January 2, 2026
Summary of the Morrow’s Meditation
We will consider tomorrow that the name of Jesus, which was given to the Child-God the day of His circumcision, is: 1st, a name of greatness and majesty which commands respect; 2nd, a name of mercy and salvation which inspires confidence; 3rd, a name of sweetness and tenderness which calls for all our love. We will then make the resolution: 1st, always to pronounce this divine name with respect, confidence, and love, and often to repeat it in the manner of an aspiration; 2nd, to pay special attention to the name of Jesus, which enters into the conclusion of all our prayers, remembering that from it our prayers derive all their value; 3rd, not to speak of Our Lord in ordinary language by other names, such as the Christ, the Master, but to call Him by His true name (Matt. i. 21). Our spiritual nosegay shall be the words of St. Bernard: “O Jesus, be Jesus to me,” that is to say, Saviour.
Meditation for the Morning
Let us adore the Incarnate Word taking the name of Jesus on the day of His circumcision. Let us render to Him the homage of our praise, of our gratitude and our love. Let us beg Him to enable us to realize the excellence of this sacred name, which is the joy of heaven, the consolation of earth, the terror of hell.
FIRST POINT
The Name of Jesus is a Name of Greatness and of Majesty which Commands Respect.
O Lord my God, how admirable and great is Thy name! It is, in the opinion of St. Paul, a worthy recompense for all Thy humiliations and sufferings. On hearing it pronounced every knee should bow in heaven, on earth, in hell, and every tongue ought to confess that Thy glory is incomparable (Philipp. ii. 9, et seq.). Thy name is great on account of its origin; it is from heaven that it comes to us; an angel received it from the mouth of the heavenly Father, and brought it to earth. It is great because of its signification, for it signifies Saviour, that is to say, a person infinite in charity to the extent of sacrificing Himself for our salvation, and infinite in majesty, giving to this sacrifice an infinite value, alone capable of paying such a debt! It is great in heaven, where it appeases divine justice, and changes the lightnings of heaven into showers of grace (Ps. cxxxiv. 7; Jer. li. 56). It is great upon earth, where it works miracles and sanctifies the elect. It is great in hell, where it enchains the fury of the devils. It is great everywhere, and so great that it is above all names, above even the name of Jehovah, for the name of Jehovah only represents to me God as Creator of heaven and of earth; but the name of Jesus designates the Author of a better world: of a supernatural world, of the world of grace. The name of Jesus raises me high above the order of nature; it makes me behold, issuing from the bosom of the Father, an adorable Victim, ineffable sacraments, inestimable graces; it enables me to see man redeemed and sanctified, the universe repaired and changed; a Man-God, consecrated by His Father as Eternal Priest, King immortal throughout the ages; it enables me to behold in one and the same person the perfections of God and of man, grandeur joined with goodness abasing itself to my condition; mercy united with justice, meekness and divine benignity rendered visible upon earth. O Lord, may all nations confess the greatness of Thy name, because it is so holy and venerable that it makes us tremble with awe (Ps. xcviii. 3), and has nothing in common with ordinary names, which only excite indifference and coldness in our souls.
SECOND POINT
The Name of Jesus is a Name of Mercy and Salvation which Inspires Confidence.
St. Paul has said: “Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved” (Acts ii. 21); it is through Him that we obtain salvation (Acts iv. 12); Jesus Christ Himself said so to His apostles: My name renders prayer all-powerful (John xvi. 23), and the Church teaches it to us by her practices. It is in the name of Jesus that she prays, that she administers the sacraments, that she blesses us from the cradle to the grave. The history of centuries confirms it; it shows to us all the miracles worked in the name of Jesus. By this name the disciples perform greater wonders than their Master; in the name of Jesus the lame walk, lepers are cured, the blind see, the deaf hear, the dumb speak, the paralytics recover the use of their limbs, death gives up its victims, heaven is opened to the sinner who is converted by this divine name. In the name of Jesus devils are put to flight; lions, forgetting their ferocity, respect the martyr who has the name of Jesus on his lips. In the name of Jesus chains fall from the hands of the captive, the gates of prisons open, the elements obey, the raging sea is calmed, and the earth transports mountains. Oh, who would not have confidence in this divine name; who would not invoke it in time of need? “Our help is in the name of the Lord” (Ps. cxxiii. 8); “Blessed is the man whose trust is in the name of the Lord” (Ps. xxxix. 5). In temptations and trials, in sickness and infirmities, in anxiety and fears, it is the name of Jesus we must invoke, says St. Bernard.
THIRD POINT
The Name of Jesus is a Name of Sweetness and Tenderness which Exacts Love.
He who says Jesus, says everything that is most amiable, most loving, most sweet, most perfect. He who says Jesus, says the most generous, the most disinterested of friends, to the extent of devoting Himself wholly for those whom He loves, the Friend who lives only for His friends, who ceaselessly watches over their interests, intercedes for them with the Father as their Mediator and Pontiff, pleads their cause by the voice of all His wounds, as their charitable advocate. The oftener we repeat Jesus, the more we find therein of charm and amiability, the more we appreciate it, and the more the heart is filled with love. Therefore the saints were never tired of repeating it, and of enjoying the savor of it. St. Paul repeats it as often as two hundred and forty-three times in his fourteen epistles. St. Augustine has not enough words to say what he finds of sweetness in this divine name. The sweetness of the name of Jesus, says St. Bernard, throws me into a kind of ecstasy; all is insipid to me without the name of Jesus; Jesus is honey in my mouth, melody in my ears, jubilation in my heart. Is it thus that we appreciate this divine name? Let us never pronounce it except with respect and confidence, with love and delight.
Resolutions and spiritual nosegay as above.