In the Interim- What's in a Name Tag?

Dear Friends,

My maternal grandmother, Helen, died before she turned 70, leaving us young grandchildren behind. Since my father’s mother had passed away before any of us were even born, we were left without any grandmother at all.

Fortunately, my grandmother Helen had a lifelong friend who was only too happy to fill in for her. Known thereafter as Aunt Adah, she performed all the grandmotherly duties we would have missed otherwise. She was present for birthdays, concerts, graduations, and other important life events. When a special occasion moved dinner from its normal place at the kitchen table to the dining room, Aunt Adah was always seated on my father’s left–a place of honor. Usually aided by an Old Fashioned, she could be coaxed into reciting lines from one of Shakespeare’s plays or sonnets–and not just a few lines, entire soliloquies.

Let me borrow a line from the Bard for this week’s letter. “What’s in a name? That which we call a rose/ By any other name would smell as sweet.” From Romeo and Juliet, this is Juliet’s line when she is telling Romeo that a name is nothing but a name–that it doesn’t matter that his surname is Montague and hers is Capulet–that their love transcends the feud between their two families.

Now let me take the line I’ve borrowed and make a small addition: “What’s in a name tag?"

I’m grateful that St. Paul’s provides name tags for parishioners. Speaking as a newcomer, I find them extremely helpful to me as I learn your names. If that’s true for me, it’s undoubtedly true for others. So, here’s my plea: please wear your name tag for the next month (at least). St. Paul’s has at least three services every Sunday. Parishioners mix and mingle between services over coffee in Tucker Hall, or during the Forum, or in one of the hallways or comfortable sitting areas scattered around the buildings. Being able to call each other by name helps build community.

Juliet had a perfectly good reason to say that names were unimportant. But it’s safe to say that the reason was particular to her situation and that the reason doesn’t apply to any of us! Names are important. Your name is important. Even God calls us each by name (Isaiah 43:1).

I’m looking forward to learning your names and putting names with faces. Thanks for your help in this endeavor.

Blessings,

Stephen Applegate