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THE HOLY NAME OF JESUS

A holy day in honor of the Holy Name dates back to the end of the Middle Ages when it was popularized by the Franciscans as a way of obeying the injunction of St. Paul in his letter to the Philippians (2:10) “at the name of Jesus, every knee should bow in heaven, on earth, and in the depths…” as well as serving to counterbalance the unfortunate use of the name of Jesus as profanity. Originally celebrated on the Second Sunday after the Epiphany, in some places it was shifted to a spot in the first week of the year and in other calendars, it was commemorated on August 7th.

As a special feast day, the Holy Name of Jesus is new to the American Episcopal Church, having been inserted in the calendar as a major holy day in 1979. By being placed on January 1st, it replaces the older commemoration of the Circumcision, much to the relief of Preachers and Sunday School teachers who found that event a bit difficult to explain to young children!

The New Testament is clear in assigning great meaning and significance to the name. The disciples perform miracles and exorcisms by invoking the name of Jesus. In his first letter to the Corinthians (6:11) St. Paul teaches its efficacy for our justification. For many centuries religious medals with the monogram IHS have been given to newly-baptized infants as well as worn by adults. The name of Jesus (in Hebrew, Joshua or Yeshua) or simply “The Holy Name” is sometimes used as the title for churches and religious communities in the Anglican and Roman Catholic Churches.

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Collect for the Feast of the Holy Name of Jesus

Eternal Father, you gave to your incarnate Son the holy name of Jesus to be the sign of our salvation: Plant in every heart, we pray, the love of him who is the Savior of the world, our Lord Jesus Christ; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, in glory everlasting.

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To learn more about the Feast of the Holy Name of Jesus from Wikipedia.org, click here.

This page last modified on Friday, April 11, 2008 09:39 PM