December 23/Fourth Thursday of Advent
He asked for a tablet and wrote, “John is his name,” and all were amazed. ~ Luke 1.63
The other day I came across a list of baby names that my husband and I had compiled many years ago, as we awaited the birth of our first child. All of them were family names (although we did rule out using the name of my forebear Orange!). Many cultures around the world have specific customs around the naming of children. The new baby is christened with a saint’s name, or called after a tribal leader, or named for an illustrious ancestor. For Elizabeth, the expectation of her society was that the baby whom she had miraculously born would be named after his father, Zechariah, and would follow in his footsteps as a temple priest. One can almost see the neighbors streaming from their houses to bear their congratulations – and expectations – to the aged couple. “They” first try to impose their views on Elizabeth. When that fails — Elizabeth replies quite definitively, “No. He will be called John” — the group seeks a second opinion from Zechariah, who had been struck dumb in his encounter with God’s angel nine months earlier. Having suffered consequences for his own mistrust, the chastened priest now signals that he and his wife will follow God’s direction and name the baby John. It takes courage to stand up to the expectations of “society.” Whether they know us well or not, other people sometimes think they know what’s best for us — and we for them. But the expectations that matter are those of God, not of the neighbors; his instructions are what we should listen for and seek to enact in our lives.
Lord of all places and times, help me keep the claims and expectations of others in perspective, and listen only for your guiding voice within me. Amen.
For today’s readings, click here: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/122321.cfm
To hear Collegium Vocale Gent sing Thomas Ravenscroft’s “Remember, O Thou Man,” click here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vDN5gUgF_OQ
