Who would be the patron saint of recycling or "up-cycling?" Also who is the patron saint of thrift stores (other than the saint my thrift store is named after?) For the record, St. Louise Thrift Store is my work place, and St. Louise is really great at interceding for us, our volunteers and customers. Sometimes too much. But thank-you, St. Louise! (I don't need any more tupperware right now.)St. Louise, the one who went off to the crusades? There are several St. Louises.
The person who springs to mind is St. Francis of Assisi. He and his brothers just begged for everything they had and had to repair and reuse whatever they had. St. Francis began his career as a begging brother by trading clothes--the fancy clothes he was wearing at the moment--with a beggar on the road. Francis' father, who was a wealthy cloth merchant, was super aggravated with this wacky move. When Frances came home in his beggar get up, his father ordered him to remove it at once.
Which the ever obedient Francis did. He walked off naked into the sunset. Which means he had to go beg up some other clothes. And blankets and pots and pans and whatever else he needed at any given moment.
He probably couldn't have used some tupperware.
I would also consider St. John of God, who begged up a whole hospital, from the building itself to every mattress and bedpan.
What is the best way to choose a name/patron saint for your unborn child? I suppose there is a better way than just choosing the name you like best! Do you have any thoughts, Sister?
If the name you like best is Blotsnefad, yes, there would be a better way. Of course I have thoughts!
1. If it's a girl, Mary. You can't do better than that.
2. If it's a boy, we like Joseph and John, but go for a great patron saint name.
3. If there's no saint with the name you like, find a new one.
4. Consider what happens to the name when it's shortened. You might love the name Nathaniel, but everyone is going to call that kid "Nat". That's great for Nat King Cole. But for the rest of us, it sounds like a pesky bug. You don't want your kid to go through life with the name of a pesky bug.
I've always felt like you should have a few names in mind and then take a look at that kid before you pick one. You don't think, "I' m going to get a dog and name it Rex!" You get the dog and take a look at it and choose a name. Why would you do less for your kid? But that's just me.
I also advise against telling anyone any names you are considering because there will always be someone who doesn't like that name for reasons only they can fathom, but the distaste shows ever so briefly in their eyes and you will feel weird and second guess yourself and flounder into calling the kid "Blotsnefad". Keep your names to yourself. Everyone will coo over the baby no matter what horrible name you've chosen.
Of course, you won't choose a horrible name. It's a girl and you'll call her Mary.
9 comments:
Thank-you, Sister! Our St. Louise is Louise de Marillac, buddy of St Vincent de Paul. It is no wonder she continues to work so tirelessly to provide. (And I did get a HUGE donation of Tupperware today, so she must have a sense of humor as well.) Our Diocese also has St. Francis, St. Joseph and St. Isidore thrift stores.
Thank-you again! God Bless!
Question: is there any sin attached to the conception and/or birth of a child out of wedlock, except for the sin of the fornication itself? If a couple is having premarital sex, that's a sin. My instinct is to say that it's the same "level" of sin whether a child is conceived or not. And if there is no "extra" sin attached to the conception, then surely there can be no extra sin attached to the birth? Is there additional scandal since the community now has "proof" of the fornication instead of just strong assumptions that it's been going on?
There's a young couple at church in this situation and they are rushing to get married, when it doesn't seem like the wisest thing to do.
I never understood the "what does the baby look like" naming advice, probably because all newborns look like Winston Churchill to me (I have 6 kids, none named Winston).
Our name parameters were:
1. Liked the name
2. Saint's name
3. Family name
4. Sounded good on a resume
5. No bad initials or abbreviations.
Plus our 4 boys are named for the 4 Gospel writers!
Keeping the names you have decided on to yourselves is one of the best pieces of advice after using a saint's name.
And figuring out a way to avoid the "name of the year". After choosing names that had not been used since the great great uncle had it, four of my six kids sport the name of the year and had several with the same name in every class all the way through school.
@Wendy - that's great advice about checking bad initials and abbreviations.
It is very difficult for teachers to choose a baby name, because, as I assume you understand, many names can be tied to certain students who made great impressions in the classroom.
I would also recommend parents consider all possible rhyming words.
signed: A teacher of 36 years who LOVED every student she taught.
The author, Beverley Nichols, solved the pet problem by naming each successive cat numerically; One, Two, Three, Four etc. He said it saved trying to decide!
My second child was to be named Franz. Apparently he was against that, as I was pregnant for 41 1/2 weeks and suddenly, 4 hours before I went into labor said to my husband "I like the name Philip." My husband said he did too, and that was the name of his grandfather (as well as the disciple.) I went into labor about 6 hours later. And if the disciple Philip was anything like mine ...he was an ornery sort.
My first my husband and I disagreed on the name, so my mother cast the deciding vote. She sided with my husband.
Maureen: That's exactly how my niece refers to her step-moms; "One, Two, Three, and Four!"
Jeanne as in St. Jeanne Jugan, founder of the Little Sisters of the Poor who also beg for what they needs. Teresa for Blessed Teresa of Calcutta whose Missionaries of Charity don't even beg but wait for the Lord to provide.
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