November 6, 2009
The Bishop's Forum
The other sacraments and the family
by Bishop Gerald A. Gettelfinger
Second of a series: The Sacrament of Baptism is where it all begins!
Expectation is a matter of human existence. Families live with many expectations day by day. The expectation of a new member of a family is singular.
Consider how fathers and mothers share with each other and their children the pending arrival of a new member of the family. There is first the rejoicing or the acceptance of surprise. Then there is the wonderment as to whether it will be a boy or a girl.
Modern technology takes away the element of surprise if parents choose to know the gender of their newborn in advance. In any case there is left the issue of naming their newborn.
Many fathers and mothers who take their Catholic faith seriously search for names of the saints, be they canonized or saintly ancestors. The selection of the name becomes a preoccupation for them. Hearken back to the Scriptures. Mary and Joseph were told what to name their newborn Jesus. Zachary and Elizabeth were told that the newborn was to be called John, not a name that members of the extended family had ever heard. They broke with tradition but remained constant in their decision in spite of familial criticism.
The fickle treatment of the naming of a child was made notorious by Johnny Cash’s course country song: “A Boy Named Sue.”
The name given to a child at birth should be considered sacred. Consideration of the name should be taken seriously as the name given by the parents is equivalent to the social security number assigned by the civic government. It becomes the identity of the child, be it a boy or a girl, nicknames notwithstanding.
Jesus enters the picture when the parents present their God-given child for his adoption in the Sacrament of Baptism. As with Mary and Joseph, Zachary and Elizabeth, the name of a child is not merely a private matter. It is community business. In this case, it is the community we call the Mystical Body of Christ. Jesus respects the name proposed by the parents and makes his own the child by that name as his young brother or sister. Hence the naming by the parents should be one that they consider prayerfully.
In times past, if a baptizing priest did not consider the name to be proper, he would baptize the child with the name of a saint and so record it in the baptismal record — in spite of the name proposed by the parents. In such records some children may bear the name of Joseph or Mary differing from the parental choice.
As a bishop, one of my responsibilities is to see to it that baptismal records are kept both accurately and in a safe place. To that end in recent years, periodically, we have all church records microfilmed and kept off site from the parish.
The Baptismal Records of the Roman Catholic Church are recognized by civic governments as legitimate records when other official records are non-existent. This reality only emphasizes that the name of a child in baptism is a community matter. It is a serious matter. It should also be one of pride for both parents and the child!
The Sacrament of Baptism more often than not is administered privately. It is, nonetheless, a matter for the believing community. All sacraments are actions of the Body of Christ, Head and its members, but not all are celebrated “publicly.” As your bishop, if I had my choice in the matter, all baptisms would be celebrated at the most attended parish Mass on any weekend so that all members of the faithful could rejoice in welcoming a new member! What a time for the extended family of the newborn to celebrate! What a wonderful moment for each and every one of us to recall our own adoption by Jesus at our baptism!
Next week: The Second Sacrament of Initiation: Confirmation