Sermon XIII: 
The Holy Name of Jesus

" I will rejoice in the Lord, and I will joy in God my Jesus."-----HAB. 3, 18

      The higher and the grander the calling was to which God has chosen individual men for the salvation of nations and the world, the more glorious are their names. God Himself gave to them their names. He gave to Abraham and John the Baptist their names, and Our Divine Savior Himself changed the name of the Apostle Simon into Peter on account of his living and firm faith, and called him the rock on which He would build His Church.

      Still more glorious, sweeter and more marvelous is the name of the Blessed Virgin Mary, which embraces within itself a fullness of mysteries, graces and beauties, and fills the whole world with reverence, love and hope, lives on every tongue and in every heart, and disseminates peace and joy.

     And yet, my beloved, what are all the glorious names of men, of the Saints and even of the Blessed Virgin Mary in comparison with the one name Jesus which reveals the whole fullness of Divine mercy, redemption and grace, and makes known to us the Divine Savior in all His adorable greatness? Of this great name the Apostle St. Peter says: 

"Neither is there salvation in any other. For there is no other name under Heaven given to men, whereby we must be saved." [Acts 4, 12] This is the Name that is above every name, in which, according to the Apostle St. Paul, every knee must bow, in Heaven, on earth and under the earth, and every tongue must confess that our Lord Jesus Christ is in the glory of God the Father. I will therefore, speak today for our edification on the meaning and power of the name Jesus.

   O Jesus, assist us with Thy grace!

   1. No man, no prophet, no Saint, not even Joseph and Mary could give to the Divine Child a suitable name, which would truly correspond to His future name and glory. God alone could give this glorious Name and hence Joseph was commanded through the Angel: "Thou shalt call His name Jesus." [Matt. 1, 21] In fact, this Name is the sum, or the epitome, of all the glories and perfections which are found in Jesus Christ. It reveals all perfections which are proper to Jesus as God, and all the graces and virtues which Jesus united in Himself as man. It unveils before us all the works which Jesus as God and as man accomplished for us men. If, therefore, the Redeemer is and means Jesus, He is infinitely wise, good, omnipotent, just, holy and merciful, as God is eternal Goodness, Wisdom, Omnipotence, Justice, Sanctity and Mercy. These Divine perfections Jesus shows also towards us. Therefore the Apostle St. Paul says: "But of Him are you in Christ Jesus, Who of God is made unto us wisdom, and justice, and sanctification and redemption." [1 Cor. 1, 30]

But if we consider the Redeemer as man, the name Jesus tells us everything, that He became for us as man, therefore an example of all virtues, marvelously humble, patient, meek, amiable and obedient. As man Jesus is truly become for us an Example and Exemplar, as He Himself says: "For I have given you an example that as I have done to you, so do you also." [John 13, 15] O how touching was His life from the crib to the Cross! How winning His childlike obedience, His zeal in prayer, His love of His enemies, His meekness and His silence! What was more dignified and admirable than His intercourse with the Apostles, with sinners, with children, with the people, even with His enemies! In the mirror of His peace and of His love, into His eye, even His enemies gladly looked; and no matter what sufferings overtook Him, even in suffering and pain, in life and in death, He is a most admirable example for all who suffer, are in sorrow, or struggling in the agony of death. 

Therefore the Apostle St. John exclaims: "Of His fullness we have all received," from the fullness of His example and His virtues. He has truly become a mirror for all men in which all can behold themselves and the Exemplar Jesus, and recognize themselves as they really are in Him.
   If the Redeemer is as God and as man Jesus, then is He truly, according to the meaning of the name, our Master, Teacher, Shepherd, Physician, Father, Judge and Mediator, so that we find everything in Jesus, and can with truth often repeat: "O Jesus, my all." If we are sick, He is our Health; if we are hungry and thirsty, He is our Food and Drink for eternal life; if we are poor, He is our Riches; if we are weak, He is our Strength; if ignorant, He is our Teacher and our Wisdom; if sinners, He is our Justice, Sanctification and Redemption. Jesus, our All.

   2. The name Jesus therefore embraces within itself all the glorious names which the prophets gave to the Messias centuries before His coming. Isaias foretold: "And His Name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, God the Mighty, the Father of the World to come, the Prince of Peace." [Is. 9, 6] How truly and gloriously do these designations and qualities correspond to the name Jesus! If He were not God, He could not have redeemed us; if He were not a mighty Hero, He could not have overcome Satan, nor have born His bitter Passion; and if He were not our Counselor He could not have given to us His heavenly teaching and His Commandments.

       Everything in Him is marvelous, His Incarnation, His Life, His Death, His Resurrection and Ascension into Heaven. He is the Father of the past ages, since all men from Adam on hoped in Him; He is the Lord of the present, since He rules everything; He is the Lord of the future and of eternity, since He pronounces judgment; and eternal bliss or eternal pain are decreed to men according as they have loved Him or have hated Him. For this reason the Apostle St. Peter says to the Jews: "Neither is there salvation in any other name, for there is no other name under Heaven given to man whereby we may be saved," or as the Apostle St. Paul in his glorification of the Savior of the world testifies: "God hath given Him a name which is above all names; that in the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those that are in Heaven, on earth, and under the earth: and that every tongue should confess that the Lord Jesus is in the glory of God the Father." [Phil. 2, 9, 11]

       For this reason, centuries before the events, the prophet Habacuc rejoiced at the coming of the Blessed Savior, and at all His glory: "I will rejoice in the Lord, and joy in God my Jesus!" He, the prophet, reviews in his mind all the promises of God, all that the former prophets and patriarchs had foretold, all the longing of the just, and the expectation of the nations. Therefore he cannot restrain his feelings, and He rejoices in God his Jesus. And with him rejoices the whole ancient world; with him rejoices Limbo where the Souls of the just waited with indescribable longing, until Jesus should have come down to them as their glorious Redeemer. 

   And yet, what is the joyful cry of the prophet Habacuc, what is the longing of the ancient world, in comparison to the joy of the Blessed Virgin, and with her the whole Christian world over Him Whom they should call Jesus? "My soul doth magnify the Lord, and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Savior," in my Jesus! She alone, the Blessed Virgin, was at that time able to grasp the immeasurable greatness, glory and sanctity of Him Whom the Angel bade her to call Jesus. And in fact, my beloved, the whole Christian world shares in her joy, and joins in her praise of God, the Savior. Millions and millions of Christian souls feel themselves most fortunate, consoled and strengthened in every position of life, in joy and in sorrow, in life and in death, at the thought of Jesus. This Name is a Name which is above every name, which the Apostle declares that no one can with advantage, grace, salvation and blessing for time and eternity so much as pronounce, except by the Holy Ghost. 

3. And, truly, the name Jesus has a remarkable power and efficacy. In it is united all the brilliancy and blessing of Christianity; in it all graces, all merits, all virtues, all prayers, all sacrifices; in it are faith, hope and charity, peace, joy and justice, temporal and eternal weal. Jesus is the admiration of Heaven, the gratitude of earth, the terror of Hell. Jesus is music to the ear, honey to the mouth, joy to the heart. Jesus, Savior, Redeemer, High Priest and King; Preacher and Exemplar, Physician and Shepherd, Food and Drink, Jesus the true Life on earth, true Bliss in Heaven! Who can count all the souls that have been redeemed through Jesus and made happy? Who can number all the sinners who have found forgiveness for their sins in the name of Jesus? Who could count all the  sorrowful and the sick who have been consoled by the Name of Jesus, who all the poor and the miserable who have found help in the Name of Jesus? Who could count the numberless sighs, tears and prayers that have gone from earth up to the throne of God, and found a hearing on account of Jesus? Yes, even the prattle of innocent children, when they fold their hands for the first time and recite the Our Father, becomes precious in the sight of God on account of Jesus. Who can recount all the glorious, magnificent works of Christian mercy, the deep love of God and neighbor, such as the world never witnessed before the Christian era? The Name of Jesus called them into existence. Yes, as the sun in the morning and evening glorifies everything and floods all things with charming beauty, forest and field, hill and dale, pasture and meadow too, the Name of Jesus glorifies, beautifies and ennobles all life, all virtue, all time, Heaven and earth.

   May we also, my beloved, give honor to Jesus by Christian life, by observance of His Commandments gratitude and joy. May we also join in the song of praise of the prophet, or in the joy of the Blessed Virgin, at the very thought of such a glorious Redeemer. Therefore when you speak the Name of Jesus speak it not in scorn by misuse or contempt, by sin or unChristian life. Just as the Name of Jesus was spoken for the first time on earth by the pure lips of the Archangel Gabriel, and at its first utterance was destined only for the ear of the purest of virgins, Mary, in precisely the same manner should we with pure mouth and pure heart utter this Most Holy Name, that it may become for us salvation and blessing, grace and redemption. "Jesus my Love," was the favorite utterance of the holy bishop Ignatius. And he repeated it in his sufferings, and when the Pagans threatened to behead him if he uttered it again, he said: "In that event you would find engraven on my heart the words: 'Jesus my Love.' " May Jesus be also our Love. May Jesus rise with us, accompany us to our work, to prayer, to devotions; Jesus in life and in death, Jesus praised and blessed forever. Amen. 

E-MAIL


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