My nephew was born in the darkest days of the COVID-19 pandemic last January. His birth was, like every baby’s, a miraculous moment for our entire family, but sadly, we couldn’t be there in person to celebrate with my brother and sister-in-law. The baby’s brit milah took place in the hospital with little ceremony and we prayed for a time when we could gather safely to give him his Hebrew name.
Last month, we came together at my brother and sister-in-law’s beautiful new home (after taking several precautions, including taking rapid tests that morning) to give now almost-toddler Guy his Hebrew name (Malachi ben Levi Shimshon). The occasion brought our family such heightened joy, both in celebrating little Guy in this religious ritual and in finally being all together. It was a beautiful reminder that we have lost so much these past twenty months but that we also have so much to look forward to and so many sacred occasions ahead.
In addition, the celebration was a great reminder for me of the power of a name. There is a beautiful teaching from the Midrash in Kohelet Rabbah that puts names in perspective for us:
A person has three names:
one that is given to them by their parents;
one that people know them by,
and one that they acquire for themselves.
We each have a name that our parents choose for us, and we also have nicknames that we are known for, given by our friends and loved ones. But perhaps, most importantly, each of us has a name that we will be known by in the world based on our deeds and our choices. May each of us make a good name for ourselves, and may our little ones, who have faced unparalleled difficulties during this pandemic, go forth to make great names for themselves as they shape our world into a better place.
— Cantor Emma Lutz