Feast of the Holy Name of Jesus, January 3
Raphael, Conestabile Madonna, 1504
Blessed be the Holy Name of Jesus! As we celebrate the Feast of the Holy Name of Jesus, we encourage you to recall the importance of this name in our Christian sacred history and in our SNJM sacred history.
We are told that the Semites in Jesus' time believed that a person whose name was spoken was actually present to one speaking the name with reverence and love. This belief was also held by the early Christians, including the Byzantine Eastern Christians, who during prayer synchronized their breathing with the repeated invocation of the holy name of Jesus.
This prayer resonated in the heart of Mother Marie Rose. During her final illness, the Sisters often heard her repeating the name of Jesus. A sampling of the words inscribed on the painting below, designed by her, testify to the importance Mother Marie Rose placed upon the name of Jesus throughout her life.
Upon awakening I will call upon Jesus.
To write and speak I will listen to Jesus.
I will eat my meals near my Jesus.
I will rest under the eyes of Jesus.
I wish to live and die united to Jesus.
And my heart will fall into the heart of Jesus.
I will carry my cross and follow my Jesus.
The name of Jesus was on the lips, in the heart, and in the thoughts of Mother Marie-Rose day and night!
Courtesy the Sisters of the Holy Names, Quebec Province