Spiritual Naming Ceremony
The Purpose of the Spiritual Naming Ceremony.
The Spiritual Naming Ceremony is truly one of the most beautiful and sacred ceremonies the Spiritual church can offer.
It is a time in a person's life, when they feel called on a soul level, to deepen their connection to Spirit, to God, to their spiritual path and their religious beliefs. (Parents may request a naming ceremony for their child also)
When a Naming has been requested, the Minister's commitment to the process is to commune with the spirit world; through prayer and meditation to receive the candidate's spiritual name and meaning. The spiritual name received personifies the candidate's purpose/their journey on this earth. It represents who they are
on a soul level.
The candidate is required to select two Godparents, who will responsibly mentor and support them on their spiritual path.
As each candidate receives their spiritual name, they are presented with a White Rose, a symbolic gift from the Angel realm. (Babies are blessed with rose petals)
An EHSC Spiritual Naming certificate and frameable copy of their Spiritual Name and definition is given to each candidate,
as a keepsake from their special day!
The Naming ceremony is entered into our Special Ceremony history book and the candidate's name is engraved on our Naming Ceremony plaque that is displayed in our church sanctuary, in memory of their special occasion.
(In the earlier years of EHSC, children born to church members were named and registered on our Cradle Roll plaque that hangs on display in our church History Room)
The Spiritual Naming Ceremony is truly one of the most beautiful and sacred ceremonies the Spiritual church can offer.
It is a time in a person's life, when they feel called on a soul level, to deepen their connection to Spirit, to God, to their spiritual path and their religious beliefs. (Parents may request a naming ceremony for their child also)
When a Naming has been requested, the Minister's commitment to the process is to commune with the spirit world; through prayer and meditation to receive the candidate's spiritual name and meaning. The spiritual name received personifies the candidate's purpose/their journey on this earth. It represents who they are
on a soul level.
The candidate is required to select two Godparents, who will responsibly mentor and support them on their spiritual path.
As each candidate receives their spiritual name, they are presented with a White Rose, a symbolic gift from the Angel realm. (Babies are blessed with rose petals)
An EHSC Spiritual Naming certificate and frameable copy of their Spiritual Name and definition is given to each candidate,
as a keepsake from their special day!
The Naming ceremony is entered into our Special Ceremony history book and the candidate's name is engraved on our Naming Ceremony plaque that is displayed in our church sanctuary, in memory of their special occasion.
(In the earlier years of EHSC, children born to church members were named and registered on our Cradle Roll plaque that hangs on display in our church History Room)
The Signing Table
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1st Adult Naming Ceremony
March 31st, 2016
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EHSC Spiritual Naming Ceremony Plaque
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The original Cradle Roll (Spiritual Naming) Plaque
Did you know:
When Shakespeare's Juliet asserted that "a rose/By any other name would smell as sweet", she likely got it wrong. At least that' what the devotees who adopt spiritual names every year are counting on.
Whether bestowed by a swami, a priest, a dharma teacher, a medicine man or woman, or even taking on one's own, a spiritual name can enhance inner growth perhaps even turn you, if you will, into a rose, simply by saying it's so.
The practice of giving and receiving spiritual names reaches back into antiquity.
In Genesis (17:5; 17:15), God changes Abram's name to Abraham and his wife's from Sarai to Sarah in a move that indicated their elevation in status to the "father and mother of nations."
Later in the New Testament Book of Matthew, Jesus took the same approach with Simon when he renamed him Peter, the "rock" upon which he would build his church.
These are moments of initiation, still one of the main ways that the bestowing of a spiritual name is employed to this day.
In almost every spiritual path, the act of joining a religion - by birth or conversion, is marked by the conferral of a name.
* Christians are baptized with saints' names;
* Jews often receive a Hebrew name;
* Muslims may received a name of the Prophet or one of his companions;
* Hindus may be called after deities;
* Adherents of certain types of Native American spirituality may receive a medicine name.
Another type of naming ceremony usually occurs at the next level of initiation, such as when one decides to formally enter a religious order.
* For example, Orthodox Christians adopt a new saint's name when they become nuns or monks.
* Likewise, Buddhists are given a dharma name by their teacher when they enter a sangha, or community.
The new moniker widely distinguishes the bearer as a spiritual adept and is supposed to work in concert with the believer's spiritual goals.
When Shakespeare's Juliet asserted that "a rose/By any other name would smell as sweet", she likely got it wrong. At least that' what the devotees who adopt spiritual names every year are counting on.
Whether bestowed by a swami, a priest, a dharma teacher, a medicine man or woman, or even taking on one's own, a spiritual name can enhance inner growth perhaps even turn you, if you will, into a rose, simply by saying it's so.
The practice of giving and receiving spiritual names reaches back into antiquity.
In Genesis (17:5; 17:15), God changes Abram's name to Abraham and his wife's from Sarai to Sarah in a move that indicated their elevation in status to the "father and mother of nations."
Later in the New Testament Book of Matthew, Jesus took the same approach with Simon when he renamed him Peter, the "rock" upon which he would build his church.
These are moments of initiation, still one of the main ways that the bestowing of a spiritual name is employed to this day.
In almost every spiritual path, the act of joining a religion - by birth or conversion, is marked by the conferral of a name.
* Christians are baptized with saints' names;
* Jews often receive a Hebrew name;
* Muslims may received a name of the Prophet or one of his companions;
* Hindus may be called after deities;
* Adherents of certain types of Native American spirituality may receive a medicine name.
Another type of naming ceremony usually occurs at the next level of initiation, such as when one decides to formally enter a religious order.
* For example, Orthodox Christians adopt a new saint's name when they become nuns or monks.
* Likewise, Buddhists are given a dharma name by their teacher when they enter a sangha, or community.
The new moniker widely distinguishes the bearer as a spiritual adept and is supposed to work in concert with the believer's spiritual goals.
