The Most Holy Name of Jesus
"Jn 1:29-34"
The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, "Behold, the Lamb of God , who takes away the sin of the world! This is he of whom I said, 'After me comes a man who ranks before me, for he was before me.' I myself did not know him; but for this I came baptising with water, that he might be revealed to Israel...I saw the Spirit descend as a dove from heaven, and it remained on him...And I have seen and have borne witness that this is the Son of God."
Until then Jesus had been hidden in Nazareth, known only by His parents, some relatives and a few friends. But now the time had come to reveal to all nations that God had sent His Only-Begotten Son to save them. In our Baptism we were made Christians and were given our names, but there was another 'Name' that was given to us in Baptism: the Name of Jesus, so that in that Name we could ask for everything and receive everything through It.
In Harry Potter there are many powerful words (spells) - too many to memorise them all. Some are more useful than others: Expelliarmus is useful to disarm your opponent; Accio can summon objects at will to the caster; Lumos turns on your wand like a torch... and of course, Avada Kedavra supposedly destroys people. Well. Don't waste any time or memory space - they don't work in real life. Instead, the word that can be used for all purposes, especially in this battle against the enemy, is easy to memorise: the Name of Jesus.
Jesus is the Word. Those five letters are the shortest and mightiest prayer ever given to mankind, the most beautiful aspiration to praise God, the loveliest Word to give thanks, the most comforting in time of distress, the most effective in time of temptation; the most powerful to banish the darkness of the enemy, the mist of doubt, the lack of trust; the most invincible prayer against any challenge to our faith, the fire that can burn up the remains of our sins... Jesus is the most compelling Name to be heard from Heaven: "If you ask the Father anything in my name he will give it you," Jesus said.
The Holy Name of Jesus has worked wonders in the past. Mary, Mother of Jesus, how lovely is the Name of your Son. What could be impossible for me if I have that Name on my lips, in my mind, in my heart?
