Pope Rails Against Rise of un-Christian Names

The Daily Telegraph (UK) ^ | 1/11/10 | Nick Squires

[marshmallow]

The Pope has warned parents against giving children celebrity-inspired names and urged them to turn to the Bible for inspiration instead.

While names such as Sienna and Scarlett have become fashionable in recent years, Pope Benedict XVI called for a return to tradition.

During Mass at the Sistine Chapel, he said: "Every baptised child acquires the character of the son of God, beginning with their Christian name, an unmistakable sign that the Holy Spirit causes man to be born anew in the womb of the Church." He added that a name was an "indelible seal" that set children off on a lifelong "journey of religious faith".

According to the Office for National Statistics, celebrity names such as Ashton – after the actor Ashton Kutcher – and Lily – after the singer Lily Allen – are among the most popular in England and Wales. The names celebrities give their own children can be even more exotic.

Sir Bob Geldof has daughters named Pixie and Peaches, while Victoria and David Beckham called their first son Brooklyn, after the district of New York. Katie Price, the glamour model, named her daughter Princess Tiaamii.

In Italy, the name of a child has particular significance. Children are often named after saints, who are considered a guiding force in their life.

The tradition, however, is increasingly under threat. Francesco Totti, the footballer, recently decided to call his daughter Chanel, while Flavio Briatore, the Formula One boss, named his newborn son Falso Nathan.

Cristina Odone, a former editor of The Catholic Herald who grew up in Italy, said: "There are so many of the church's traditions which we have come to ignore and which are actually meaningful and have a big spiritual significance. To deprive our children of that sense of having a protecting saint is to rob.......

[marshmallow]

And in America we have .....Dontravious........Jafaris.........Shaquana..........

[marshmallow]

Ping!

[cripplecreek]

I be John not Johnathan, just John.

[GeronL]

If I ever have a daughter (long shot that I’d have a kid) I wanted to call her Spirit. Do you think that’d be okay?

[ArrogantBustard]

Moon Unit and Dweezil?

So ... the brainless ones at the Telegraph think the Pope is "railing"??? They exhibit extreme folly.

[ClearCase_guy]

My sister-in-law is a Catholic. She recently found out that her son has a friend named Ezra. Her reaction to this news was negative -- "Ezra? What kind of name is that?? I hate these weird names everyone is coming up with these days!"

I decided not to mention that it is *ahem* slightly Biblical.

[Mitch86]

Pope of rome in ‘telling people what to do’ shocker

[EagleUSA]

I would think he would be more concerned about names like...

Abdul, Qadir, Rafi, Amam, Amin, Masud, Mimar, and Saafir.

I know that I am......

[Floribama]

I think if you named her Holy Spirit you’d be on stable ground.

[ArrogantBustard]

I decided not to mention that it is *ahem* slightly Biblical.

Shame on you.

Seriously.

She's not wrong objecting to the silly names. Surely you can think of a kind, Godly, Christlike way to inform her of that name's origin.

[TSgt]

Objectively speaking, in all seriousness, the Pope is making himself look really foolish these days.

Condom use for gays now non-Christian names?

Really Pope?

[ArrogantBustard]

Protestants spectacularly missing the point.

Again.

How thoroughly not surprising ...

[KarlInOhio]

Every baptised child acquires the character of the son of God, beginning with their Christian name,

Well then, no second rate names for me. I'll just name them all Jesus.

[MeganC]

I’m not surprised. Most Catholics are unfamiliar with the Bible so knowing what is a Biblical name is not to be expected from them. In any case, ‘Ezra’, as this Pope would define it, is not a Christian name because there is no such canonical saint with that name.

http://www.catholic.org/saints/stindex.php

[marshmallow]

Pope of rome in ‘telling people what to do’ shocker

Just like every other Joe with an opinion and access to a computer, these days.

It's called advice.

Which you are free to accept or reject.

At no charge.

[TSgt]

This is akin to your father putting on those ugly tube socks with shorts and being completely clueless about his awkward, nerdy, appearance.

[ArrogantBustard]

I would think he would be more concerned about names like... Abdul, Qadir, Rafi, Amam, Amin, Masud, Mimar, and Saafir.

I don't see very many (if any) supposed Christians, giving their kids names like that. I do see a lot of supposed Christians giving their kids names that in no way reflect their supposed faith.

[ArrogantBustard]

Most Catholics are unfamiliar with the Bible

ROFL!!!!

Do you really believe that? How droll ...

[ClearCase_guy]

I understand what you're saying. You have to realize that she had just spent about an hour "railing" against Sarah Palin and idiots who think guns are okay. It's very hard to have a civil discussion with her on any topic.

She thinks I'm a bad person because I am a Protestant. In her eyes, I am not a Christian. I was NOT about to start an argument with her about "who knows the Bible better".

Perhaps if I were a better person, I could have found a perfect way to have that conversation with her. But I considered it to be beyond my abilities.

[matt1234]

I agree w/ the Pope. Of course, the parents should decide, but a biblical name is a better choice for Christians. It helps ground children in their faith.