Saints Peter & Paul  

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In January I came across a news item that said there is some kind of new dictionary of gender-neutral names which parents will be either expected or encouraged to use when naming the children to whom they are giving birth. It gave rise to thoughts I have had over the years about the names I have seen while administering the sacrament of Baptism. 

The Church has consistently urged Catholics to give their children names of the saints. The purpose of that is to enable a child to have a patron saint as a model and/or inspiration for living the Catholic Faith into which the child is baptized.

Although some perhaps over-zealous priests who preceded my era would automatically add the middle name of “Mary” or “Joseph” to a child whose parents had not chosen a saint’s name for their child, the law of the Church does not require a saint’s name for a child. It only says that we may not allow a name which is in opposition to God or the Faith (e.g., “Satan,” or some such name).

I’m both amused and disheartened that there is a professional football player whose first name is that of an Egyptian god while his family name contains the word “St.” That is surely an oxymoron, since no Christian saint would ever choose a pagan god (whom the Bible describes as a “false” or “strange” god) as a name to identify himself/herself.

We know names are important. Notice the practice of groups who reject a culture by changing the meaning of words, or opposing certain words which offend them. Our American culture has plenty of examples of these practices.

Sadly, in our culture it seems that the violation of the Second Commandment (“Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain”) is perfectly acceptable while things such as “the N-word” or other such examples are angrily frowned upon. I suspect that we Catholics would do well to resurrect our “Holy Name Societies” in order to promote anew respect for the names of Jesus and our God.

It also seems pertinent to remind new parents of the purpose of naming their children after saints who will perhaps inspire them to be faithful to God.