His Name Is John
The Nativity of St. John the Baptist
Today's reading · Luke 1:57-66, 80
On the eighth day they came to circumcise the child, and they were going to name him Zechariah after his father. But his mother said, 'No; he will be called John.' Then they asked his father. He asked for a writing tablet and wrote, 'His name is John.' Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue freed, and he began to speak, blessing God.
The whole scene turns on a name. A baby is born, the neighbors are thrilled, and at the circumcision everyone assumes the obvious: name him Zechariah, after his father. That is simply how it is done. Elizabeth says no. He will be called John. They are baffled, because no one in the family carries that name, so they turn to the father, who has been mute for nine months ever since he doubted the angel. They make signs to him. He asks for a tablet and writes four words. His name is John. And the instant he does it, the instant he stops arguing and simply obeys, his mouth opens, his tongue is freed, and the first thing out of him is praise. The silence that began in doubt ends in blessing. It is worth noticing what had to happen first. Zechariah does not get his voice back by explaining himself or by getting an answer he likes. He gets it back by yielding, by letting the name be what God said it would be instead of what the custom expected. John means God is gracious, and the whole hill country, watching all this unfold, starts asking the right question. What then will this child be. Wonder breaks out over a newborn. Sometimes the thing blocking our praise is not a lack of faith exactly. It is our grip on how things are supposed to go, and the freedom comes the moment we let God do the naming.
Today's intention
Today I'll loosen my grip on how one thing is supposed to go and let God name it.