The Most Holy Name of Jesus (Memorial)

JESUS, the name above all names.

Whenever we say or call His holy name, 

we ought to bow our heads or/and kneel 

for His holy name reminds us 

of the greatest favour we have ever received 

from God the Father, 

"our Salvation"

in saving us from our sin by the agony, suffering and death 

of His only begotten Son on the Cross.

God Loves Us

JESUS,

Our Saviour,

Our Redeemer,

Our Armour,

Our Healer,

and 

Our Provider.

JESUS in Your Holy Name 

I TRUST in Thee.

Jesus was the perfect unblemished lamb offered by the Father in heaven as the one and only sacrifice that could cancel the debt of sin, and free us from death and the destruction of body and soul in hell.

God exalted him to the highest place

and gave him the name that is above every name,

that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,

in heaven and on earth and under the earth,

and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord,

to the glory of God the Father.

~ Philippians 2:9-11 ~

The memorial of the Most Holy Name of Jesus is celebrated by the Roman Catholic church on 3 January and it is an optional memorial.

I.H.S a monogram of the Jesuit (the Society of Jesus) stands for Iesus Hominum Salvator in Latin which means Jesus, Saviour of man. Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world as declared by John the Baptist. It also stands for In His Service. In the middle ages when JESUS name was written as "IHESUS", therefore I.H.S was the abbreviation for the holy name of Jesus where the first, second and last characters form it.

Prayer to the Holy Name

JESUS, 

Name full of glory, grace, love and strength! 

You are the refuge of those who repent, 

our banner of warfare in this life, 

the medicine of souls, 

the comfort of those who morn, 

the delight of those who believe, 

the light of those who preach the true faith, 

the wages of those who toil, 

the healing of the sick.

To You our devotion aspires; 

by You our prayers are received; 

we delight in contemplating You. 

O Name of JESUS, 

You are the glory of all the saints for eternity.

AMEN.

~ St. Bernardine of Siena ~

O sweet Name of JESUS, 

holy above all names in heaven and on earth, 

and to which every knee, 

both of men and of angels 

in heaven, on earth and in hell bends. 

 You are the the way of the just, 

the glory of the saints, 

the hope of those in need, 

the balm of the sick, 

the love of the devout 

and the consolation of those that suffer.

O, JESUS be to me a help and a protector 

so that your Name may be blessed for all times. 

AMEN.

(Manualis Parvulorum XIII)

Thomas A. Kempis

O God, who founded the salvation of the human race on the Incarnation of your Word, give your peoples the mercy they implore, so that all may know there is no other name to be invoked but the Name of your Only Begotten Son. Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. AMEN.

Friday, 3 January, 2014
The Most Holy Name of Jesus (Memorial)

Reading 1

Philippians 2: 5 - 11
5	Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus,
6	who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped,
7	but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.
8	And being found in human form he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even death on a cross.
9	Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name which is above every name,
10	that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
11	and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Psalm

Psalms 113: 1 - 8
1	Praise the LORD! Praise, O servants of the LORD, praise the name of the LORD!
2	Blessed be the name of the LORD from this time forth and for evermore!
3	From the rising of the sun to its setting the name of the LORD is to be praised!
4	The LORD is high above all nations, and his glory above the heavens!
5	Who is like the LORD our God, who is seated on high,
6	who looks far down upon the heavens and the earth?
7	He raises the poor from the dust, and lifts the needy from the ash heap,
8	to make them sit with princes, with the princes of his people.

Gospel

Matthew 1: 18 - 23
18	Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child of the Holy Spirit;
19	and her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly.
20	But as he considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit;
21	she will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins."
22	All this took place to fulfil what the Lord had spoken by the prophet:
23	"Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and his name shall be called Emmanuel" (which means, God with us).