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| Markers and gel pens |
I wish Americans had the legacy that other cultures do where names are chosen because of their meaning. I know we sort of do that in a novelty way but it's not rooted the way it is in, say, the Greek culture where they celebrate a person's naming day.
I have a memory of my mother telling me my grandmother didn't like the name Rhonda because it sounded like the name of a go-go dancer. Mom just said she liked the name.
The significance of naming is evident throughout scripture. Over 700 times "name" is used. In some cases, God is telling someone what their name should be. And most of the time the meaning of the name is explained.
"Now he called his wife's name Eve because she was the mother of all the living."
"...and you shall call his name Ishmael because the Lord has given heed to your affliction."
"No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; for I have made you the father of a multitude of nations."
Without a cultural weight around names I've never felt the weight of the name Christ the way it reads in scripture.
"Simon Peter answered, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.""
Peter using Christ for Jesus was radical and powerful and something that spread like wildfire among the Jews of the day. Jesus never denied or refuted the name and the power of it got Him killed.
The power of it also raised Him from the dead because the name was true. He is the anointed Son of the living God.
"Coloring the Names of God" by Ann-Margret Hovsepian, 2024.
