09/29/06
Feast day and names

Today I celebrate my feast day. Imagine that! Most of you in the states might not know what that is. Within the Catholic church, for a given saint we often have a day in which we celebrate a feast in their honor. I was named after St. Michael the Archangel, who shares this day with St. Gabriel and St. Raphael the archangels. (my older brother is named Gabriel and my younger brothers middle name is Raphael). This is a practice which is not really celebrated amongs catholics in the states. When I went to france for study, I was surprised when my great aunt martine called me on this very date 2 years ago to wish me a happy feast day. I had honestly not been aware of its passing.

Now here in Africa, I again celebrate this feast day. Here, at least amongs the religious who I interact with, this is a day of celebration as we might celebrate a birthday. Now, contrary to a superficial, skeptical observation, I don’t think thtat this is just a relic from pious missionaries. Rather, it is indicitive of something greater. For Africans, names take on a very great importance. Although when someone hears an adult ugandan give their full name as Peter Kayandago. It would be false to assume that this means that peter is their given name and kayandago is the name of their parents. Their African names are often names that are given by the grandparents in a naming ceremony. These names are often drawn from the clan names, and they reflect something either about the circumstances or thoughts surrounding a birth or some other special meaning. Their English name often is the name that is given to them at baptism. Names have a revealing factor about the expectations of a person or a persons nature. These names can drop aside and even accumulate as time passes. So for the African, their names can have great importance. When celebrating a feast day, they are celebrating a joyous occasion, which is the linking of themselves to a person of great importance in the church.

I think that the African world has in fact enrichened an ancient Catholic Practice.