They Call Me “Trinity”?

41 thoughts on “They Call Me “Trinity”?”

1. The Hispanic use of the name “Jesus” impresses not those of us who think it’s gauche to begin with, any more than scrapping the skins off your knees crawling up some cathedral steps is OK-by-me because some Mexcan ladies do it. Trinity means God. And I DON’T think anybody but God should be named God (or YHWH, etc.) C’mon.

2. While I don’t agree with Ed’s resistance to the Hispanic use of “Jesus,” that is basically because the name “Jesus” (Yeshua/Joshua) is our Savior’s HUMAN name, shared with other human beings such as Joshua son of Nun. “Trinity,” OTOH, does denote the Godhead itself, and that seems more problematic to me.
   Also, while a Switchboard.com search does turn up some instances of “Trinity” as a FAMILY name (along with a number of church references), taking it as a FIRST name seems again more problematic to me. If someone came up to me and said, “Hi, I’m Agnes Trinity,” I wouldn’t blink, but if they said, “I’m Trinity Smith,” I would definitely find that… troubling, to say the least.
   And while it is obviously true that the word “Trinity” is not “foreign to Christian sensibility” in the same sense as names from other religious traditions (e.g., “Isis,” “Muhammed”), couldn’t the same be said of, say, “Satan”?
   Is it clear that “foreign to Christian sensibility” means only “a word that evokes a non-Christian frame of reference” and not also something like “a word that would be offensive to Christian sensibilities given as a name“?

3. Is all about traditions. My daughter’s name is Rosario Paz and my wife and are considering Trinidad María for our next one (nothing yet, please pray for us).
   In the other and, we’d never consider Faith (Fe) as a name.

4. SDG: right. I once had a call from a pastor: somebody wants to name their kid “Madonna”…I asked, Madonna? Which one?

5. My first impression is that ‘Trinity’ is the name of the girl in the ‘Matrix’ films.
   I don’t think that it is a good given name.

6. Well, I like it. The name serves as a reminder of what/who guides us in our lives and our thinking. It’s actually not that uncommon a name, though American in usage according to Babynames.com so the tradition doesn’t go too far back.
   Good luck Patricio!

7. I don’t see any problem with naming a child after a virtue that you hope they will practice, like Faith or Hope. Naming your child or yourself after God, though? Jesus is God, and we have for instance a litany to the name of Jesus and a song saying there is no sweeter sound than that name. Using it for a child seems very inappropriate to me then, even though it was a common name in the 1st century and before. Is there no Spanish version of Joshua?
   Trinity seems even worse. It is for practical purposes a synonym for God, and who would take the name “God”? One might claim that confirmation (or even baptismal) names are meant to give the child a patron saint or virtue, and making God the patron is even better. I don’t think that works in a practical sense though. It just seems wrong to call yourself God or Jesus or Trinity. Clearly I am not the only one with this sense. If for no other reason than because it is so controversial, I would pick a different name.

8. Mark Scott Abeln –
   That was my thought, and obviously occurred to Jimmy, judging by the title of this post.
   A PVC-clad action hero isn’t exactly the best namesake you could hope for, and taking a name that stands for the mystery of the Godhead seems way presumptuous and familiar.
   There are a whole raft of names of great and inspiring saints out there. Why not pick one that will not cause confusion and consternation?

9. FWIW, this is not an uncommon name down here in DC…

10. OTOH, Patricia’s comment about Trinidad as a possible Spanish name is an interesting bit of counter-evidence.
    OTOH, what works in one culture doesn’t always work in another.

11. JR, Im all for naming a child after a virtue. Esperanza (Hope) is a fairly common name in this side of the world, but Faith isn’t, just cultures.
    Spanish for Joshua is Jesús or, on amore obscure reference “Oseas”.

12. I was under the impression that in Spanish, “Trinidad” was a male name (as in the case of singer/guitarist Trini Lopez).
    I might mention that, not only do Hispanics often name their male children “Jesus,” but Arab Christians often name them “Isa” (Arabic for Jesus).

13. FYI: The difference between “Jesus” (Our Lord) and “Jesús” (Joshua) is in the accent.
    Trinidad is a feminine word because of the ending, but I’ve seen it used as a boy’s name from time to time. “Rosario” (rosary) is a masculine word that’s sometimes used for girls, although I’ve heard Rosaria used as a variation.

14. How many hands does SDG have? 😉

15. Well, maybe Trinidad or Trinitas would be a more acceptable variation in our culture. But I don’t see any real reason to shut down this person’s pious wish to honor the Blessed Trinity.
    (Also, see Donegal Express’ famous story on what the priest told his mother about choosing a confirmation name.)

16. You do have to scroll down a bit for the famous story….

17. Some of my friends named their second daughter Trinity, who is 13 now. Around here, that was a first; nobody thinks twice about her name now. Their first child was stillborn, a daughter whom they had named Regina Coeli. So, anybody here want to cut on that?
    With all due respect, I think some of you folks really need to quit reaching so far to try to find something problematic here.

18. I would have to say that Joshua is closer to the actual name of the Christ than Jesus (at least in pronunciation)… and we are accepting enough of that name. Of course you also have Christy and the like…
    I would however feign from taking the name Trinity for the same reason that a Pope should probably not take the name Peter.
    Can I make a suggestion though… if you are really intent on doing so how about the name “Godhead”…. Now there’s a statement!!!!

19. The word “trinity” in and of itself does not mean “God”, and it is not a name of God, but, as Jimmy wrote, “a description of the nature/existence of God.
    “John” is from the Hebrew that can be translated as “gracious God”.
    We have “Grace” as a name. That’s a quality of God.
    We have “Joy” as a name and a quality of God.
    We have “Joshua” is the same as “Jesus”, in that both derive from one Hebrew name.
    “Michael” is the name of an archangel. It’s translated meaning conveys: “one who is like God”.

20. How many hands does SDG have? 😉

    As many as Tevye! 🙂

21. To Fr. Stephanos and others with similar comments, I think what the names mean in English in practicality is what counts. Joshua and Jesus, despite the common origin, are not at all the same name in the common consciousness. One is a common name originating from Joshua son of Nun, the other a sacred name refering specifically to Jesus Christ. You occasionally hear of Jesus Sirach or others with that name, but that is obscure and strange sounding.
    Many if not most Hebrew names have God somewere in their meanings. That’s the way they did things, though generally they describe an attribute or action of God. We don’t do that in English. Besides, Trinity strictly speaking is not a synonym for God but an attribute of Him, but in a practical sense it becomes a synonym. When we speak of the Blessed Trinity, or any other time we use the word “Trinity” as a noun, except maybe in the context of the Doctrine of the Trinity, we are using it to mean God Himself. If this person is in the United States, I would suggest choosing a different name just because it seems strange to many people. It’s not a big deal, especially because no one calls each other by their confirmation names, but still.

22. Given the First and Second Commandments, such a name for a human person is problematic. On the one hand, to call yourself “Trinity” runs the risk of equating you with God, of calling yourself God, of raising yourself to divine heights. On the other hand, if the name “Trinity” is not used in such an exalted fashion, so as to equate such person with God, then it is using such a name in vain, giving the name less respect than it is due and reducing God to the level of profane human being.
    Just because a certain demographic group has used similar names in the past does not make it right. Just as I would not name my children “Yahweh” or “I am” or “Lord God,” I would not name him or her Trinity or take such a name at baptism or confirmation. It borders dangerously close to mockery and blasphemy.

23. No wait a second here. Calling someone Trinity by no way means the Proper name of God…. It isn’t even the improper name of God. Furthermore, I think that the whole Adonai/tetragrammaton was a bit over-scrupulous if you ask me… We might not call someone strait out “YHWY” but there are certainly names that contain that tetragrammaton… for instance Jesus means “YHWH with us.”
    Trinity is a shorthand way of saying Trinitarian doctrine, which in no way encapsulates all of the Godhead.
    In addition, all of the Saints are part of the Body of Christ… if one continues down this scrupulous path wouldn’t it also be problematic to call someone after a part of the Body of God.
    That just might be my Orthodox theosis view coming through… but I hope I made sense.

24. When I was a child, the pastor of my church was Monsignor Trinity.
    So, the Church didn’t have any issues with ordaining a man with Trinity as a surname. 🙂

25. Trinidad “Trini” Lopez (now 69) bears the same first name as his father. See http://www.trinilopez.com/bio.htm

26. Seamus
    “I was under the impression that in Spanish, “Trinidad” was a male name (as in the case of singer/guitarist Trini Lopez).”
    I’ve never seen it as a male name. It is a femenine noun, so it’s usead as a female name.
    OTOH “Rosario” is a masculine noun (just look at the “o” in the end) but is used as a female name.

27. On the Evangelical radio stations around here we often hear ads for a debt relief company with “Trinity” in the name. Yuck…

28. I was going to mention the not infrequent use of “Trinidad”, which in CO and NM is used by men and women alike, as is “Guadalupe” (the latter often shortened to “Lupe”).
    On a slightly related note, our parish recently confirmed an adult woman whose given name is “Heaven”.

29. “like the name Trinity and i would like to know if its alright for a confirmation name.”
    Have you been watching “The Matrix” too much?

30. “The Hispanic use of the name “Jesus” impresses not those of us who think it’s gauche to begin with”
    How do you feel about Emmanuel?

31. “Is there no Spanish version of Joshua?”
    Yes, there is. It’s Josue, which is not nearly as common as Jesus, but not rare either.

32. It’s much better than being named ‘Bunny’, ‘Candy’, or, much worse, being named after the place where you were conceived, as I have known people to do. I knew a woman who conceived all her children while on vacation in Hawaii, and they were named after the island on which they were conceived. Give me ‘Trinity’ any day! I also know a kid named ‘Landon Sea’ because he was conceived at the seashore. (I REALLY hate it when people tell me these things.)

33. My biggest problem with the name Trinity would be the Matrix connection but that might be attributing more influence to the movie than might be warranted.
    Because it stunk and was a terrible letdown (like all stories born of Gnostic worldviews), there is little reason to think people will think of the movie fondly five years from now or even remember it ten years from now.
    Having a good Catholic take up the name would be one small way of rehabilitating the name “Trinity” and rescue it from the clutches of materialists.
    Of course, you cannot forget the awful pressure of bearing such a godly name.

34. Fr. Stephanos: I’d always read that Michael’s name translates to a question … “Who is like unto God?” … and that it was his battle cry in answer to Satan’s “I will not serve” cry. Is it a question or a statement?
    Yeah, when my wife and I have a son, I figure we’ll call ‘im “Neo.” Y’know, either that or “Smith.”

35. “My biggest problem with the name Trinity would be the Matrix connection but that might be”
    I would suggest to pick a name that avoids any confusing Hollywood connections. Pick well-known Christian names such as St. Luke, the author of Episode IV of the gospels.

36. …Episode III…?

37. Interesting post. The choice of the name opens up the question of the appropriateness of other names which describe an aspect of our belief or of God. Trinity is a ‘cool’ name, and there’s always a vogue for these. Churches, of course, are quite regularly named for God or aspects of him, But it’s also not unheard of to give place names to aspects of God: Trinidad, Corpus Christi, Sangre de Christo mountains, etc.
    Sort of related tangent: A girl was baptized at our Church this weekend. Her given name was “Faith”. During the litany of the saints, the congregations asks for the prayers of numerous saints, including the saint for whom the child is named. If there is no such saint, the priest or deacon skips that part. My problem is that they often skip that part when they shouldn’t. They skipped it in the girl’s case. There is, in fact, a Saint Faith (or perhaps not in ‘fact’; Saint Faith is listed on the Saints Online registry and on the universal calendar, but according to some sholars she seems to be among the apocryphal saints.) But, even more often, people don’t do any research on the name of their baptised child and the local parish is often ignorant of the provenance of comon names. For example, there is no Saint Sean or Saint Ian, so in most cases I’ve seen where a kid is being baptized under one of those names, it’s as if he is not being named for a saint. However, Sean and Ian are just different versions of the name “John”, and there are plenty of Saints John. And, by the way, St. John the evangelist’s name wasn’t really “John” anyway. If anything it was Ιωαννης (Ioannes) or יוֹחָנָן (Yochanan) meaning “YAHWEH is gracious”… (an aspect of God), or whatever the Aramaic version of those names might be…

38. Funny, I look at Jimmy’s headline and punchline, and all I see is references to the old Terence Hill comedy westerns of the 1970s. And trust me, he did not wear PVC :P. Y’all need to get a little less hung up on Matrix, methinks 😉
    PS: count me with those who are uncomfortable w/ the idea of using a divine title as a personal name.

39. Portugal is a staunchly Catholic coutry and there are lots and lots of people who are named “Manuel”, which is a contraction of “Emmanuel”, a word which means “God with us”, and, as we know, is used as a reference to the Son of God.
    As for the hispanic use of Jésus as a given name (this reminds me that the Rector of the Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro is a Spanish priest called Jésus Hortal Sánchez, SJ), I´d like to point out that Spain has been a Catholic coutry for centuries, that it installed Catholicism in its colonies in the American continent; that the Catholic religion was the official religion of those countries for a long time, that the majority of the people in those coutries is still Catholic; that there are several ties between Church and State in those countries; trat not only Christian culture, but speciffically Catholic culture, is deeply entrenched in those societies, especially in Spain itself, and that they have NO PROBLEM at all with the name Jésus. Thus, how can we say that the name Jésus is contrary to Catholic sensibility.
    It may be uncommon in the culture of English-speaking peoples, and I grant that, but it is widely used by Spanish-speaking peoples and it is not contrary to Catholic sensibiliy.
    Given that I am a native speaker of Portuguese, and that in Portuguese the name Jesus is not common (as it is not common in French, or Italian, etc), I would not name one of my sons Jesus. Directly divine names are not common in my native language. However, they are common in Spanish, Spanish today is the most used language worldwide if you count only Catholics, and so I don´t see how a traditional Spanish name like Jesus can be proscribed as contrary to Catholic sensibility.

40. Having taught a confirmation class at our parish last year, I’m sceptical. Seems all too probable to me that the candidate in question “really like(s) the name Trinity” because of The Matrix and not because of the theological concept. This is why we made the candidates write a paper about the saint they were picking, to impress on the the seriousness of the name and to keep them from simply picking something that sounds cool. At least they all knew something about the saint before the bishop called them by that name. If I were this kid’s teacher, I’d be asking why they like the name and using it as an opening to talk about why we choose a confirmation name in the first place.
    My understanding of the tradition has been that the saint we choose becomes our patron, that they are a role model who inspires us and helps us to follow Christ. So I’d encourage a saint’s name.
    And I say this having been one of those kids who picked a name because I thought it sounded cool and not because I had any devotion to the saint. If I were doing it over again today my choice would be different.

41. My name is Trinity, what’s your beef?

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