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Monday, October 15, 2007
Hallowed Be Thy Name
Exodus 3:13-15; Luke 11:1-4
My father's name was Albert Edson Buckley. One of my brothers is named William Edson Buckley. A nephew is Richard Edson Buckley. I wouldn't be surprised if one or more of my 40 or so grand-nephews/nieces owns that middle name as well.
You may well ask, "Who the heck was this Edson guy?" All of us Buckleys have wondered the same thing. So far nobody knows, or much cares. Maybe the name lives on because it's just so musical? Heh heh.
I hope that your family's method for naming babies has more rhyme or reason to it.
But in our culture a name is often chosen because of some favorite celebrity, a character in a popular book or movie, or perhaps to honor a special friend or family member. And sometimes just because it sounds so nice.
In most cases, the name has little meaning in and of itself, but takes on significance as we get to know the person who wears it. Eventually, then, just hearing or reading the words Jack Buckley conjures up all sorts of impressions in the mind of someone who's spent much time in my company.
How different this is from the way names are used in the Bible. And what a difference that makes in the way we use God's name, and in the meaning of our prayer, "Hallowed be thy name."
In the Book of Genesis, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob all received their famous names as markers of their character, virtual prophecies of the way their lives would work out.
So Abraham means "Father of a Multitude" -- and at long last the old man and his barren old wife had a miracle baby whose descendants became the nation of Israel.
That baby was named Isaac, which means "Laughter" -- to remind him and all who met him that his mom-to-be laughed out loud at the prophecy she would have a baby at her ripe old age. God had the last laugh after all.
Then there's Jacob, aka "Supplanter" -- named halfway out of the womb when his seconds-older twin brother was born with Jacob's fist locked tight around his ankle. Talk about your sibling rivalry... This little guy grew up nudging and tricking poor Esau, jockeying for first place every way he could.
So it goes, biblically speaking. Your name is such a powerful descriptor that it makes you who you are, and who you're going to become.
When Moses asked ever so politely at the burning bush (Exodus 3) for God's name -- as in, "How do I know I'm dealing with the Real God here?" -- the answer pretty well floored him.
"I Am Who I Am," God said. And then, "I am the God of Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob. That's who I am."
For a nice Jewish boy like Moses, those few words had a world of meaning.
Through all their ups and downs on the journey of faith, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob never walked a single step without God by their side. What God promised, God performed.
And now God says to Moses, "Well, of course! I mean, that's my name, isn't it? You can count on me... I'll always be the same... True to my self, true to my word... That's my name!"
(By the way, the Jewish people historically respect God's name so highly that they forbid themselves to say it out loud. Modern Christians have tried, with varying results like "Jehovah" or "Yahweh." My friend the rabbi reminds me those are nonsense noises compared to the Hebrew name. He says we might as well pronounce it "Yoo-hoo." Which probably would make a congregation laugh out loud when they really shouldn't.)
Let's see, I had a point some place...
Try this: Praying "Hallowed be thy name" commits you and me to two critically important intentions --
1. Reverence for God's holiness: Anything or anyone that's holy is distinctly different from life's ordinary stuff, so temples and priests and altars are not your usual buildings or workers or tables. And God is pre-eminently everything but ordinary. Even as "Our Father," God is anything but a sentimental Daddy. So remember the reverence.
2. Respect for God's reputation: What the world thinks of God largely depends on the ways God's people behave, so calling yourself by God's name means you represent God for better or worse. Long ago the prophets worked long and hard to get God's people to change their rowdy ways, so other nations would have no excuse to laugh off God's claim on the whole wide world. You and I today are called the same way to let God's glory be our spiritual heartbeat 24/7.
That sounds pretty preachy, doesn't it? And at least a bit demanding. But think in terms of family resemblance, and it makes just plain good sense.
In recent years I've been to family events where a couple of Edsons and a lot of other Buckley types mingle. And I'd swear that, for all the variety of facial features, an outsider would see in a snap that these people are all related to each other. The names just confirm the obvious.
And I'm convinced that if we go by the name of God, then something of God's own character will be obvious to any observer, whether family insider or a watcher from the outside in. If that's so, then our responsibilities for reverence and respect are actually opportunities to become all the more who we really are already -- the holy children of our holy God.
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The proverbial technical difficulties interfered with our efforts to record this week's sermon on The Lord's Prayer. Our apologies for no GODcast, and our pledge to do better next Sunday.
posted by Jack Buckley at
10:58 AM
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