A reader writes:
My girlfriend is teaching the Confirmation class at her parish this year, and the confirmandi just picked their saint names. One of them chose the name Moses. I know the greats of the Old Testament are generally considered saints in their own right (or at least, that’s my understanding), but can an Old Testament name be used for Confirmation?
Confirmandi? Wasn’t that an old Jack Kirby comic published by DC? The Last Boy In The Church or something?
(Sorry. Just kidding.)
The answer is that there isn’t a rule here. Canon law does not presently make any provision regarding confirmation names.
As a result, one is free to take a name or not take a name, and there are no canonical restrictions on what such names might be.
That’s not to say that there are no moral limitations on what one could choose. If an uppity young ‘un wanted to take "Hitler" as a confirmation name then the others involved would be quite entitled to say "Nix on that."
A good rule of thumb to follow, though it doesn’t have canonical force when it comes to confirmation, would be what the Code of Canon Law says about baptismal names:
Can. 855
Parents, sponsors, and the pastor are to
take care that a name foreign to Christian sensibility is not given.
"Moses" is not a name that is foreign to Christian sensibility. It may be a name that has Jewish resonances, but it’s part of the Judeo-Christian patrimony, and so it would not be a problem for a confirmand to take this name.
Could be Old Testament Moses. But it could also be St. Moses the Black! St. Moses the Black is one of my all time favorite african Saints.
Check it out:
http://www.catholic-forum.com/Saints/saintm34.htm
.
For long centuries, the Church has referred to certain Old Testament persons as “Saints.”
The ancient MARTYROLOGIUM ROMANUM (the Church’s official “calendar book” of saints) that was re-edited and re-published in 2001 lists the days of several Old Testament saints–and calls them by the title “Saint”.
Saint Moses, September 4.
====
That’s an excerpt from a longer I posted at:
http://www.jimmyakin.org/2006/02/old_testament_s.html#comments
.
http://www.stmaryofegypt.net/saints_moses.shtml
Another St. Moses website…
Hi Jimmy,
As a “Recovering Protestant” I’m thrilled that I found your site today! My journey to the Church has been spurred on in no small part by all of the reflection and attention given to the life of Pope John Paul II that followed his death. I’ll be begining RCIA at our fantastic local parish after Easter, and was just asking my wife (herself a cradle Catholic) last week if I’d be allowed to take the name Karol in his honor. We were unsure if it had to be a saint’s name or not.
Thanks to what you’ve written here, I’m very happy to learn that I can in fact do this. My question to you is, would it be more appropriate to choose “Karol” or “John Paul”?
Thanks for your excellent site!
Blessings,
– Scott
I am thinking a bit out of the box, by picking a male name along with a female name to use as my confirmation name – Mary Magdalene Jude.
Mary Elephant? JUST KIDDING.
Scott Smith: First of all, welcome home. I believe that “Karol” is the Polish variation of Charles, and we certainly have some canonized saints named “Charles”. Also quite a few named “John” and “Paul”. And, hopefully, soon a canonized saint named “John Paul”.
Thanks for the welcome, Bill! I still have a year of RCIA to go through, but it’s a journey I’m eagerly anticipating.
I was saying to my wife that “Karol” would be my first choice, and “John Paul” would certainly be fine if the priest or Bishop deemed it more appropriate. Most everyone agrees he was an excellent Pope, but I was particularly impressed by the story of his life before the papacy, and since it was his “pre-papal” life that touched and inspired me, it’s a bit more special to me to choose “Karol”.
Another possibility would be “Karol Joseph” since Karol Wojtyla’s middle name was “Jozef” and Joseph was also my grandfather’s name.
The other part is that since Pope John Paul II passed away just two days after our first child was born, we had seriously considered using “Karol” as our little guy’s middle name. We decided instead to stay with our original plan and honor our dear friend who is now Steven’s Godfather. (Not coincidentally, this friend is also a recent convert.) While perhaps less visible and significant than naming our child after him, I see this as one way I can follow through on our desire to honor the life of Karol Wojtyla.
It would appear that you’ve also inadvertently answered an interesting issue which we’ve also wondered about. If JPII is canonized, he would be referred to by “Saint John Paul” as opposed to “Saint Karol”? Either way, I certainly hope that he is made a saint!
How about Ioannes Paulus Carolus Ioseph?
Scott,
Customarily, Popes who are canonized are named by their papal name. For example, St. Pius X.
And some of us got “stuck” with “Saint” Christopher.
There are several saints named Christopher, too.
Besides, just because the traditional legend doesn’t have enough historical backing for the Vatican to want St. Chris in the calendar, that doesn’t mean the St. Christopher didn’t exist. It just means we don’t know much about him. This is not exactly uncommon, as there were tons of saints and martyrs running around whom we no longer know much about. However, the fact that the Church remembered them enough to have legends about these folks is itself evidence that they did exist and do impressive good things.
http://www.catholicexchange.com/vm/index.asp?vm_id=6&art_id=24590
Here’s an article about the matter.
Maureen,
So which one of the St. Christophers is protecting my car these days? or the other patronages i.e.
“Patronage
against lightning; against pestilence; archers; automobile drivers; automobilists; bachelors; Baden, Germany; boatmen; bookbinders; Brunswick, Germany; bus drivers; cab drivers; epilepsy; epileptics; floods; fruit dealers; fullers; gardeners; hailstorms; holy death; lightning; lorry drivers; mariners; market carriers; Mecklenburg, Germany; motorists; pestilence; porters; Rab Croatia; sailors; Saint Christopher’s Island; Saint Kitts; storms; sudden death; taxi drivers; toothache; Toses, Girona, Catalonia, Spain; transportation; transportation workers; travellers; truck drivers; truckers; watermen”
I have a few medals and statues you can have cheap. Exactly who got the profits from these anyway?
Oh Realist,
Our Blessed Lord asks if today you hear His voice, harden not your heart.
…do not be faithless, but believing…Blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe.
I hope you are having a prayerful Lent.
Take care and God bless,
Inocencio
J+M+J
Oh Inocencio,
Prayers? Hmmm, if God put this Earth in rotation and supplied all the necessary ingredients, and cannot by His/Her own laws interfere with said rotation and ingredients (e.g. Katrina, earthquakes and tsunamis) prayer is limited to quiet time of reflection. And in 2000 years when the magnetic fields currently protecting Earth disappear, God’s laws will still rule the universe but without the evolutionary wonder of the earthly human race.
BTW, who is the Patron Saint of earth’s magnetic fields?
Realist,
When you stop commenting here I will know you actually believe what you say you believe. Until then I am happy you are still here and God willing learning about the faith you say you hold.
Take care and God bless,
Inocencio
J+M+J
Inocencio,
But then you would not have an opportunity to defend our elitist, “AARPy” white man, “old time” religion. 🙂 And don’t we have a responsibity to refind our religion if indeed there are major problems especially in the area of tithing/taxation without representation?
Realist,
We have a responsiblity to be faithful and obedient following Our Blessed Lord’s example.
Tithing and taxation could not be more different. I would have guessed that even you knew the difference.
Truth is Truth not matter time, place or college degrees. I still pray someday you understand that and “refind” your Catholic Faith.
Take care and God bless,
Inocencio
J+M+J
Exactly!
Realist, in your typo, you actually stumbled across more truth than in all your other posts combined!
We do not need to refine THE faith, we need to re-find OUR faith.
“But then you would not have an opportunity to defend our elitist, “AARPy” white man, “old time” religion. :)”
But Realist, you don’t HAVE our elitist “AARPy” white man religion.
You have an amorphous, New-Agey, white woman religion. You know, the religion of wealthy, urban feminists.
In that sense, a sincere Muslim would be closer to the truth.
Tim J. et al,
Refind as in refinding the roots of Catholicism practiced by the first Souls of Distinction without all the trappings and with equal representation of all God’s children in the leadership of said souls.
Realist,
“Refind as in refinding the roots of Catholicism practiced by the first Souls of Distinction”
You ignore when quoted and deny the writings of the early Church fathers and now you are going to say we need to refind them?
Well today is your lucky day, here they are:
http://www.newadvent.org/fathers/
Reading their actual writings is a wonderful way to spend Lent, enjoy!
Take care and God bless,
Inocencio
J+M+J
Apparently, some people think finding a list of names is the same as finding the roots of Catholicism.
No-name,
Unless you read them you will never know and you will just remain a legend in your own mind.
Take care and God bless,
Inocencio
J+M+J
I’m no legend. Perhaps you think you are.
No-name,
But are you going to read any of the writings of the early Church fathers?
Take care and God bless,
Inocencio
J+M+J
Does your faith come from books?
“I was getting tired of being only one responding to to the other side. 2 monologues don’t equal a dialongue.”
You contradict your own words. Why not as a courtesy to other answer questions yes or no? See Matt. 5:37
My Faith is a gift from God. I learn about my Faith from the Church He established to proclaim, teach and sanctify.
Take care and God bless,
Inocencio
J+M+J