January is the Month of the Holy Name of Jesus ~ Nomen Christi!

Holy Church in her wisdom, begins the secular New Year honoring Mary, Mother of God, imploring her much-needed intercession along with the Circumcision of Our Lord in the traditional calendar.  The significance of the Circumcision is twofold:  Our Blessed Infant Lord, though the Son of God, was still subject to the Law and this is the ritual in which He received the Name “Jesus,” meaning “God saves.”  This Name invokes both the identity and mission of Christ. 

Following the Circumcision, we celebrate the Holy Name of Jesus, which is also the theme of the Month of January.  We begin a new year contemplating the Name of Christ Jesus.  We honor His identity as the Second Person of the Holy Trinity and His mission as our Redeemer, the shedding of His innocent Blood at the Circumcision, a reminder of His Sacrifice upon the Cross.  What better way to start a new year than to flee to Our Lord and His Mother! 

“Seek ye therefore first the kingdom of God, and his justice, and all these things shall be added unto you.”

Matthew 6:33

Epiphany of Our Lord is held on January 6th, in both the trad and new calendars.  The feast of the Holy Family is Sunday, the 7th, which is also the new feast of the Baptism of Our Lord.  The trad feast of the Baptism is on the 13th.  Our Lady of Prompt Succor is honored on the 15th.

Septuagesima Sunday is the 28th, beginning the short season of Septuagesima, a preparation for Lent.

As we discussed a “Marian Triad of the Months” from August to October, we now celebrate a “Christological Triad of the Months” from December to February:  The Divine Infancy, the Holy Name and the Passion of Our Lord.  Please note, these “triads” are not official Church ideas, but something unique to this Apostolate.  We strive to see how these months tie together theological themes and present an opportunity for prayer and meditation. This ministry also has a special dedication to the Holy Name and Our Lady of Fatima.

Traditional Catholic Calendar for January

New Year’s Blessings to all! Let us pray for a holy, happy and healthy 2024 and think positively about the coming year.

This is the year the Lord has made, Let us rejoice and be glad in it!

By the way, how did you do with the December Prepper Challenge? It’s totally understandable if Christmastime got in your way. The good news is…there’s a new month…and a new year…to continue to work on our “15 Points Preparedness Worksheet.” Scroll down to the December post or find it on the Home page. Choose the 5 things you think are most important right now and make a plan. Your future self will thank you! And feel free to email us and share your progress-comments may be posted.

January is the Month of the Holy Name of Jesus

~ 2022 ~

"This is the day which the Lord hath made: let us be glad and rejoice therein."

Psalms 117:24

[Edited since posting.]

Holy Mother Church begins the new year honoring Our Lady as “Mother of God.” What could be more consoling or joyful? If she has this new year in her hands, what have we to fear? If we honor her this day, surely graces will come upon us and our families, even if hard times are ahead. Though it is not a holy day of obligation in the US, why would we want to miss this opportunity to flee to her at the outset of the year, showing our love for her and making reparation to her Immaculate Heart? And what a wonderful time to begin the Communion of Reparation 5 First Saturdays! January 1st also commemorates Our Lord’s first shedding of blood, his circumcision at 8 days old, in the old calendar. This is also the moment He received His Holy Name in the Temple, not to be confused with the Presentation, which was 40 days after birth. We are still in the Cycle of Christmas and remain joyful that a Savior has been given to us!

We celebrate 6 Doctors of the Church this month. On the 2nd, St. Basil and St. Gregory Nazianzen share the day. They were actually friends and colleagues, along with Basil’s brother St. Gregory of Nyssa. The 3 are referred to as “The Three Cappadocians,” as they were all influential early theologians. Each month, I have been researching the best known works of the Doctors, along with how you can obtain them. This takes time to do the research and get you the best resources. I will continue to do so as time allows (which is not tonight), otherwise I will simply provide links to the Catholic Encyclopedia. Remember, it would take 35 years to read each of the Doctors, if you read one per year!

The 22nd is the 49th Anniversary of the US Supreme Court decision Roe vs. Wade, which legalized abortion in all 50 states. Lord, have mercy. Many of you do not need this reminder, but if you have not been active in the pro-life movement, please pray on it and consider getting involved. All human rights are currently being eroded before our very eyes, which was predictable when the fundamental right to life was taken from the unborn. When you defend them, you defend our whole future!

Nomen Chisti Apostolate is dedicated to the Holy Name of Jesus and Our Lady of Fatima. “Nomen Christi” means “Name of Christ” in Latin. How can we honor His Name this month? There are many ways to do so….attending Mass on the feast, prayers and devotions and considering how we defend His Name when it is disrespected in our presence…please see The Second Commandment-What Does it Mean to Us?

The following is a partial listing of old and new feasts this month, for your consideration. Where “old” or “new” is indicated, it is the second occurring feast. Please consult your own calendars for more detail…

1/1-CIRCUMCISION OF OUR LORD / MARY HOLY MOTHER OF GOD / First Saturday

1/2-EPIPHANY OF OUR LORD / MOST HOLY NAME OF JESUS / St. Basil the Great, Doctor of the Church / St. Gregory Nazianzen, Doctor of the Church

1/3-MOST HOLY NAME OF JESUS (new)

1/4-St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, First American Saint

1/5-St. John Neumann

1/6-EPIPHANY OF OUR LORD (trad) / Sts. Caspar, Balthasar & Melchior, the Three Magi (non-standard)

1/7-First Friday

1/9-BAPTISM OF OUR LORD / THE HOLY FAMILY

1/13-BAPTISM OF OUR LORD (trad) / St. Hilary of Poitiers, Doctor of the Church

1/14-St. Hilary of Poitiers (trad)

1/21-St. Agnes, Martyr, invoked in Canon

1/22-+++Anniversary of US Court Decision Roe vs. Wade, Day of Prayer for Unborn+++

1/24-St. Timothy, Disciple of St. Paul / St. Francis de Sales, Doctor of the Church

1/25-Conversion of St. Paul

1/26-Sts. Timothy & Titus, Disciples of St. Paul / St. Polycarp, Martyr

1/27-St. John Chrysostom, Doctor of the Church

1/28-St. Thomas Aquinas, Doctor of the Church

1/29-St. Francis de Sales (trad)

1/31-St. John Bosco, Founder of the Salesian Society

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January: Month of the Holy Name of Jesus

Nomen Christi means “Name of Christ.” This apostolate has a special devotion to the Holy Name. May we honor and defend His Name always! Let us perform some special devotion this month to the Holy Name of Jesus.

January is a most interesting month in the Church. A new secular year begins, which occurs not long after the new liturgical year. The new year begins with a glorious Marian feast in the new calendar. What better way to start 2021, than by commending it to Our Lady, as the whole world has begun its descent into a great abyss. We celebrate 4 feasts of Our Lord: His Circumcision, Epiphany, Holy Name and Baptism. We have a total of 6 Doctors of the Church we honor, including “The Angelic Doctor,” St. Thomas Aquinas. There are several interesting unique feasts and finally, our preparation for Lent, beginning the last day of the month!

St. Genevieve’s feast is January 3rd. I can’t think of her without thinking of the song The Simple Joys of Maidenhood, from the musical “Camelot,” which I heard countless times growing up. Its a wonderful song by Lerner and Loewe, which Julie Andrews sang to perfection (I’ve given you a theatrical version above, but please also listen to Julie’s version)…Guinevere laments to her patron saint that she is soon to wed a king she does not love. St. Genevieve is the patron saint of Paris and died in 512. In the year 1129, an illness called the “burning fever” killed many in Paris. After invoking St. Genevieve, many healings took place and the illness vanished. She is a great saint to appeal to during this present time, whatever you believe the nature of “covid” to be.

The new liturgical year has been declared the “Year of Saint Joseph.” Let us increase our love and devotion to the Foster-Father of Christ during this new year. And let us above all, contemplate the need for mercy at this time and do all we can in the coming year to secure it. Here are some notable feasts this month in the old and new calendars:

1-BLESSED VIRGIN MARY, HOLY MOTHER OF GOD (new, solemnity-no penance, Holy Day of Obligation prior to NWO takeover) / CIRCUMCISION OF OUR LORD (trad) / Octave Day of the Nativity / First Friday

2-St. Basil the Great, Doctor, “Father of Eastern Monasticism” / St. Gregory Nazianzen, Doctor, “The Theologian,” “The Christian Demosthenes” / First Saturday

3-EPIPHANY OF THE LORD (new) / MOST HOLY NAME OF JESUS / St. Genevieve

4-St. Elizabeth Ann Seton

5-St. John Neumann

6-EPIPHANY OF THE LORD (trad) / Sts. Caspar, Balthasar & Melchior (The Three Wisemen)

10-BAPTISM OF THE LORD (new) / THE HOLY FAMILY

13-BAPTISM OF OUR LORD (trad) / St. Hilary of Poitiers, Doctor, “The Athanasius of the West” (new)

14-St. Hilary of Poitiers (trad)

19-St. Canute

21-St. Agnes, Martyr

22-Day of Prayer for the Unborn (48th Anniversary of Roe vs. Wade +++Lord, have mercy+++)

24-Sunday of the Word of God / St. Timothy, Martyr, Companion of St. Paul (trad) / St. Francis de Sales, Doctor, “The Gentleman Doctor,” “Patron of the Catholic Press,” “Everyman’s Spiritual Director” (new)

25-Conversion of St. Paul

26-Sts. Timothy & Titus, Companions of St. Paul (new) / St. Polycarp, Martyr

27-St. John Chrysostom, Doctor, “The Golden-Mouthed,” “Doctor of the Eucharist”

28-St. Thomas Aquinas, Doctor, “The Angelic Doctor,” “The Common Doctor”

29-St. Francis de Sales (trad)

31-Septuagesima Sunday / St. John Bosco

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