December
5

What’s in a Name?

And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent out from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the name of the virgin was Mary. And the angel coming in to her said, Hail, thou who art graced! The Lord is with thee; blessed art thou among women. But when she saw him she was disturbed at his word, and reasoned within herself what manner of a greeting this should be. And the angel said to her, Fear not, Mary; for thou hast found grace with God. And behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and shalt bring forth a Son, and shalt call His name Jesus. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest, and the Lord God shall give to Him the throne of His father David. And He shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever, and of His kingdom there shall be no end. (Luke 1:26-33)

“Name," when used in the Word, signifies the quality, that is, that the person is of such a quality. And as the "name" signifies the quality, the name comprehends in one complex whatever is in the man. (Arcana Coelestia 2009)

The virgin of whom the Lord was born symbolizes the church as to an affection for truth …. the genuine affection of truth is willing and longs to know the veriest truths of faith for the sake of good use as the end, and for the sake of life. (God the Savior 37, Arcana Coelestia 8993.3)

The Lord leads a truly Christian man’s will, or love, and gives him the affection of good, that is, the faculty of being affected, or made glad, by reason of good; he also leads his understanding, so that he may be affected with truth, and so that, immediately he hears it, he is also gladdened, and it is implanted in his life; and, so far as he learns the truth, so far it abides in him, and, by its means, he is led by the Lord. (Spiritual Diary 5796)

The progress as to truth and good of the spiritual man when being regenerated, is that he first learns the doctrinal things of truth, next is affected by them (which is the good of the doctrinal things), then that by taking a mental view of these doctrinal things he is affected with the truths in them (which is the good of truth), and lastly that he wills to live according to them, which is the good of life. (Arcana Coelestia 3332.2)

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