What's In A Name?

The Naming of Justice Jubilee Paul

Isaiah 42:1, 5-9

Here is my servant, whom I uphold

My chosen one in whom I delight;

I will put my Spirit on him

And he will bring justice to the nations…

This is what God the Lord says-

He who created the heavens and stretched them out,

Who spread out the earth and all that comes out of it,

Who gives breath to its people,

And life to those who walk on it:

“I, the Lord, have called you in righteousness;

I will take hold of your hand.

I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people

And a light for the Gentiles,

To open eyes that are blind,

To free captives from prison

And to release from the dungeon

Those who sit in darkness.*

I am the Lord, that is my name…

See, the former things have taken place,

And new things I declare;

Before they spring into being

I announce them to you.”

It seems appropriate to give birth to a child on the eve of Advent.  For us, we have been anxiously waiting for our child to come into this world.  Our lives for the past year have been filled with hope and expectation, mystery and anxiety.  Our prayers, both silent and spoken, have been for this long awaited day when mother and father can gaze upon their creation and give her a name- Justice Jubilee. 

Much like the hope and expectation of the impending birth of our daughter, Joy and I also look toward the future as it impends upon the present.  And our present, as ones who profess Jesus as Lord, is shaped by God’s desire to make all things well: where love and faithfulness embrace and justice and peace kiss (Psalm 85).  We are filled with joy this week, but we also understand our lives to fit within a broader story of God’s redemptive work in history.  And our child has now been born into that story.  One does not have to look at the world for long to see that all is not well.  Disease and famine abound; poverty and war continue to wage.  We tend to care more about protecting our possessions than loving our neighbors.  God’s righteousness seems distant.

And yet, Advent fills Christians with hope.  Advent is that time in which we anticipate a God who comes near and dwells among us, among the poor, among the dying, and among the imprisoned.  We sing along with Mary when she exclaims: “My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my savior…He has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the humble.  He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich away empty.  He has helped his servant Israel, remembering to be merciful [sic]” (Luke 1).  It is that time of year in which we once again anticipate God’s coming restoration of all things.  We anticipate the promise of salvation and redemption by becoming carriers of God’s hope for the world- embodying the way of Christ in our life together.  In short, we practice justice and mercy while we walk humbly with our God (Micah 6). 

And so our daughter, Justice Jubilee, carries in her namesake the hope we have for the world.  Some may say that this is quite a burden to place upon a child.  But for us, we not only pray that she grows to embody such hope within her own life, but we also recognize that this is no more a burden than what we have been called to be and do as the church.  And so, with your help, we ask God to continue working within her life.  We pray that she grows to be a strong daughter of God, living the jubilee call that points toward God's justice in the present moment.  In short, her name is our prayer.

Peace,

Eric and Joy Paul

* The Jubilee is a Jewish concept carried throughout the Hebrew prophets and Jesus’ gospel proclamation.  It is known as the Year of the Lord’s favor found in Lev. 25 and Luke 4.  It consists of the following:

1). Leave the soil fallow

2). Slaves are to be freed

3). Debts are to be canceled/forgiven

4). The land (access to livelihood) is to be returned or redistributed to its original holders.

The Jubilee year represents one economic example of the way God would order relationships.  The Jubilee would be met with joyful greetings (jubilation) as it would reconstitute just and equitable relationships among the people.