Priest Spoke God's Name?!

[Judas_Thaddeus]

Minor curiosity, for a few weeks this priest from India was serving mass and in his homilies he often made use of God’s Name, spelled YHWH. He used the common form of Yahweh and every time he used it I was shocked.

Is it okay to use that Name? even though no one knows how to properly pronounce it? or is the pronunciation known and it can be used? Tell me what your thoughts are on God’s Name being uttered by a priest in a homily.

 

[auderyja]

I have no clue and would like to know as well. But seriously, we (the Church) have become too much of an institution when we focus too much on these rules and regulations while the fundamentals which the Church was built on is overlooked - love.

 

[MorEphrem]

In the Syriac tradition (which the Syro-Malabar and Malankara Churches of India come from) there is a reference for the name YH because as the name of God was seemingly the first personal information of God given to Israel and Jesus (called MarYH in Syriac or Lord YH) is the completion of this revelation. Perhaps that is related as to why he would say YHWH; if not, perhaps personal preference.

Anyway, to be shocked or think it improper to use YHWH seems a bit superstitious. The Jews avoided using the name of God to avoid even the near occasion of blasphemy by vulgarization but this in itself demonstrates an inherent disconnect between the people and God. We, as Christians, have been given all the names of God (the Father, the Son - Jesus, and the Holy Spirit) so to fear one name is superstitious at best.

 

[R_C]

Minor curiosity, for a few weeks this priest from India was serving mass and in his homilies he often made use of God’s Name…Is it okay to use that Name?

The Church ever since the days of the apostles used the words Lord, God, Holy One, etc. in order not to pronounce the ineffable name of the Almighty. It is not proper to take that name in our mouths, just as it is not proper to take the name of Jesus unless it is necessary, using instead terms such as the Lord and the Beloved, and every time it is pronounced (at least during the liturgy) we are supposed to bow our head.

 

[Elizium23]

No ‘Yahweh’ in songs, prayers at Catholic Masses, Vatican rules

Note this story is from 2008. The rule has actually been in place in perpetuity, but it was more or less unwritten, and the Vatican saw it necessary to issue a clarification because several songs have been written in recent decades which violate the rule.
CNS:

WASHINGTON (CNS) – In the not-too-distant future, songs such as “You Are Near,” “I Will Bless Yahweh” and “Rise, O Yahweh” will no longer be part of the Catholic worship experience in the United States.

At the very least, the songs will be edited to remove the word “Yahweh” – a name of God that the Vatican has ruled must not “be used or pronounced” in songs and prayers during Catholic Masses.

Bishop Arthur J. Serratelli of Paterson, N.J., chairman of the U.S. bishops’ Committee on Divine Worship, announced the new Vatican “directives on the use of ‘the name of God’ in the sacred liturgy” in an Aug. 8 letter to his fellow bishops.

 

[Aelred_Minor]

Maybe it is more common to do this in India than in the West?

In any case I think it is a big mistake.

It is not traditional use this name in Catholicism, and that is an argument in itself. But I think there are good practical reasons for continuing this tradition.

First, that name was originally meant as much as a refusal to give a name as anything else. When Moses asked for God’s name he did not realize how much he was anthropomorphising God. God responded by rejecting the anthropomorphism. “I am who I am. Tell them, ‘I AM’ sent you.” By returning to a reconstructed form of this name today we revert to the error it was originally meant to correct. The name no longer resembles the verb “to be” in any language, so by using it we give God in his divinity a mere personal name as though he were any old anthropomorphic pagan deity. It’s no accident that many atheists love to use this name, in order to degrade the idea of God in precisely this way.

Second, God really does have a human name, but that name is “Jesus.” Actually the name of Jesus does begin with a component of the old tetragrammaton so there is some continuity with the old name, but ultimately it is just a human name that was common among Jews of the first century. In this case it is not anthropomorphism at work but the Incarnation itself that causes us to give God a human name. Because in Jesus there is the fullness of mysterious divinity as well as a man like us in all things but sin, his Name is that which is above all other names for us. Reviving the ancient pre-Christian holy name of God seems to threaten to compete with the name of Jesus as the most holy name we can utter, an obsolete anthropomorphic name threatening to eclipse a truly holy incarnational one. Again not that there was anything wrong with that name in its own time, but differences in language and the event of the incarnation itself make it inappropriate today.

Finally, for their own reasons the Jews tend to be offended when anyone pronounces YHWH. Why offend them when there is no good reason for it?

 

[malphono]

In the Syriac tradition (which the Syro-Malabar and Malankara Churches of India come from) there is a reference for the name YH because as the name of God was seemingly the first personal information of God given to Israel and Jesus (called MarYH in Syriac or Lord YH) is the completion of this revelation.

True, but in those rare places where it appears, the “YH” is never vocalized. It’s basically the same as the Hebrew, where “Adonai” (ESyr “Maran” or “Mar”) is what is spoken, or else it’s replaced with “Elohim” (ESyr “Alaha” or “Alahan”). The usage is actually similar to the Vulgate as well, where the tetragrammaton is invariably replaced by “Dominus” or a variant thereof. I’m not sure, but I think it’s the same in Greek.

Perhaps that is related as to why he would say YHWH; if not, perhaps personal preference.

More likely the latter.

 

[Beryllos]

I myself was confused about this issue until the Vatican issued a letter in 2008 regarding the sacred name of God. You can find the whole letter here: Letter to the Bishops’ Conferences on “The Name of God” (2008)

Here are a few clippings from that letter:

The venerable biblical tradition of Sacred Scripture, known as the Old Testament, displays a series of divine appellations, among which is the sacred name of God revealed in the tetragrammaton YHWH (יהוה). As an expression of the infinite greatness and majesty of God, it was held to be unpronounceable and hence was replaced during the reading of Sacred Scripture by means of the use of an alternate name: Adonai, which means “Lord.”

Also:

Notwithstanding such a clear norm, in recent years the practice has crept in of pronouncing the God of Israel’s proper name, known as the holy or divine tetragrammaton, written with four consonants of the Hebrew alphabet in form יהוה, YHWH. The practice of vocalizing it is met with both in the reading of biblical texts taken from the lectionary, as well as in prayers and hymns. It occurs in diverse written and spoken forms, for example, Yahweh, Yahwè, Jahweh, Jahwe, Jave, Yehovah, etc. It is therefore our intention, with the present letter, to set out some essential facts which lie behind the above-mentioned norm and to establish some directives to be observed in this matter.

The first directive is as follows:

In liturgical celebrations, in songs and prayers the name of God in the form of the tetragrammaton YHWH is neither to be used or pronounced.

The other two directives relate to translation of the Bible, and translation of liturgical texts.

Conclusion: The priest should not pronounce that name in a homily or elsewhere.

 

[Corki]

Minor curiosity, for a few weeks this priest from India was serving mass and in his homilies he often made use of God’s Name, spelled YHWH. He used the common form of Yahweh and every time he used it I was shocked.

Is it okay to use that Name? even though no one knows how to properly pronounce it? or is the pronunciation known and it can be used? Tell me what your thoughts are on God’s Name being uttered by a priest in a homily.

The “rule” is not to pronounce the name in the reading of Holy Scripture, in songs and in prayers during liturgy. There is no rule that it can’t be said at all. The homily is neither a song nor a prayer.

There are plenty of things to worry about when it comes to liturgy. I don’t think this is one of them.

 

[Judas_Thaddeus]

I have no clue and would like to know as well. But seriously, we (the Church) have become too much of an institution when we focus too much on these rules and regulations while the fundamentals which the Church was built on is overlooked - love.

Wo, Don’t go that far, it is not true.

 

[quiet52]

The “rule” is not to pronounce the name in the reading of Holy Scripture, in songs and in prayers during liturgy. There is no rule that it can’t be said at all. The homily is neither a song nor a prayer.

There are plenty of things to worry about when it comes to liturgy. I don’t think this is one of them.

The homily is part of the liturgical celebration, so no, it may not be used during the homily.

My experience with immigrant priests is that many of them have had less familiarity with and training about the Vatican documents. My suggestion to the OP is to send a copy of the document, with a note explaining the situation, to the diocesan official in charge of the immigrant priests. We lay people should not have to entangle ourselves into these situations – confronting the priests makes them lose face and creates an awkwardness in any working relationship we have them with if we volunteer in the parish.

 

[Corki]

The homily is part of the liturgical celebration, so no, it may not be used during the homily.

Source? The quoted documents say “songs and prayers”. Even then, they are only prohibited if part of a liturgical celebration.

To be prohibited, it must BOTH be part of a prayer or song AND be part of a liturgy.

I can sing “Yahweh, I know you are near” all I want with my Bible study and there’s nothing wrong with that. It’s a song but it’s not part of a liturgy. Conversely, a priest using the name is a homily is using it as part of a liturgy but not in a song or prayer.

 

[andrewstx]

I have a Jerusalem Catholic bible that uses Yahweh throughout, it is my very favorite bible.

Yes Virginia, there are Catholic bibles other than the NAB.

 

[Beryllos]

Interesting article from Dan Schutte, who wrote “You Are Near,” one of the more popular songs that previously used the name Yahweh:
Dan Schutte’s reflection on the 2008 Vatican Directive on the Name of God

 

[quiet52]

Originally Posted by quiet52
The homily is part of the liturgical celebration, so no, it may not be used during the homily.

The Vatican has ruled that the Name of God, commonly rendered as “Yahweh,” should not be pronounced in the Catholic liturgy
Description:
The Congregation for Divine Worship and the Disciplineof the Sacraments issued these directives to bishops’ conferences worldwide concerning the use of the term “Yahweh” and its alternate forms in the liturgy, saying that the name of God in the form of the Tetragrammaton (i.e., the Hebrew YHWH) should not be used.
Publisher & Date:
Vatican, June 29, 2008

The llllliturgical celebration includes the homily.

 

[Corki]

The Vatican has ruled that the Name of God, commonly rendered as “Yahweh,” should not be pronounced in the Catholic liturgy
Description:
The Congregation for Divine Worship and the Disciplineof the Sacraments issued these directives to bishops’ conferences worldwide concerning the use of the term “Yahweh” and its alternate forms in the liturgy, saying that the name of God in the form of the Tetragrammaton (i.e., the Hebrew YHWH) should not be used.
Publisher & Date:
Vatican, June 29, 2008

The llllliturgical celebration includes the homily.

I understand that’s what the news headline reads. But the actual directive says prayers and song as well as Scripture readings.

It’s just not a big deal if a priest says Yahweh in a homily. The directive is very specific in its proscription. Sure, you could expand that to the entirety of the liturgy and that would make sense for consistency. But when you have a visiting priest, consistency goes out the window anyway.

 

[The_Serpent]

It just my opinion, and I respect the authority of the Church. But, of all the places to ban God’s name… in a Church! Using this logic, we should not use the Lord’s name in Church as well?

 

[Judas_Thaddeus]

It just my opinion, and I respect the authority of the Church. But, of all the places to ban God’s name… in a Church! Using this logic, we should not use the Lord’s name in Church as well?

The problem is that we don’t really know God’s True Name. All we know is that it’s spelled YHWH, יהוה‎, but beyond that we know not if it has one, two, three or even four syllables, what vowels should be used, so it worries me when one does attempt to pronounce it.

I mean imagine in kindergarten a kid makes fun of another kid by mispronouncing his name or something like that. God’s Name is God’s Name, one cannot use a variation, and the Church recognizes that.

 

[Zekariya]

The problem is that we don’t really know God’s True Name. All we know is that it’s spelled YHWH, יהוה‎, but beyond that we know not if it has one, two, three or even four syllables, what vowels should be used, so it worries me when one does attempt to pronounce it.

I mean imagine in kindergarten a kid makes fun of another kid by mispronouncing his name or something like that. God’s Name is God’s Name, one cannot use a variation, and the Church recognizes that.

We do not know the true pronunciation of the full Divine Name. We along with Jews do, however, know and use the short form of the Divine Name: Yah. We say Allelu-Yah (Hebrew: Hallelu-Yah). Many Old Testament saints have It in their name: Zechar-Yah, Isa-Yah, Jeremi-Yah, etc.

Psalm 67(68):4 Sing to God, sing praises to His name; Extol Him who rides on the clouds, By His name Yah (יה), And rejoice before Him.

 

[Corki]

The problem is that we don’t really know God’s True Name. All we know is that it’s spelled YHWH, יהוה‎, but beyond that we know not if it has one, two, three or even four syllables, what vowels should be used,** so it worries me when one does attempt to pronounce it. **

I mean imagine in kindergarten a kid makes fun of another kid by mispronouncing his name or something like that. God’s Name is God’s Name, one cannot use a variation, and the Church recognizes that.

Why would that be a cause for worry? We don’t pronounce Jesus’ name in the same way that it would have been pronounced in 30AD. We don’t pronounce it the same in different languages either.