo clock that sound the hours and their parts. (We shut most of them off at night.) During the span of a week I can often forget what day it is, at least for a few moments, but I do know that the trash has to be put out on Tuesdays and Fridays and church is on Saturdays, and that jogs my memory. I am quite clear about those three days. As to what month it is, that might take a few moments to recall; in retirement one month can blur right into another – unless there is something outstanding about the month - with milestones such as birthdays and anniversaries. Even with regard to the specific year, especially during each January, I am bound to write the wrong year on some bank checks.

Although there are other calendar configurations, you and I celebrate today as the first day of the New Year. Today can give us a sense of closure on events of the past twelve months, and we can experience the present day in a holiday spirit as a beginning. I suppose that for some, this is not a welcome opportunity. For some others, it is an indifferent occasion. No doubt, the victims of the tsunami are giving little thought to the passage from 2004 to 2005! For me, this year the New Year’s day further distances me psychologically from the 2004 April through September period of ill health, surgery, convalescence, and hurricanes. The New Year is a symbolic occasion for my personal hope that the coming months will be a healthy period - especially for my partner and myself. At least for a while, January 1, 2005, will be a significant marker that reminds me where I am time-wise as life progresses.

The Episcopal Church and many other Churches mark time with liturgical configurations. To get an idea of this way of observing time, sometime you might glance at the Prayer Book section “The Calendar of the Church Year” beginning on page 15. Today in the liturgical year is “The Feast of the Holy Name of Our Lord Jesus Christ.” This is not at all coordinated with New Year’s Day for any special reason. Here is an explanation of today’s observance:

The Holy Name of Our Lord Jesus Christ, on January 1, one week after Christmas. St. Luke

tells us: “And at the end of eight days, when he was circumcised, he was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb” (Lk. 2:21) This day was called the “Circumcision of Christ” in earlier Prayer Books. The point of the celebration is twofold: In the first place, from the beginning, Jesus’ life was lived as Jewish law required, including circumcision on the eighth day; in the second place, in accordance with Jewish custom, he received his name, Jesus, which means “God will save.” An anticipation and summary of the whole Gospel drama is implied on this day. [1]

I would add that “Jesus” is the Greek rendering of “Joshua,” and “Christ” is the Greek for “Messiah” – not Jesus’ last name. Ordinarily, in his day among his people, he would have been known as “Joshua, son of Joseph,” “Joshua of Nazareth,” and the like.

Unlike our culture, in the Bible “a human name typically reflects character and mission anticipated in life, which may turn out for either good or ill. It may embody the spiritual vision of parents for their child’s future. In other instances, it is prophetic of future outcomes or events. On the negative side, it may typify a life come to ruin."[2] “Names represented one’s essence, and a person was often given a new name upon entering a new phase of life."[3]

To become a Christian, one must be baptized and named at that time; no one is born a Christian. However, in traditional Judaism, an individual is born a Jew, if the child’s mother is Jewish. Girls receive their name in the synagogue shortly after birth. Boys receive their name at their circumcision, a surgical rite “enjoined by God upon Abraham and his descendants (Gn. 17:10-12)[4] and has always been regarded as the supreme obligatory sign of loyalty and adherence to Judaism."[5] The use and significance of circumcision in ancient Hebrew and Christian writings is rich with diversity. In any case, at his circumcision Jesus is given his name and formally recognized as a member of God’s chosen people.

The observance of this moment in Jesus’ life is not pivotal; interesting, perhaps, but not a milestone. Only the Gospel according to Luke even mentions it, and, at that, within a highly embellished passage filled with beautiful symbolism. Nonetheless, the Feast of the Holy Name just might serve as a small reminder to some that it was Jesus who personifies God’s Word, and his name is extra special, holy, and deserving of respect. It is not a name to be shouted as an expletive!

As we continue our prayers together, I again wish you a Happy New Year, and, additionally, as we begin the new year, may you and I renew our reverence for the Holy Name of Jesus the Christ.

[1] C. P. Price and L. Weil, Liturgy For Living, rev. ed. (Morehouse, 2000), p. 167.

[2] W. A. Elwell, ed. Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology (electronic ed.). Baker reference library; Logos Library System. 1997, c1996.

[3] “Names,” The Oxford Dictionary of the Jewish Religion (Oxford, 1997), p. 482.

[4] ¹⁰This is my covenant, which you shall keep, between me and you and your offspring after you: Every male among you shall be circumcised. ¹¹You shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and you. ¹²Throughout your generations every male among you shall be circumcised when he is eight days old, including the slave born in your house and the one bought with your money from any foreigner who is not of your offspring.

[5] “Circumcision,” Oxford Dictionary of the Jewish Religion, p. 161.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

The Gospel - Luke 2:15-21

When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, "Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us." So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger. When they saw this, they made known what had been told them about this child; and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them. But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them. 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.

Saint Andrew’s Episcopal Church Lake Worth, Florida
New Year’s Day (2005) & Feast of the Holy Name of Our Lord Jesus Christ	Canon Richard T. Nolan

You and I mark time in a variety of ways. Our “markers” are points at which we are regularly reminded where we are time-wise as life progresses. As a retiree, I mark time during each day chiefly by mealtimes. Additionally, we have a grandfather’s clock, desk clocks, and a cuckoo clock that sound the hours and their parts. (We shut most of them off at night.) During the span of a week I can often forget what day it is, at least for a few moments, but I do know that the trash has to be put out on Tuesdays and Fridays and church is on Saturdays, and that jogs my memory. I am quite clear about those three days. As to what month it is, that might take a few moments to recall; in retirement one month can blur right into another – unless there is something outstanding about the month - with milestones such as birthdays and anniversaries. Even with regard to the specific year, especially during each January, I am bound to write the wrong year on some bank checks. Although there are other calendar configurations, you and I celebrate today as the first day of the New Year. Today can give us a sense of closure on events of the past twelve months, and we can experience the present day in a holiday spirit as a beginning. I suppose that for some, this is not a welcome opportunity. For some others, it is an indifferent occasion. No doubt, the victims of the tsunami are giving little thought to the passage from 2004 to 2005! For me, this year the New Year’s day further distances me psychologically from the 2004 April through September period of ill health, surgery, convalescence, and hurricanes. The New Year is a symbolic occasion for my personal hope that the coming months will be a healthy period - especially for my partner and myself. At least for a while, January 1, 2005, will be a significant marker that reminds me where I am time-wise as life progresses. The Episcopal Church and many other Churches mark time with liturgical configurations. To get an idea of this way of observing time, sometime you might glance at the Prayer Book section “The Calendar of the Church Year” beginning on page 15. Today in the liturgical year is “The Feast of the Holy Name of Our Lord Jesus Christ.” This is not at all coordinated with New Year’s Day for any special reason. Here is an explanation of today’s observance: The Holy Name of Our Lord Jesus Christ, on January 1, one week after Christmas. St. Luke tells us: “And at the end of eight days, when he was circumcised, he was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb” (Lk. 2:21) This day was called the “Circumcision of Christ” in earlier Prayer Books. The point of the celebration is twofold: In the first place, from the beginning, Jesus’ life was lived as Jewish law required, including circumcision on the eighth day; in the second place, in accordance with Jewish custom, he received his name, Jesus, which means “God will save.” An anticipation and summary of the whole Gospel drama is implied on this day. [1] I would add that “Jesus” is the Greek rendering of “Joshua,” and “Christ” is the Greek for “Messiah” – not Jesus’ last name. Ordinarily, in his day among his people, he would have been known as “Joshua, son of Joseph,” “Joshua of Nazareth,” and the like. Unlike our culture, in the Bible “a human name typically reflects character and mission anticipated in life, which may turn out for either good or ill. It may embody the spiritual vision of parents for their child’s future. In other instances, it is prophetic of future outcomes or events. On the negative side, it may typify a life come to ruin."[2] “Names represented one’s essence, and a person was often given a new name upon entering a new phase of life."[3] To become a Christian, one must be baptized and named at that time; no one is born a Christian. However, in traditional Judaism, an individual is born a Jew, if the child’s mother is Jewish. Girls receive their name in the synagogue shortly after birth. Boys receive their name at their circumcision, a surgical rite “enjoined by God upon Abraham and his descendants (Gn. 17:10-12)[4] and has always been regarded as the supreme obligatory sign of loyalty and adherence to Judaism."[5] The use and significance of circumcision in ancient Hebrew and Christian writings is rich with diversity. In any case, at his circumcision Jesus is given his name and formally recognized as a member of God’s chosen people. The observance of this moment in Jesus’ life is not pivotal; interesting, perhaps, but not a milestone. Only the Gospel according to Luke even mentions it, and, at that, within a highly embellished passage filled with beautiful symbolism. Nonetheless, the Feast of the Holy Name just might serve as a small reminder to some that it was Jesus who personifies God’s Word, and his name is extra special, holy, and deserving of respect. It is not a name to be shouted as an expletive! As we continue our prayers together, I again wish you a Happy New Year, and, additionally, as we begin the new year, may you and I renew our reverence for the Holy Name of Jesus the Christ. *[1] C. P. Price and L. Weil, Liturgy For Living, rev. ed. (Morehouse, 2000), p. 167.* *[2] W. A. Elwell, ed. Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology* (electronic ed.). Baker reference library; Logos Library System. 1997, c1996. [3] “Names,” The Oxford Dictionary of the Jewish Religion (Oxford, 1997), p. 482. [4] ¹⁰This is my covenant, which you shall keep, between me and you and your offspring after you: Every male among you shall be circumcised. ¹¹You shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and you. ¹²Throughout your generations every male among you shall be circumcised when he is eight days old, including the slave born in your house and the one bought with your money from any foreigner who is not of your offspring. [5] “Circumcision,” Oxford Dictionary of the Jewish Religion, p. 161. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ The Gospel - Luke 2:15-21** When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, "Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us." So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger. When they saw this, they made known what had been told them about this child; and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them. But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them. 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.