37 — THE NAME OF JESUS

January 2

Presence of God. — O Jesus, let me understand the mysteries and treasures enclosed in Your sweetest name.

Meditation

1 — This feast is a complement to that of the Circumcision, the occasion on which the name Jesus was imposed on the Child. But while in the Circumcision we have considered above all the humiliation of the Son of God, today the Church invites us to consider and celebrate the glories of His name.

Glories which, as St. Paul warns us, spring precisely from His prodigious humiliations: “Brethren: Christ humbled Himself, becoming obedient unto death, even unto death on a cross. Therefore God exalted Him and gave Him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee may bow” (Phil. 2, 8-10). Thus sings the Church in the Office of the day, inviting all her children to render grateful and devout homage to Him who so greatly humbled Himself for us.

Responding to this invitation, the heart of every Christian must exalt the most holy name of his Savior, and this is equivalent to exalting His very person, because the name Jesus expresses precisely His being: the being of Savior, of Redeemer. This blessed name was imposed on Him by God Himself, who by the mouth of the Angel revealed it to Mary and to Joseph: “you shall call Him Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins” (Mt. 1, 21). This name expresses and synthesizes the great mysteries of the Incarnation and Redemption and stands at the center of the universe as point of contact, as bridge of conjunction between God and all humanity. Only through Jesus and in the name of Jesus can man reach God: “for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we may expect to be saved” (Ep.: Acts 4, 8-12).

2 — Today’s Mass, taking up St. Paul’s thought, offers us a majestic image of the glory due to the blessed name of Jesus: “At the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of heavenly beings, and of earthly, and of those under the earth; and every tongue confess that the Lord Jesus Christ is in the glory of God the Father” (Introit). The Church triumphant, the Church militant, the Church suffering are prostrate in adoration; it seems that all creation falls silent and pauses a moment in its course to hear that most holy name in which is all glory for God and all salvation for humanity. Truly “neither tongue can tell it, nor writing express” the precious treasures enclosed in the name of Jesus. “No song is sweeter, no sound more joyful, no thought more pleasant than Jesus, Son of God” (BR.). “An oil poured out is Your name” (Cant. 1, 2), says Sacred Scripture, and St. Bernard comments: “Oil indeed illumines, nourishes, and anoints... Now observe the same concerning the Bridegroom’s name: it illumines when preached, nourishes when meditated, soothes and anoints when invoked... Dry is every food of the soul if it is not sprinkled with this oil; it is tasteless if not seasoned with this salt. If you write, it tastes of nothing to me, unless I read Jesus in it. If you dispute or speak, it does not please me unless I hear Jesus in it. Jesus is honey to the mouth, melody to the ear, jubilation to the heart. But He is also medicine” (BR.). Let us bless and invoke with love this sweetest name in which lies all our hope and salvation, in which lies our life and our glory. Only one who loves can penetrate the mysterious sweetnesses enclosed in it; only one who loves can praise it effectively, not only with words, but also with works and bear witness to it with his whole life. “May our voice sing You, O Jesus; may our conduct express You; may our hearts love You, now and forever” (BR.).

Colloquy

“O glorious name, gracious name, loving and powerful name! Through You faults are remitted, through You enemies are conquered, through You the sick are healed, through You those who suffer are comforted in adversity! You are the honor of believers, the teacher of preachers, the comfort of workers, the support of the weak, and by Your burning fire holy desires are nourished, necessary aids are obtained, contemplative souls are inebriated, and the triumphant are glorified in heavenly glory! By Your most holy name, O sweetest Jesus, grant that we too may reign with the blessed, You who are the glorifier of all the blessed, You who triumph glorious with the Father and with the Holy Spirit, in perfect unity and trinity for all ages of ages.

“O name of Jesus, exalted above every other name! O name of triumph! O joy of angels, O terror of hell! In You is all hope of pardon, of grace, of glory! O sweetest name, You grant pardon to sinners, reform morals, fill the fearful with divine sweetness, drive away frightful phantoms! O most glorious name! Through You are revealed the mysteries of divine love, souls are inflamed with divine love, strengthened in battles, and are set free from all dangers! O desirable name, delightful name, admirable, venerable name! You, by means of gifts and graces, raise little by little the minds of the faithful to the heights of heaven, so that all those who share and enter into the piety of Your ineffable greatness obtain by Your power salvation and glory!” (St. Bernardino of Siena).

O Lord, Your name is good, and grant that its goodness may render me, unworthy creature, capable of loving and praising it with all my heart.

I want every work of mine to begin and end in Your name, that all my affections, desires, undertakings, joys and sorrows may bear its seal; but above all, I beg You, imprint Your name in my heart and in my mind so that I may always love You and think of You.